My 28th Birthday

My birthday started off in a very promising nature, but it took a nose-dive early on.  I got to work and before I could finish with my second class, the daycare called and said that Emmy was sick.  I finished my class and went to pick her up.  After a quick trip home for medicine, I went to Mom's house to eat the lunch that we had planned. 

My cousin, Kayela, saved the day and stayed with Emmy.  I had already planned to leave school by 3:00 so that I could make it to my doctor's appointment.  By the time I got there to pick her up, I was already starting to sneeze and run fever as well.

We got to the doctor's office, and the appointment went well.  My family was meeting us in Rosenberg to have dinner, so we decided to brave it.  Emmarie and I were both feeling shaky and not at our best, but we did our best to enjoy our dinner.

I really do have a great family!



Notice the sleepy eyes on grumpy gills in the following photo.



There were lots of presents and singing involved as well.







Even though it wasn't the dream day that I had imagined, it was still a great day.  I was surrounded by the people I love and they made me feel very special.  What more could a girl ask for?

Oliver's Jumping Jamboree

Oliver turned three, and we had a jumping good time at his party. 


Don't you just love how a double chin comes racing out to meet a camera when you are having a good time?


The proud grandparents were so very happy to celebrate their big boy.



We also got to meet a new little boy! (or see him again anyway)









In my quest for a good group photo, I decided to just post them all.  This my friends is what you call chaos.



After the kids were finished jumping, we moved on to the party room.







After eating pizza and juice boxes, opening presents, and having some cake, it was time to go home.  Happy 3rd Birthday Oliver.  We love you so much and we were so happy to get to celebrate with you!

6 Years of Bliss!

Six years have passed since I said "I do" to my best friend.  In that time, we have been through some major stuff--lost jobs, found jobs, Brad worked nights, we bought a house, we had a baby--the list goes on.  During this time, there were a few constants in our lives: our church, our family, and our love for each other (I know. Gag me with a silver spoon). 

As cheesy or cliche as it may sound, I really do love this guy and that is the only thing that has kept us together through some of our rough times. 

Bradley,
The past 6 years have been filled with some of the greatest moments of my life.  I love you to Jupiter and back (because the moon is too close and I want to leave growth to Pluto for another post).  Thanks for the great times, I know our journey will only continue to get better and better.
Love,
Ashley

For our anniversary, we took an overnight trip to Galveston.  My family was out of town, so we chose Galveston specifically with the idea of taking Emmy along with us in mind.  There are a lot of fun things to do there, and we knew it would be an enjoyable weekend.

I had to make a quick appearance at a baby shower before going out of town.  Bradley had flowers waiting for me when I got back.  Sweet boy.



We ate dinner and let Emmy play in the indoor pool when we got to Galveston since it was already dark.  The next morning, we went down to the beach super early to walk along the shore and hunt for shells.



The boy and I sure do love the beach.







This little girl loves the beach as well.



We found the only place open that early in the morning, and we got a little silly.



After going back to the hotel for breakfast, we checked out and headed down to The Strand.



We ate lunch at Fisherman's Wharf.  We've eaten here before and it was super yummy that time as well.



We walked around and explored the shops for a while before making our way to La Kings.  They have the best ice cream and home made floats.  If you can tell, Emmy really enjoyed it.



It was a great weekend spent with my favorite people, and it was exactly what we needed to unwind.

Halloween and a Bit of Pixie Dust

This year for Halloween, Emmy decided that she wanted to be Tinkerbell.  With a little bit of digging on Ebay and our craft box, we came up with this costume.  We picked up the pixie wings at Dollar Tree for a buck and we were done. 

I was We were pretty pleased with the results.  Here are a few photos of our little Tinkerbell.



I love how sassy she looks here.  This is her normal persona.





I took an old pair of her flats and painted them green.  A couple of cotton balls hot glued on top and viola!  Tinkerbell shoes!


The had a Halloween party at school this year and because of doctor's appointment, I got to attend.  It was so sweet!





That night at the football game, groups of students set up stands so that kids could trick-or-treat at the game.  I was so proud of our students for giving up some of their night to provide a safe place for children to pick up some candy.









She came home with lots of candy (that she didn't get to eat), but more importantly, she had a magical time!

Baby Barnes (Numero Dos)

Well it is official!  We are having a baby in early May!  I finally got in to see my doctor on Halloween, and she confirmed that we are expecting.  We are so excited, and since we are 13 weeks along, I get to tell my friends soon!

Here is a photo of one of the ultrasounds.  I had to jazz it up a bit on my phone before I sent it to some friends.



I was so excited to see Dr. Burroughs again.  I haven't been a good girl, so I haven't been back to see her since my last post-partum check-up.



After my doctor's appointment, Bradley took me to Olive Garden to celebrate/eat lunch.  It was magnificent!  After lunch, we had to head back to El Campo fairly quickly to get ready for the Halloween booth at the game, so there wasn't much time for shopping.



I just don't know how I will contain myself for the next seven weeks until I can find out what our sweet baby is going to be.   Emmy just knows it will be a sister, and I feel very similar to the way that I did the last time, so only time (or an ultrasound) will tell for sure.

The Pumpkin Patch 2014

We visited the local pumpkin patch again!  This year, Emmy was a little more cooperative for the most part.  Since the patch is so busy, we had to get there really early which she wasn't crazy about.



She still looks a little sleepy here.



She perked right up to take a photo with Nana though.



I like the tall one in this collage.  I think it might have been the first real smile I got all morning.





She really liked all of the cut-outs this year.



Maybe she is a little more like her Nana than I would like to admit.  She hopped right on the saddle and cheesed it up by the Texas star. 

Thanks Theta Delta for putting on such an amazing community event!

Got a Secret, Can You Keep It?

After a bit of hemming and hawing (is that how you spell that?), I finally took a test.  It's not that we weren't sure to begin with, but up until the moment that I saw what's below, I had plausible deny-ability.  Since I am back dating this post, everyone already actually knows, but it only seemed right for record keeping to put the post around the actual time that we found out.



I love this series of photos.  We were being so silly, and I think our actual excitement over the new baby shows through.



Stay tuned for more fun times as we get closer to meeting our new little peanut.