Baby Barnes (2): Gender Reveal

I was so excited that I could hardly sleep the night before we went to find out what Baby Barnes #2 would be.  My plan was for Emmy to go to daycare because I knew that I wanted the news to be a surprise for her and to be able to capture her reaction.

My plan was foiled when she woke up with a slight fever the morning of my appointment.  Instead of trying to Motrin her up, I got her dressed and took her with us.  Although she would have had more fun at school, I didn't want to take a chance that someone else might get sick right before Christmas...I know I'm a selfless angel. ;)

All morning I kept calling Bradley (in his own car) and trying to get him to tell me what he thought we were having.  He wouldn't commit to a guess, so I had to let it go.  For a long time, I had assumed that it must be a girl because my pregnancy didn't feel any different.  I was a little more tired, but I also had a three-year-old to chase after, so I thought that could account for that.

When we got to the doctor and finally found the right place, I was still trying to reconcile in my mind what my gut feelings were.  Then we went into the ultrasound room and flashes of our baby started shooting across the screen.  She paused for a moment to take a photo of the nose and lips, and in that instant I just knew that it was a boy.

We asked her not to say what the baby was out loud (since we didn't want Emmy to blurt out the news), so when she typed boy in on the screen, both of our faces lit up with smiles!

Below is a profile shot of our little man.  I didn't want to put the photo that said boy since it would seem to set a bad precedent if I plastered photos of his man parts on the internet...it might take some of the thunder out of my ranting if he ever does anything similar some day.



The lobby in the hospital had a pretty tree, so we took a quick group photo of our smiling faces before Bradley headed off to work.



Emmy and I headed in to my regular appointment, and Dr. Burrough's had a pink tree in the office.  Someone pointed out that that tree matched her outfit, so she needed a solo photo!



The next evening, we headed over to my parent's house to share the news with them (AND EMMY!).  I had racked my brain for something that would be fun and original, and I came up with nada.  All of the really cool things that I thought of would require time to create, and I was ready to shout the news from the rooftop.  We settled on a box full of balloons of the color of choice.  This was our best option because it was something that Emmy would easily recognize and get excited about too.







She was so excited when she saw the blue baloons come out of the box.  She had only just decided that morning that it would be okay to have a baby brother because Abby was having a brother.  My family was escatic if you can imagine.  This will be our first boy, and they are all ready for all things camo and Cowboys.







The next evening, we shared the news with our family at my Aunt Kathy's house.  I stayed up and created scratch off tickets for everyone for the reveal.





Let's just say that they were really excited about the news!!



Well, Baby Boy Barnes, you are already loved more than you will ever realize, and there are so many people that are excited to meet you.  Hopefully your Daddy and I will agree on a name soon, so I will have something other than BBB to call you.

Christmas Cookie Baking 2014

Every year during the Christmas season, I make sugar cookies.  I started this tradition after Bradley and I got married because I wanted something new for our little family.  This tradition has become 100 times more fun now that Emmy is old enough to help and be involved.  She loves to cook, and this year she really was helpful instead of just cute.

I mixed up all of the dough before she woke up.  Although I know she would have enjoyed helping with that part, time was of the essence and I knew the dough needed to chill for a few hours. 

I rolled out all of the dough, and she had a blast seeing which cookie cutters she could get to fit in the available space.  Did she fit as many as I could have?  No.  But she had a good time and maybe she worked on some problem solving skills along the way.





Once we had a batch in the oven, I prepped our cooling/decorating area.  I lined our table with freezer paper to minimize the sticky mess that we would have to clean later.  Please excuse the amazingness that is my outfit.  I decided that pajamas were the order of the day, so I was a little rough looking.


I love her little apron that we bought at the Christmas Mall.  It has Christmas stuff on one side and Aggies on the other.  What a great combo!


We had quite a task before us when it was all said and done.  We called in some reinforcements to help decorate.



Some people put a little more thought into their artistic creations, but they all tasted good.









We all had a great time, and more than just cookies were made that day.  I hope days like these are the things that Emmy will carry with her into her adult days, and the warm memories will remind her that she was loved.

