Hayley and Mommy Time

Just a few cute pics from Hayley and Mommy playing around the house. We have been enjoying our time together when I am off. Having gone back to work full-time has been such a big change. Though I really miss spending all the time with Hayley, we seem to enjoy and appreciate our time together recently even more!!!


Hayley and Mommy


Hayley looking like a little Princess :-)

Playgroup Christmas Party with Santa ...

Santa came to visit play group again this year, and what a difference a year makes!!! All of the kids, now just about 3 years old, were very ready for Santa's visit this time. They all sat and waited for Santa to arrive, then each took their turn sitting in Santa's lap to tell him what they would like for Christmas. Afterwards, they all sat at Santa's feet to sing a couple of Christmas carols and receive their gift and candy cane. Of course, us moms were ready with our cameras flashing away!!! Here are a few pics to share!


All of our friends waiting for Santa to arrive



Hayley, Lily and Rylie anxiously wait to tell Santa what they want for Christmas



Rylie had to show Hayley that Santa wasn't so bad after all!




Hayley sitting on Santa's lap (and not crying this year!!!)

Just a Cute Pic

Hayley is growing up so fast .. just had to post this cute pic that I got of her when she was sitting under neath the Christmas tree playing with her new train set that goes around the base of the tree!

Thanksgiving in San Angelo

Well, I have been a bit slow on updating lately .. sorry! Things have been awfully busy around here. We did manage to find time to go out to San Angelo for Thanksgiving to visit Charlie's grandmother, Ginny, for the holiday. Here is a pic of Charlie, Hayley and Ginny. She really enjoyed the visit from all of us. Getting to see her 2 great-granddaughters was a real treat!!!

Hayley's A Pirate!

Hayley had so much fun on Halloween night! We went to Nana and Gramps' house to go trick-or-treating around their neighborhood. Hayley drug mommy and daddy down two blocks plus some of another street. She loved going up to the door, ringing the doorbell and saying Trick or Treat! We had to empty her bag once because it was overflowing with candy. I think she really liked Halloween this year!

Halloween With My Preschoolers

The kids at work had so much fun on Halloween all dressed up in their costumes. They went trick-or-treating at the nursing home next door and put a smile on the faces of the elderly!

At the nursing home trick-or-treating:

Mrs. Oliver's Pre-School Class comes through our room:

My little Beginner 2A's!!!

Halloween With our Playgroup Friends

Here is Hayley dressed up with some of her playgroup friends for our Friday playdate last week.

Working Full-Time

Well, Mommy's new job has turned into a new career! I have enjoyed working with the children so much ... the school had a need for a new full-time teacher in their younger 2's classroom, and I felt the calling to step in and say "yes". So, I will begin on Monday working from 8:15am - 5:15pm teaching the younger 2's at the Merryhill School of Plano. I am really excited about this new venture, and I am right where I want to be. I didn't really think I would go back to work, but I don't even look at this as a job. It is a lot of fun, and I absolutely love working with the children there. I can actually say "I love my job!"

Hayley is still going to continue in her school at The Heights CDC on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She will go with me in the afternoons to work and all day on Fridays. On other days, she will be home with Daddy. I think she is excited about this new adjustment as well!

Pumpkin Patch Again ... With our Playgroup Friends

Today we went to the Big Orange Pumpkin Patch once again, but this time with our playgroup friends. We had so much fun feeding the animals, riding the hayride and picking out our pumpkins.


Hayley with her pumpkins.

All my playgroup friends.

Emma, Rylie and Hayley

Picking Pumpkin

Hayley & Emma on the hayride.

Hayley & Emma in the pumpkin patch.

Mommy's New Job

Mommy got a new part-time job! I am now working in the afternoon at the Merryhill School in Plano from 2:45p - 6:15p working with the 3 and 4 year olds in their after-school program. Hayley goes with me most days and has her own classroom that she goes to during the hours that I am there. I have really enjoyed it this week, my first week, and hope to continue enjoying it as well! :-) I have had to brush up on my Spanish and my sign-language skills a bit lately though. It is a lot of fun.

To The Pumpkin Patch

Today, we went out to the Big Orange Pumpkin Patch at Bill Bates' Cowboy Ranch in Celina. It is one of the smaller pumpkin patches around here, but it was still fun. The girls all got to feed the animals, go on a hayride and pick out their own little souvenir pumpkin to take home. We had a picnic lunch under the trees and enjoyed the nice breeze before it got too hot! It was a fun day for all.

Our Korean Friends

Throughout the summer and into this week, we have had two girls, age 9, from Korea staying with us on the weekend. They are over here visiting since June. Claudia is a friend of mine's niece, and Christina is her friend. They came to study American culture and to experience life in America. They have been staying with Soony, Claudia's aunt, during the week and attending a Montessori school here in Plano. On many of the weekends, they have stayed with us to see how other American families live. We have the pleasure of having them stay with us from Saturday to Thursday this week since they are on Fall Break from school. They will be returning to Korea this coming Saturday.

Yesterday, we ventured out to Canton to my mom's shop so that they could experience some real shopping and fun! We all had a great time. Today, we pretty much stayed around the house for a day of rest, and played outside a little this evening when it was a bit cooler. We will be doing many more activities this week, and will be sure to share pics from all of those!

Family Time

At the beach, we had the opportunity to spend some very quality family time together.

A Week At the Beach ...

This past week, we spent some time down at the beach on the Texas Gulf Coast. Hayley loves the beach! We stayed in a beachfront cabin and enjoyed playing in the sand, flying kites, visiting with family, eating tons and tons, playing games, and most of all relaxing!

Being Silly!

Just some recent pics of Hayley ...

MOPS

We started our MOPS group this past Monday, and all that I can say is that I absolutely LOVE it!! I have been blessed with finding an amazing group of women to get to know and grow friendships with. We had a wonderful speaker on Monday about realationships and how to be a wonderful mother and wife.

Hayley seemd to especially enjoy her little MOPPETTS group, as the teacher in the room was one of her teachers from school last year. There is also another little girl in there that was in her class last year. The kids will be learning memory verses and doing a craft to correspond with each one.

Hayley Back to School!

Hayley is back to school, and I don't know who is loving it more ... Hayley or Mommy!!! We really like her teachers this year. Hayley seems to have already adjusted as she practically leaves me standing in her dust at the door to her classroom.

There are several of the kiddos from last year in her class again this year, so she is making some good little friends. They are learning a lot of neat stuff, and Mommy and Daddy really enjoy getting her wonderful, beautiful "artwork" each day!!!

Gearing Up for the Fall

Hayley will be starting back up in the Mother's Day Out preschool program at The Heights mid-August. This year, she will be going 2 days a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We have also joined MOPS (mother's of preschoolers) and MOPPETTS at the church, which will be held the 2nd and 4th Monday of every month. As if that was not enough to keep us busy, we joined the Community Bible Study for me and for her on Wednesday mornings. Whew, just typing it makes me think about how busy we will be! Of course, we still have our playgroup that meets every Friday morning that we have been in since she was 2 months old. My how all of the little kiddos have changed!!!! I will be sure to keep you updated on all of these events and how everything is going!

I'm A BIG Girl Now!!!

Recently, we changed Hayley's room into a big girl room with a full size bed. We converted her crib into the big bed, added some new bedding, painted the walls a beautiful pink and dark chocolate brown, and voila! There are still a few finishing touches left to add like making some pillows for the bed, maybe a dust ruffle and some window treatments ... but, for now, it is a room fit for a very quickly growing up little girl. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy ...