Where's the beef?

Apparently Mallory looked more like the Wendy's girl than Raggedy Ann??? At least that is what a guy thought as we were walking up to the Fall Festival! Maybe it's because she wouldn't wear her wig/hat until the last 5 minutes of the Fall Festival and the pigtails threw him off!

Here's our cute Raggedy Ann earlier tonight:

And, since we missed out on a pumpkin patch this year, I'll have to just reminisce from last year. Here's Mallory at 4 months old. (A little shout out to Sara Cook for taking such cute pictures of Mallory over the last year and a half!!)

A fun weekend!

We had a busy, but very fun weekend! It started off on Friday morning with a Halloween party. Our playgroup got all the kids together (in their costumes) for some cupcakes, treat bags and Mexican food. I ate 2 of the BEST caramel apples I think I have ever had! I love holidays!!!

Mallory went as Raggedy Ann. She wasn't a fan of the yarn hat, so we did pigtails instead. But, she was a cute Raggedy Ann and enjoyed all of the sugar!!

This picture cracks us up. Mallory's always had some long legs and big feet (genes from mom and dad), but the striped socks and black shoes really accentuate them!

An attempt at a group pictures. We couldn't get them all to look at the same time (or smile for that matter)...imagine that! We are also missing 3 of the smaller babies and one "Bob the Builder" who didn't want to sit down! There were 13 kids and 8 adults...we were way outnumbered!

Here are 2 of the 3 smaller babies. So sweet!

After the festivities, we both took a nap and headed out to Brad's soccer games. We beat McMurry 5-0 and then beat Hardin Simmons on Saturday 1-0. That is the first time since 1994 that UMHB has beat HSU! Woo hoo! We also got to spend some time with Aunt LaShay and Uncle Steve and Mallory's Temple grandparents, Steve's parents. UMHB is headed to the ASC tournament this weekend for the second year in a row. I'm so proud of Brad!!

Here's a cute video of the future soccer star!

Mallory in one of her "new" dresses. I say "new" because I went shopping a while back at a friend's house. She was consigning all of her little girls clothes and I got a sneak preview before she sold them all. I was able to snag about 3 outfits for Mallory and 5 for Morgan! Yes, this ensemble is a little over the top. Brad asked me if it was a costume when she walked out of her room on the way to church! I just can't resist little girls tights with dresses!

Super busy, but super fun! Now we have to get geared up for the big tournament and Halloween!

Progress!

I realize it may not look like much progress to most of you, but to me, it's HUGE! I will probably get in trouble from the hubby since I took apart the bed myself (it wasn't really that heavy), but it's worth it. I was in the mood for some nesting this afternoon. Instead of napping when Mallory napped, I got busy in Morgan's room!

I almost hate to do it since it will probably freak me out, but here is a list (in no particular order)of what we have left to do before Thanksgiving:

*Paint the room! Right now, I'm thinking the yellow on the far left.

*Find a changing table/armoire/dresser combination...a trip to IKEA is in the making.

*Make her bedding! I have the fabric, it's just a matter of sitting down and spending the time to do it. The real booger is going to be the shade for the arch window. I'm pretty much dreading doing that, but will hopefully be happy when it's over. If it costs less than $750 (the ridiculous quote I got from Home Depot for a faux wood covering) and keeps the light out, I don't care what it looks like!!

*Get all of Mallory's baby clothes and "baby supplies" down from the attic and go through them to figure out if any of them will work for a December baby.

*Christmas shopping! I have only bought one gift so far...I have a ways to go.

I think that is enough, although I'm sure there is more that I am blocking out of my head right now. Less than 8 weeks to go. My mom wasn't funny yesterday when she said she thought Morgan would come early...not funny at all!

ACU Homecoming and friends!

I love any excuse to go back to Abilene. It will always feel like home to me (although I did forget the shortcuts to a lot of places in the short year I've been gone). Brad and I both loved our college years and then the 4 years we spent as a married couple in Abilene. There is just something about it.