Discovering Build-A-Bear

Christmas is a magical time of the year.  The stores are bustling, people are smiling, and there is an electric like feeling  in the air.  The magic of the Christmas season came to a head for this little girl because she finally got to experience the wonder that is Build-A-Bear Workshop.

We have passed the store in the mall before and she gazed on in delight and interest, but we have never come in because I knew it was one of those things that you can never undo. Once she knew the magic, it would be all downhill from there for my checkbook.

Well I am so very glad that we waited.  She had a fantastic time, and she was the absolute perfect age to enjoy it to the fullest.  If you have never been to BAB (that's what the cool kids are calling it), I will walk you through the steps.

First you choose which kind of stuffed animal that you want to adopt.  Ours came from the cheap end, but luckily my little tike wasn't old enough to realize that yet.



Next you wait in line to have your bear stuffed.  The child gets to push a button with their foot that frees the stuffing while a store helper puts it into the bear.  The final say in softness and huggabilty is given to the purchaser.



Then they went through this sweet little saying where you take the bears heart and put it to your nose, ears, and heart...Britt almost started to cry during that part.



Next came the fluffing station.  There were blow dryers and brushes so you could get your new friend looking just right.



Next came the expensive part--the wardrobe.  No bear could be complete without three or four expensive outfits to wear around the house.



She wanted like four hundred outfits, but she did a good job bringing it down to a more manageable (and affordable) number.



The last station is where you create a birth certificate for your bear.  The program is really kid friendly, so we only had to help her with the parts where information had to be typed.



She named her bear Stacey Bear Barnes.  I think it's a swell name although I was a little mad at my child for stealing her possible future sister's name.






One more pose out front with her new friend.



This was the best Christmas treat, and I have a feeling this won't be the only bear that gets adopted into our house.

December Fun

December is a really busy month for our family.  We have lots of traditional events that we attend every year and we throw in a random mix of parties and school functions just to add a little crazy.  Add in the fact that I had about 92 research papers to grade during this time period, and to say that we were a little busy would be a gross understatement.


On the first Saturday of the month, we headed out to the Christmas Mall to do a bit of local shopping.  Imagine our surprise and delight when we ran into Emmy's best friend!



That evening Brad and I headed out to a winery in Belville for his company's Christmas Party.  It was super fun, and the food was amazing!





The next week Emmy had her party at school complete with a book exchange.  This is the best Christmas tradition for a school in my opinion.



We went to a graduation party the following Saturday.  These two ladies fought tooth and nail for their degrees and emerged victorious!



That Sunday was our church's first Christmas play.  "Someone" had the honor of being one of the little animals in the nativity scene...I wonder how she got that job? ;)





The kids in our church youth group really are the best. 



So many super fun things going on, but I will admit that it was nice to know that this was my last big event before Christmas break started.  From here on out, I was just going to relax, enjoy my family, and meditate on the reason for the season.

Emmy = 3.5 Years Old

I guess it would seem a bit trite if I said my baby is now 42 months old.  Well I already said it, and she is quickly transforming into a beautiful little girl (rather than a beautiful little baby) right in front of my eyes. She is obsessed with the notion that she is going to be the Big Sister, and when she is asked to do stuff, she likes to ask, "Would a big sister do that?"  She is a bundle of energy, questions, and information.  I am astounded daily by the stuff that she comes up with.  She is also a master manipulator and she can conjure up real tears on a whim.  All this being said, she is the sweetest cuddle bunny you will ever meet, and she has a sympathetic soul.  She can tell if someone is having a rough day, and she will go out of her way to give them love and attention until they feel better.  My heart was lost the day I met you Emmy Barnes, and I don't see myself regaining any ground any time soon.  I still love you more than most. :)

Here are a few photos that April took for us over Thanksgiving Weekend.

I love how sweet your little smile is here.






The sweetness has turned to mischief here.



You are definitely Daddy's Little Girl right now.  Even though he will eventually put his foot down, for the most part, he is yours to command...and you ask for it all: horsey rides, races around the house, push-ups with you as the weights, extra books at bedtime, and even dress-up a time or two.







