Carving Captured

Madelyn very proud of her pumpkin


Counting glowing triangles



"EWWHHH....Yucky Strings!"

Paris, Texas Pumkin Festival

Tonight, Madelyn with the help of Daddy got to carve her first pumpkin. I really thought she might be more into the carving and scoping out of the pumpkin. Rather I had to cox her to reach in and touch the seeds. Madelyn's first response was "EEEHHWW....yucky strings" and wanted nothing to do with touching any of the pumpkin innards. However, the final result has captured her attention. She was quite fascinated by the glowing triangles. She repeatedly would count all the triangles and then say "Yeah, Madelyn...Good Girl!"

Pumpkin Farm

Madelyn & Mommy

Climbing through the

pumpkin patch

Kaelin, Madelyn and Keenan

Smiling Beauty

Best Buddies

Climbing Monkey

Our Cute Pumkin

Feed Me!

Madelyn, Cooper & Kaelin

It's finally beginning to feel more like Fall. Today we took advantage of the beautiful weather and went with our moms group from church to the Owen's Spring Creek Pumpkin Farm. The farm is actually the original site for Owen's Country Sausage and is tucked in between several large several buildings in Richardson. We had a great time on the hay ride, we got to to feed the animals at the petting zoo, have a picnic lunch with all of our friends and frolic through the pumpkin patch. Madelyn picked out her pumpkin and tonight she is going to carve her first pumpkin. She is very excited to have her own "orange pun-kin" and every time she walks by it, she says, "that's Madelyn's pumpkin, not mommy's.", but I bet she will be thrilled to see the finished product.

As excited she was about the pumkins and animals, Madelyn got to see her long time partner in crime, Cooper. Madelyn and Cooper are only 3 weeks apart and have become the best of friends and realy could pass for brother-sister. For the past two days, all she would talk about was going to bye-bye to see Cooper and Ms. Jenny. She loves Ms. Jenny and is always wanting to see them, so today was a real treat for her. Of course, we also got to see few other good friends and it just amazes me to watch our children interact and grow up togther. We are truely blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends!

Michael's Miraculous Recovery

Michael is now six days post-op and is starting to feel much better. He had some problems with a lot of neck swelling, which has made rather difficult for him to get comfy and fall asleep. But with the aide of his nifty bell, Michael is well on the road to recovery. Michael and I were fortunate enough to have his mom Judy here to help nurse him back and to look after Madelyn. Madelyn really liked having her "Ninny" here to spoil her. The constant attention of having a playmate at her beck and call for an entire week has left her starved for attention, now that Ninny has gone home. So now we affectionately keep hearing the same question over and over again, "Where did Ninny go?", "I want Ninny to read to me", "I want Ninny to hold me!" Its going to take Madelyn a while to get back into her normal routine.

Michael's miraculous recovery came the night his mom left to head back to Abilene and all of the sudden that night he felt so much better and just wanted to be up and doing things around the but house. He is feeling better, but you can just tell his energy level have a way to go before I would consider him normal again (all in relative terms).

Thank you all for calling to check up on us and for your many prayers!

Michael Goes Under the Knife

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

Michael had surgery this morning at Presbyterian of Allen to remove his tonsils, adenoids and some work done his nasal turbinates, all in hope of improving his sleep apnea. I know that Michael was pretty nervous this morning, but the first verse that I read this morning while he was in surgery was Isaiah 41:10. I already knew he had a great doctor, as she previously performed Madelyn's surgery last March. But when I read that verse, it gave me a great sense of peace.

After the surgery, Dr. Champion came back to let us know how he was doing and she said that Michael's tonsils were the largest she has ever seen... a record size for the hospital.

To ease Michael's recovery, I got him a large cow bell and personalized it with some doctor/medical embellishments and his name with "Michael's room service bell". His mom Judy told me that I should have put "Temporary" room service.

Of course we all want Michael to have a speedy recovery, but I think that our Bible Fellowship class, best summed up the prayer request by praying thatMichael uses the bell wisely!

We'll keep you update and thank you for your prayers!