And, there is something about ACU. Except for the debt (!), I don't regret the decision to go to ACU at all! It was such a pivotal time in my life and I have some really great memories of it. Even with all of that said, I was really nervous about going back this year for my 5 year reunion. Would people remember me, would I remember them? Would I be embarrassed if I remembered them, and they didn't remember me? I could already feel the redness starting in my face just thinking about it last week! But, it turned out great. And I'm so glad I went. The weekend was so much fun and it was a blessing to catch up with old roommies and other friends there. Brad was glad he had soccer games away this weekend so he didn't have to go! Poor guy. He is usually just following me around wherever we go and doesn't know anyone. This time it was Brooke's hubby Michael that had to withstand a 2 hour dinner at a table full of girls! Sorry Michael. But thanks for helping me keep Mallory entertained!!

I will say, blogging put a new spin on Homecoming this year. I will admit I look at a lot of blogs of people I really don't know personally. I say look because "blog stalking" sounds really creepy to me!! Anyway. Most of the people's blogs I look at are friends of my friends, or at least people I knew of at school...that makes it okay, right? A bunch of us were laughing about how we feel like we really know people just because of their blogs, when in fact, we probably never even knew their name while we were at school. I had to remind myself of that a few times. "No, you can't go up and ask about so and so, you don't really know them!!" I was relieved at the same time to hear that other people do it too.

GATA breakfast, pledge class of 1999

College roommies! So fun to see them, and their babies again. We had our own little "reunion" back in February. Since then, 1 baby was born and there are 2 more on the way in December! Brooke, I'm so mad we forgot to get belly shots together!!!!

Here are some of the kiddos at the parade: Caleb, Ella and Mallory in the back. Hayden and Faith in the front. It took a couple of times to get the majority of them to even look at us!

And, the other friends. I stayed with my BFF Kara and her family over the weekend. What a blessing to have friends that open their home to me and Mallory (sorry about all the estrogen Tim!!). Here is Kaylee striking a pose for me before church. For some reason, I didn't get any pictures of Brooke and Mallory together. It's always fun to see them side by side since they are only 11 days apart.

More friends at lunch after church! This is Chris, Sarah and Noelle. Noelle was another one born last summer. She and Mallory are about 6 weeks apart. So fun!

So much fun! I was off my normal routine of an afternoon nap every day (sigh), so I was pretty wiped out when we got home on Sunday. But, we had a blast and I can't believe it's already been 5 years since college. I'm getting so old.

She's coming...whether we are ready or not!

62 days. Are you kidding? Didn't I just find out that I was pregnant yesterday?? That little ticker is starting to annoy me now! I am running out of time to get stuff done. I thought for sure that I would be on top of everything this time around. But no. Morgan's room still looks like a junk room. I haven't picked out the color for the walls....which means the wall aren't painted. The fabric has been bought, but is sitting on the bed waiting to be made into a bumper and curtains. And, on top of all that, I still have Christmas shopping to do! I have never been one to set a lot of goals (probably because I know I won't complete the tasks!), but maybe it would be a good idea to set a date of completion for Morgan's room. That way I'm held accountable by my blog to get it done. How about Thanksgiving? That seems reasonable and it leaves enough time left over until she gets here....hopefully. Yikes!

Becoming an official toddler

My dad, or "Ba-Pa" as Mallory calls him (can't quite get Grandpa out yet), requested some new video of Mallory walking. Seeing as she has gotten better at that and learned a brand new word, I thought I'd share 2 videos!

This one is sideways (sorry), but she is walking up to our front door after we checked the mail one day. This has turned into our little routine. After she gets up from her nap, we head outside check the mail and see her mommy get freaked out by the gecko that is ALWAYS in our mailbox ready to run across your hand when you reach in to grab the mail. D-I-S-G-U-S-T-I-N-G! Anyway. She loves to go outside now and always wants to go back after we come in. It's still pretty hot, so I try to distract her with toys or something else...is that mean? Oops.

