The Smithson Family

The Smithson Big Top

2011-11-18T23:40:00.007-06:00

Party Favors for all of Abigail's Friends

"Popcorn" Cupcakes

Abigail testing out one of the Bean Bag Toss Games

Abigail gets her face painted by Miss Claire

"Kitty Cat" Abigail loves her Grammy!

Great Catch! Abigail tries her luck at the Castaway Carnival Game

Abigail and her friend Julia take time out from their candy necklaces to smile for the camera

Reagan the "Lion" chomps into his Cotton Candy

Abigail and her friend Claire

Abigail gets ready to surprise Mommy with her new hair-do courtesy of Grandma.

This year for Abigail's birthday party we decided to throw a Carnival. Seeing that her birthday falls smack dab in the middle of November, you never quite know what you're going to get when it comes to Texas weather. Thankfully, the weather was perfect for our Carnival. Sunny and almost 85 degrees, we couldn't have asked for better weather to go along with our outside festivities. Not only were there 2 bounce houses to entertain all of our little guests but various games were set up throughout the yard to help create even more of a carnival-type atmosphere. From Bean Bag Toss to Pin the Nose on the Clown to Face Painting, Abigail and her friends spent most of the afternoon running around handing over tickets in hopes of filling their treat bags with lots of prizes and loot. Of course a Carnival is only as good as its food and what Carnival would be complete without corn dogs, popcorn, soft pretzels, and everyone's favorite...cotton candy!

For those of you who were able to join us in celebrating Abigail's 3rd birthday: Thank you for Clowning around with us. We look forward to celebrating many more birthdays with you in the future!

Happy Birthday Abigail!

2011-11-17T21:20:00.004-06:00

Precious Abigail,

It’s amazing and unbelievable at the same time that you are 3 years old today. So much has happened since you turned 2 that it’s hard for me to squeeze it all into one year in my mind. You have become an excellent big sister to Caroline, you decided you wanted to wear panties, so potty training happened fast…even to the point of you are now sleeping in panties instead of pull-ups…you have become quite the entertainer, and your heart is so pure when you pray every night for “all my friends and all my family.” Abigail, you are an amazing little girl.

A highlight for me this year was just before we went to “Trunk or Treat” at our church. You were so confident when we put that Cinderella dress on you that you had actually become a princess and it was priceless. Then, when you looked at me and told me I needed to wear a suit to be your prince my heart was yours. If I didn’t have a suit, I would have bought one that day just to be your prince because of the sincerity you asked me with. That night will forever be one of the most special nights in my life as a daddy.

I love you all the way to the top of the ice cream cone, you little stinker. Thanks for making me feel like your prince every day.

Love,

Daddy

My Sweet Baby Girl,

I can't believe we are celebrating your 3rd birthday! Where did the "two's" even go? Whoever came up with the phrase "terrible two's" clearly hasn't met you. There was nothing remotely terrible about this past year. In fact, the last 12 months with you have been my favorite to date. In almost an instant it seems like you went from being this completely dependent, introverted 1 year old to Miss Independent, "give me a stage and I will perform for anyone who will watch", loud and proud toddler. There is seriously never a dull moment with you. Whether it's singing songs with you in the car, watching you perform for Daddy and me at home, or simply just observing you and Sissy laugh and act silly together as I pick up around the house at the end of a long day, there is not a moment that goes by where you don't put a smile on my heart. Already I can see God creating a unique and special friendship between us that is bound to only grow stronger and closer as time goes on. I love that God has created you to be a joyful person full of passion for life and for others. Some of the dearest and most tender moments we have shared over the past year have been in the evenings as we lay down to snuggle, read, and pray for our family and friends. It blows my mind how at such a young age you already have the capacity to grasp just how Awesome God is and how much He truly loves you and looks after you.

I could not be more proud to be your mommy. As much as I want to hit the snooze button most mornings when you run into our bedroom and jump up in between Daddy and me on the bed, truth be told it's moments like those that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world. I love you to the Moon and back. Happy Birthday my Little Stinker!

Love,

Mommy

Happy Birthday Caroline!

2011-09-14T23:55:00.009-05:00

September 14th, 2010
1 Month Old

2 Months Old

3 Months Old

4 Months Old

5 Months Old

6 Months Old

7 Months Old

8 Months Old

9 Months Old

10 Months Old

11 Months Old

1 Year Old

Can someone please tell me where this past year has gone? How can it be that my little baby is already 1? It seems like just yesterday we were welcoming our Sweet Little Caroline into this world and now here we are 12 months later celebrating her 1st Birthday.

