15 months and growing

Christian is growing so FAST. Everyday he does something new that amazes me.

Christian's FAVORITES...
Food...Mandarin Oranges (dislikes Mac-n-cheese)
Comfort Item...Blanket from his Great Grandmother Memaw
Toy...Animals and Dinosaurs and Kayla's Pink Princes Chair
Past Time...Drawing (ask to draw at least 5 times a day)

Christian's NEWEST WORDS...
Ball, Draw, Fish, Down, Done, and even Giraffe

Christian's HATES...
Not getting his way

Christian's PERSONALITY...
Loves to laugh, play, and cuddle. Only when he is tired or hunger does he make a fuss.

Shower Time

I was about to take a shower and look what I found waiting for me...

Egh, what is that smell?

We just got back from visiting my parents at their new beach house in Corpus Christi. The trip down there was a horrible drive. The last hour was nothing but screaming from a very grumpy little boy. Once we got there, the trip was great. Wednesday evening, Kayla got to fish with her grandaddy. Watching her sit on my dad's lap waiting for a fish to bite reminded me of the wonderful memories I have fishing with him. That night the kids went down fairly easy. Kayla insisted on sleeping on the top bunk. So, I laid in bed most of the night worried that she would try to get out on her own. Surprisingly, she did not make a sound all night. The next morning, Kayla woke up at 7am (and if you know my child that is really early for her). First thing out of her mouth, "I am ready to go to the beach!" By 8:30, we were playing in the sand. She had a blast. Kayla jumped the waves, tried to build a sand castle, enjoyed a mud bath, and loved digging for Coquina clams. Christian enjoyed himself also. He loved playing in the sand and helping Kayla find clams. He learned real quick not to try and eat the sand. After several hours in the sun, we headed to the Texas Aquarium and then out to fish some more. While fishing Kayla caught a very unusual snapper. My dad reaction, "Wow!" Kayla's reaction, "Holy Cow!" Too cute. The kids were EXHAUSTED that night. They both fell asleep fast and slept all night (two nights in a row...what a blessing when you are traveling). The next morning we were off to the beach again. This time we did not get there at 8:30am instead 10am. We stayed a couple of hours, cleaned up and then headed back to Georgetown. The kids slept most of the way home. It was a VERY nice and quiet trip home. It has taken several days to recoup and get back to our normal daily routine. We all had a wonderful time. Wonderful memories were made. It was great watching the kids experience the beach and see my parents. I look forward to going back soon.


**During the trip, it never failed as soon as we got in the car and headed over the bridge to Padre Isle, Kayla asked "Egh, what is that smell?" The first couple of times, I explained to her that it was the seaweed from the ocean. Even though she knew,she still asked EVERY time.

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Do the Booty Dance!

The kids and I packed up the car and drove to McKinney, Texas to visit family a couple of weeks ago. What a great time. The kids got to see their cousins, Jonah and Meredith. Kayla and Jonah played so well together. I love the fact that they are so close in age and really enjoy being around one another. The two played on the computer, ate popcorn, watched a movie or two, dug for dinosaurs at the Dallas Museum of Nature and Science (which was an adventure...check out The Daily Stroll Blog for more details), dressed up as firemen at the Dallas Children's Museum, went swimming and wore each other out.

During our stay in McKinney, we ventured to an awesome water park one of the days. Christian actually stayed at the house with Uncle Jerod while Kayla, Jonah, Monda and I headed out for a day in the sun. For the first time, Kayla went under water on her own and began swimming. WOW! I was so proud of her. She was so excited. (Thanks Jonah for helping her overcome her fear) Once she got the hang of it, it was no stopping her. Jonah and her went down the slide, swam the lazy river, and swam under the water trying to get various objects. After several hours of fun, we headed back home. Monda and I figured they would pass out on the way home. As we got closer to home, we decided to stop for yogurt since they were still up. We each got a bowl of some yummy yogurt topped with gummy bears, sprinkles and cookies. As we ate our treat, the kids decided to start dancing and singing in the middle of the yogurt shop....."Do the Booty dance, booty dance!" Yes, they were the center of attention. Too cute! I so wish I had a video camera to capture the priceless memories. The kids never fell asleep for a nap that day. Yes, it was an early night. We were ALL exhausted. The next day the kids went swimming while I packed up the car to head back home. Once they returned we headed back to Georgetown. Before we even made it out of McKinney, both Christian and Kayla passed out (Thank you Uncle Jerod and Lauran). Good sign that they had a great time.