The Big Orange Pumkin Patch

Our Fall Fun Family Picture

Our pumpkin picked out her perfect pumpkin

The Pumkin is bigger than Madelyn!

Feeding the goats Madelyn said "EEEHHWWW!

Michael, Madelyn and Myself had a fun family outing to the Big Orange Pumkin Patch. We had gone last year and had good time, but this year was so much more fun. It was great to watch Madelyn get excited when she recognized a pumkin, she would point to every pumpkin and say "Look, Orange Pumkin", and there were many pumpkins in the pumpkin patch. But she got the greatest kick out of the Petting Zoo animals! She was a little hestitant about the cow, especially after she got slimed by it's nose; but she really liked the goats. Maybe because they were more her size or they looked like Bailey the Beagle, but she would just laugh when they came up to her. At one point a goat was trying to munch on the embellishment on her dress, she quickly yelled no and tugged on its ears...I think the goat learned it's lesson. We all had a great time on the hay ride and picking out our own pumkins.

"Where Did Grammie Go?"

Madelyn & Grammie always have fun together!

More Kisses!

All giggles at Grampa K house

Blowing Kisses

Jump, Jive and Booging at Trail Dust

Madelyn and Grammie at the Arboretum

"Where did Grammie Go" is a phrase we often hear lately. My mom came for a visit last weekend and ever since then is Madelyn's favorite question. Madelyn loves her Grammie and when she visits, Madelyn wants Grammie to do everything. "Grammie read book (to) me", "Grammie hold you (which is really hold me)", "Grammie walk buggy (take me for a ride in the wagon)". Michael and I really do love having grandparents visit, because we get to par take in things we used to take for granted like eating a warm meal with both hands and not one hand holding the kid and the other hand trying to keep items away from the kid in between quick bites. Being in the bathroom by yourself...no explanation needed and just one night off from bath time duty of soar knees and elbows. And all the cool clothes and toys they bring to spoil the grand kid!

Harris Family Pictures

Our great friends Josh and Jenn Cobbs did a huge favor and took some family and fun pictures for us in his professional home studio. We felt like super models, as we even got a few costume changes!

Everyone knows that Michael is an Aggie fanatic, so to further feed his indulgence I temporarily swapped my Austin College tee shirt for some Aggie paraphernalia I had hidden in the back of my closet; and we took some family Aggie pictures. To add to the cutness Madelyn and Cooper had matching ATM shirts and we got some adorable pictures of the two togther. Cooper even made it into our family picture and he just naturally fits in so well. We offered to keep him, but Josh and Jenny just coulnd't give him up--understandably!

Jen's Bridal Shower

My dearest, bestest and college roommate Jen is about to become Mrs. Chad Duncan. She is having an Elvis inspired wedding in Las Vegas and I'm the Matron of Honor, which means I get to go too! Matron of Honor---that sounds so old, oh wait, I'm 30 now, what I'm I talking about!! Anyways we had a "Lucky in Love" bridal shower for Jen and had a blast!
I got to test my cake making abilities and use fondant to make the cake. It cleverly says "What a Pair"... cute huh? One of the shower games we played was called "What are the Odds?" Jen had to wear an apron that had a bunch of kitchen accessories from her registry attached to it and then paraded around the living room for a minute and then the guest had to recall as many of the gadgets they could remember. She strikes such a good pose!

Hand Caught in the Cookie Jar

While getting ready for my freind Jen's Bridal Shower, Madelyn was caught with her hand in the Cookie Jar...ok the party mix. She had pushed the chair out and climbed on top of the table and started to help her to some white chocolate party mix. Needless to say that she really likes the stuff!

Grampa K

We recently got to visit Grampa K in Georgetown. We always have fun visiting with him and only wish we could see him more often..especially Bailey! Here is a picture of Madelyn with her Great Grampa. I can't believe that he is old enough to a great Gramps, because I can still vividly remember my summers with him and Grams in Ohio. We had so much fun together, and I can only hope that Madelyn will have such fond memories of her grandparents. Gramps is an awesome man. He is a great role model as a father and grandpa...Look at what you have done Gramps....could you have ever imagined that your family would turn out so successful in all their achievements. Thanks for being such a great patriarch. We love you!