When you are feeling super sweet, you like to tell me that I am your best friend (you always remind me that Abby and Aunt B, Nana, or Rah-Rah are your best friends too).  The two of us are a perfect duo stopped only by the fact that we are both really stubborn and want our own way.  Usually I win out, but I would be lying if I said you haven't turned on the charm with me and won me over against my better judgement before.  There's just something about those pretty blue eyes coupled with a sweet smile that seems to be your ticket to whatever you want.





We are a terrific trio that we soon turn into the fantastic four, but for the next few months, we will savor these times with you as our only little baby.  While I know you will be the best big sister ever, it still makes me a little sad that you aren't going to actually be the baby anymore.   You've had a good run though kid, and four years is more than most kids could ask for.



At three-and-a-half you are:

She likes: Watching movies or Netflix on the iPad, playing dress up, having fashion parades in her dress up creations, tea parties with Nana, playing dolls, Minne & Mickey, making cookies and cinnamon rolls with Mommy, coloring, reading BOB's books, wearing her hair in braids, the colors pink and purple, looking at photo albums, singing and putting on concerts with her microphone, playing at the playground, eating at Mr. Gatti's with Abby, going fishing with Daddy, sleeping in her new big girl room, watching old Disney VHS tapes in her room, talking to the baby and rubbing Mommy's stomach, GYMNASTICS, and spending the night with Nana or at Aunt B's 'partment.

She dislikes: Being told no, waking up in the morning before she wants to, having someone correct her behavior (she will run away, hide, and cry), having to eat things for dinner that she doesn't want, having to go to sleep in the dark, taking a bath without all her toys, having to ride in the cart at the store (although I still make her), having to come home with Mommy and Daddy after church, sitting in time-out, going to bed before she is ready, wearing clothes that aren't "her taste," and generally not getting her way.

She eats: Grilled cheese, carrots, chicken, milk, donuts, piglets, toast, biscuits, cereal, and french fries are her favorites.  I can pretty much make her eat anything if I sit down with her and feed her myself.  Some nights if we are having something like soup or roast, I have to do this or she won't try any of it.  She loves to drink hot chocolate and grape slushies from Sonic.

She says: She can (and will) hold an extended conversation.  Her language skills are one of her strongest skills, and she says words sometimes that completely astound me.  It's like she just knows stuff sometimes and we don't know where she gets these things.  She can sing her ABCs perfectly.  She can identify all of the letters by sight, but there are a couple (J, M, & N) that she misses sometimes.  She can count, but she purposefully mixes up her numbers to get attention.  She says her prayers in a sophisticated manner, and she remembers all of the illnesses that people at church have and makes sure that she prays for each one.  Her current favorite song to sing in the car is "Shake It Off" by T-Swift.  The Frozen songs are still a household favorite during karaoke time.

Thanksgiving 2014 aka 15 Hours in the Car

Emmy and I were a little sick the week of Thanksgiving.  Because of this, we did not get started making our Thanksgiving rounds until the morning of Thanksgiving.  The only bonus was that there was minimal traffic on the road with us.




Once we got to Cedar Park, there were lots of happy faces to see.



And lots of yummy food to eat.



There was a lot of family fun time too!



We didn't forget the most important part.





Emmarie convinced the ladies to have a tea party with her.



After our high tea, game night commenced.  Candyland for the littles and Cards Against Humanity for the bigs.



We stayed the night with grandma, and someone woke up earlier than Daddy and wanted to snuggle.



Emmy's congestion and allergies took a nose dive after all of the excitement and outdoor play, so she slept almost the entire way to East Texas.



Her baby cousins seemed to be just the medicine that little girl needed to perk up!





We enjoyed our time outdoors and soaked up some of the beautiful weather.



All too soon it was time to leave, and we hugged this little lady a little tighter than the rest.



Happy Thanksgiving!  I am so thankful for all of the wonderful family and friends that we have in our lives.  I hope that we are a blessing to them as well.