14 month old and a three year old...

The kids are growing so fast...

Christian is into EVERYTHING. He loves to get into the bathroom drawers and tries everything out. He will put on my headbands. He tries to brush his hair. But his favorite thing is to get hold of the toothbrushes and toothpaste and he tries to brush his teeth. I don't know how many toothbrushes I have lost. One day I will find them all. Christian has a very competitive personality. He loves to race. Ready, Set and Go and he is off running. And he will keep going. Christian is only 14 months and he eats more then me. Cereal bar and fruit for breakfast, a McDonald's cheeseburger and green beans for lunch, puffs and more puffs for snack, two hot dogs with broccoli and yogurt for dinner, and finally a graham cracker before bed (not to mention the two cups of milk at night). Where does he put all this food....I can only imagine what the teenage years are going to be like.

Kayla is growing up to fast. She is no longer my little baby girl. Instead, she is a very independent person. She wants to go everything herself (this causes problems at times). I did find out this summer that she has no interest in t-ball. We attended two games and three practices. After having to beg and plead for her to stay in the game or keep practicing, I figured it was a was not worth the struggle to keep her on the team. Starting in September, we are going to see about swim team and gymnastics. I am so looking forward for school to begin. Hopefully our schedules will get back on track. When summer school ended a couple of weeks ago, Kayla decided that her bed time was at 11pm and not 9pm. This has been killing me. I tried her afternoon nap out hoping that she would fall asleep at 9pm. No luck. You would think that she would sleep in since she goes to bed so late. No...8am she wakes up ready to go. What happened to my child that would sleep from 9:30pm-9a.m and took a 2-3hour nap? Jon tells me it is the Schneider genes that kick in at night and keep her up.

Weekly update...

My intention is to post something at least once (if not twice) a week. However, with two kids running around constantly, working (on a per needed basis) and trying to get back in shape has left very little quiet time for me. The quiet time that I do have tends to be me cleaning the house (okay I admit...Facebook is the culprit).

So what have we been up to....play dates at the various water parks around town (a must in this heat), school (two days a week) for Kayla, and more water activities. I tried to get Kayla to stick with t-ball this summer. However, after leaving in the middle of several practices and one game, I called it quites. I had a hard time deciding if we should stick with it or not. I want to teach Kayla that when she starts something she needs to finish it. But, getting two kids packed up, driving 20 minutes to practice, unloading the kids, standing around in 104 degree heat, and only staying ten minutes is exhausting and not fun. So when Kayla said she did not want to play t-ball, for selfish reasons I decided not to push the "if you start something you need to finish" speech.

The kiddos playing together and having a good time. Finally!!

My little boy...loves being outside.

My little girl, my princess.

What a smile!

What a great weekend...

This weekend Jon's brother and his family came to visit. Jonah, Kayla's cousin, and Kayla wore each other out. They have such a great time together. I love the fact that they are so close in age. They are now at the age were the two can go and play without one of us (adult) there entertaining them. Christian wanted to be in the mix and did not understand why he could not hang with them. He gave it his best shot. Soon, he to will be running around with them. Kayla loved seeing baby Meredeth. Her motherly instinct came out several times when Meredeth was awake. I love when they come down. However, dieting is a definite each time they come to visit. Two (yes two) Blizzards, pizza, and fried chicken do not make for a healthy weekend or good for a mother that is trying to get back to pre-pregnancy weight. Oh well...you have to enjoy yourself. What a great weekend.

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