The second video is cute (I'll admit it), but already has become the "naughty word" in our house. She literally started mimicking me a couple of weeks ago when I would tell her not to touch the trash can or the oven. We thought it was cute...at first. Within 2 days, she learned several ways to say the word and how to use it in the right situation. She's even added a "cute" little dance routine to the word on occasion (my sister in law calls it an "Indian Rain Dance" when my niece does it). Mallory is now 16 months. Isn't that kind of early to have such sass?? We've started spelling the word in front of her so she doesn't hear it as often and we've started asking her to say "Yes!". Both tricks seem to be helping....occasionally. Brad's parents were in town for soccer 2 weekends ago and got to see the word in action. Larry's line at the end of the video is great!

Tagged, again!

This one is from Alison, and I was told (by the subject of this tag) I couldn't put it on my blog...ooopsies!

The Game of Tag about your MAN:

1. Who is your man? Brad

2. How long have you been together? Dated 1 year, 9 months, engaged 11 months, married 5 years

3. How long dated? Oops, see above.

4. How old is your man? The big 3-0

5. Who eats more? Brad, he's got a never ending pit in his stomach...our moms love it!

6. Who said "I love you" first? I did, sort of. We were sitting on his couch in his apartment when his roommate came home talking about how he didn't want to just date a girl just to date her. We pondered on that and I told him I thought I was falling in love with him and didn't want to waste my time if I knew it wasn't going to be serious, he agreed!

7. Who is taller? Brad, he's 6'4 and I'm 5'7

8. Who sings better? Brad, but he won't admit it. He sang in his sister's wedding 4 years ago and his mom keeps asking him to sing again. It won't ever happen again. I, on the other hand, had to lip sync in Sing Song at ACU (they only wanted me for my moves) and I do the same in church sometimes!

9. Who is smarter? Brad would probably say me, but I would say both of us in different ways.

10. Whose temper is worse? Brad. He doesn't have much patience. But I can get irritated pretty fast.

11. Who does the laundry? Me...most of the time. Brad is sweet and helps out when it gets out of control or if he needs something before a trip.

12. Who takes out the garbage? Brad, unless he's out of town or there is something really smelly in the trash.

13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? If you are looking at our bed from the foot, then I sleep on the right side...always have, even before I shared a bed.

14. Who pays the bills? I do.

15. Who is better with the computer? I don't think either one of us would ever be called "computer savvy", but I type faster (and better) than him.

16. Who mows the lawn? Brad, but I have offered on multiple occasions. I think it would be fun to make the lines in the grass (see previous post about vacuuming). He really enjoys doing yard work.

17. Who cooks dinner? Me, although Brad can make some good spaghetti and breakfast tacos!

18. Who drives when you are together? Brad, he doesn't prefer "woman drivers". I'm going to get in trouble for typing that!

19. Who pays when you go out? Technically Brad, since he makes the dinero...but I keep the cash, so I physically pay.

20. Who is most stubborn? We are both stubborn, but I guess I will admit I am a teensy bit more.

21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Probably Brad. See above.

22. Whose parents do you see the most? Probably both sets almost equal (at least when we are together). I'll see mine more often when it's just me and Mallory. We see his more often during soccer season.

23. Who kissed who first? He kissed me first and had to wait a LONG time to do so!

24. Who asked who out? Brad did, but I invited my friend Lori along to what I thought was an innocent dinner at his apartment. Needless to say, Lori skedaddled pretty fast when she saw there was a candle lit! Thanks Lori!

25. Who proposed? Brad, in the DFW airport...one of the most romantic and fun days of our relationship!

26. Who is more sensitive? Totally me, hands down.

27. Who has more friends? Brad has more "best friends" and I have more acquaintances with a handful of close friends.

28. Who has more siblings? Brad, 1 brother and 1 sister

29. Who wears the pants in the family? Brad. It's most obvious when dealing with Mallory. He can make instant tears when he gets onto her...she just laughs at me!

I tag anyone who wants to spill the beans about their guy!