Ahhhh...vacation!!

(Our first family vacation photo! - Indian Rocks Beach, FL)

(Matney loved the playground)

We finally made it to our long awaited vacation to Florida and boy, oh, boy was it what we ever needed. We had been looking forward to beautiful, warm Florida weather and it did not disappoint. Every day dawned bright and sunny and was the perfect weather for walking on the beach or lounging on the patio with a cold drink in my hand. The nights were cool and peaceful as we took our caravan of kids on a walk almost nightly for dinner. God knew what he was doing when he told people to "rest"; as five days of no agenda or deadline to meet, met this strung out employee and Momma with a smile and a thank you!

Vacation apparently agreed with Matney as she was in great spirits the entire time and enjoyed soaking up the sun as well as some extra attention from her cousins and her Auntie Ab (they came to an understanding on this trip that Auntie Ab is the best auntie ever and Matney's feelings for her really started to grow).

We had a great time on our first family vacation and came home feeling refreshed and relaxed.

Big Red Tractor!

Matney took her first tractor ride with Papa G a few weeks ago while daddy was on his "man trip" to Kentucky. We decided since Daddy was gone we would move in to Nannie B and Papa's house for a few days and have them take care of us.

Several of the days we were there it was fairly nice out so we were able to play outside. Matney loves to be outdoors and was a pro on the tractor, the tire swing, and checking out the cows. She got so excited when she saw the cows following us in the field and kept yelling out for them and pointing. I think Papa G (and Nannie B) was pretty proud that his only granddaughter is turning out to be quite the tomboy!

This is not saving us money!

Toilet paper is pretty expensive as most people know and we usually spend several minutes in the toilet paper aisle contemplating which kind to buy that is either on sale or maybe a little cheaper but won't kill you. Lately, we have been going through more of it due to a little lady named Matney who is extremely busy ALL THE TIME! This is how we found her one day when it got very very quiet in the house...

Matney's First Snowman

Several weeks ago when we had so much snow for so long, it finally warmed up enough one day to take Matney out to play. It took forever to bundle her up, but she was a good sport the entire time and was so excited to be outside. The snow was just right so we went out to the field by the pond and built her first snowman. She wasn't really sure what to think about it and spent most of her time just laying in the snow trying to figure out how to move around!

Such a good helper

(Resting after perusing trough all the tupperware)

(Attacking Bella)

(Helping Mommy organize her files)



Matney is very busy lately helping with everything or trying to get in to everything! You never know what you will find when you walk in to a room. The other day we thought it sounded very quiet in the kitchen where we left her for a few seconds; when we came back to the kitchen there was a fistful of cat food in her hand and headed to her mouth! Yucky!!



Even when she doesn't feel well she is still going almost full speed. She had another ear infection this week, her third one, but didn't let it faze her. She would go off and play for a few minutes and then come lay her head down on you to rest for a bit and fuss. With her ear infection came 3 nights of sleeping through the night. Momma and Daddy looooooved this, except for the nights I knew she had a fever, Momma didn't really sleep all night. She does seem to be a growin' girl these days as we are finally wearing 9-12 month clothes. At the doctor on Friday, she weighed 19 pounds 9 ounces fully clothed!

Mommyknapping and A Birthday

Thursday I celebrated my 27th birthday! Leading up to the day and even after, I didn't really feel like it was my birthday; I guess that is part of aging. I was blessed to celebrate my special day over a series of days to make it even more special.

Several weeks ago, I was literally kidnapped by my mom and sister for the weekend. I had absolutely no idea what was going on and was dressed in my lazy, work around the house clothes when my mom walked in the door. I had successfully brushed my hair and teeth that morning as well as putting on makeup because I was going to take the recycling to town while Brandon took Matney with him to the vet clinic. Little did I know that he was in on it (honey, next time tell me to take a shower when I get out of bed, but keep the rest a secret!) When Mom walked in all dressed up I was shocked and began to wonder what was up. She wouldn't tell me a thing! She ordered me to get dressed and pack a bag and that is all I go!! (how does one pack a bag without further information? and thus to reason for the lack of pictures-I was told not to take my camera) That is all I got until we were sitting at Hebr*ws Coffee in Springfield and they decided to tell me where we were going. They also told me they hadn't booked a hotel room but we were staying over night--they know I hate when they want to do that. The organizer in me needs to know where my I will be sleeping each night.

(taken from the balcony of our condo overlooking Branson Landing)

As the title states, this was a "Mommyknapping" of sorts! Mom and Abby had developed the idea as a test to see if I could be away from Matney for an extended period of time. It has become a tradition that the three of us go on a "girls" trip every few years and it is time to start planning our next adventure. They both knew that since I have become a mommy, I have a hard time leaving my girl, so they set up my challenge. I actually think I did very well for the 36 hours that we were gone. I only called a few times to check on M and every time I got the vibe she didn't really even know I was gone.

(Our condo before dinner! Mom sweet talked the hotel in

to giving us a wonderful room)

Thank you Mom and Abby for the wonderful time in Branson and all the yummy food and shopping we did. I can't wait for Abby's birthday!!

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My actual birthday was spent working all day. Thanks to the blizzard I was able to wear jeans to work in celebration of the day! That night Mom made yummy lasagna, salad, bread, and a 4-day cake for my family celebration. I was blessed to spend the evening with my parents, sister and brother in law, as well as my 3 silly but adorable nephews, and of course my amazing daughter and husband. We had a great time that evening and I was barely able to drag myself out of bed on Friday morning because I was so worn out!

Blizzard 2011

It's amazing how much difference a few days makes in Missouri. Last weekend we experienced near 70 degree weather on Saturday and this week we experienced the first blizzard in our lifetime; at least the only one I can remember. When they started calling for the blizzard I was a bit of a sceptic, but once I headed home from work on Tuesday morning at 9:45; I was finally confident in the weatherman's forecast. I should have known it would be bad when all the schools called off before it even started snowing! All this snow has made it seem like a lifetime ago that I sent an email to my coworkers and boss telling them of the impending blizzard. My boss proceeded to stick her head out of her office and ask if I was joking! Like I have time at work to make up such a story and the map graphics to go along with it.

(February 1, 2011)

Brandon thinks we received between 8 and 10 inches at our house. I am especially thankful for my new vehicle after all this snow. I was able to get around so easy and just plowed through the drifts like a little snow plow.

We are expecting more snow this weekend and in to next week so the next several days should be interesting. I am hoping our weekend is much more boring then last weekend as we were fighting a field fire all Saturday afternoon and had 5 fire trucks at our house at one time. I am hoping our weekend consists of staying at home and staying warm!