My Dearest Caroline, Where do I even begin? I knew going into this that my hands were going to be full. After all, what do you expect when you have 2 little princesses only 22 months apart and both under the age of 3 running around? I knew there would be moments where I would question my sanity and wonder if I was ever going to survive this so-called Parenthood thing. I even knew that no matter how hard I tried to stay on top of documenting every "1st moment" you came across this past year that I would still fail to finish your baby book (don't worry, Abigail doesn't have a "completed" one either). What I didn't know however is that being a mommy to not just 1 but 2 little girls would be the greatest and most life changing task I would ever be given. No matter how exhausted I may be at the end of the day, the last thing I think about before I go to bed and the first thing I look forward to seeing when I wake up is you and your big sissy. For some reason I always pictured myself being a mom to many boys, so you can imagine the shock and somewhat fear when I realized that instead I was going to be living in a world of bows, princesses, and lots of drama. Any fear I ever had however melted away when I first held you and your sister in my arms. Your bright blue eyes are absolutely stunning and to this day still manage to take my breath away each and every time I get to stare into them. The way you bury your head into my shoulder and put your arms around me each time I ask for "snuggles" is the greatest and biggest paycheck I will ever receive as a mom. While you are possibly the loudest baby I know and I have often threatened to take stock in earplugs, I also know that a day without your loud babble and squawking would be the loneliest and most incomplete day for me. The goofy manner in which you play and chase Wrigley and Abigail around the house never ceases to put a smile on my face. I love watching you learn from your big sissy. From sign language to dancing you catch on so quickly and the manner in which you proudly smile and applaud yourself for doing so is priceless. While you rarely use the word "MaMa" in your everyday vocabulary, I know I have a huge place in your heart by the way your face lights up and you make a mad dash for me anytime I walk into the room. Thank you for bringing joy to my life each and every day. I love you more than you'll ever know.

Happy 1st Birthday Sissy,
Mommy

Sweet Caroline, It's so true that the "good times never seemed so good" until you came around. Your first year went by so fast, and I know this next year will go by just as quickly so I want you to know I cherish your little spirit and hope that it doesn't "quiet" down now that you're 1. As my little princess you have the ability to light up any room I walk in when you announce to anyone that will listen that I'm "DaDa"! You're precious, yet crooked, smile melts my heart every time I see it. Those blistering blue eyes can cut straight through me and I know that for this season of life I have your heart...and that means the world to me. The way you talk loud, mimic your sister, tease mommy, follow Wrigley, and attempt to clap for yourself are some of the best parts of my day everyday. I love you so much and thank God that he has given me another little princess to point towards His Kingdom.

Happy Birthday Sissy,

Daddy

Sea World

2011-05-31T21:29:00.009-05:00

Abigail's very 1st trip to Sea World

Is this not adorable? I caught Abigail unposed with her arm around Caleb.

Caroline and her friend Leah look on as their older siblings play at the splash park.

Caroline couldn't fight the nap any longer.

One of my favorite memories from growing up is Sea World. My dad grew up in San Antonio and for most of my childhood the majority of his side of the family lived in San Antonio. A lot of summers were spent visiting my grandparents and cousins and during this time we covered a lot of ground in San Antonio visiting most of the well-known historical landmarks as well as popular family tourist destinations...including, Sea World. Although we didn't go to Sea World too often it was always one of my favorite places to visit. I love the fact that there's adventure and plenty of activities offered but at the same time I love that it's easily just as entertaining to sit down and watch one of their shows. I'm not going to lie, for a long time I secretly hoped I would one day be a dolphin trainer. Fast forward 20 years or so...although my goals and aspirations have changed and I'm quite content with my role of being a stay-at-home mommy, the magic and thrill of Sea World still remains and now lives well within my 2 year olds' heart.

Over the last few years quite a few of our friends have bought season passes to Sea World and have raved about how much use they have gotten out of them as a family. We held off on purchasing one last year, wanting to wait until Abigail was at least a little older. When the new season at Sea World opened up this spring we decided to bite the bullet and get a season pass. With only 2 visits under our belt I can tell you hands down, that it was the best decision we have ever made. We made our first visit to Sea World the Monday after Easter. My mom was sweet enough to watch Caroline for us so that Josh and I could take Abigail by herself and spend a special day just with her. We pretty much spent the entire day there, hitting up every show you could imagine. If only you could have seen Abigail's face as she watched the dolphin show and the Shamu show. It was priceless! She kept asking throughout the show if it was over. At first Josh and I thought she was maybe asking this because she had lost interest and was ready to go but it turns out she was asking this because she didn't want the show to end. We spent a good chunk of our day in the new Sesame Street Bay of Play and let me tell you, if you haven't experienced it yet, you are in for a treat! I have a feeling we will make quite a few trips back to Sea World just so we can play there. In addition to a splash park, and a gigantic playground complete with cargo nets, there is an area where you can go to meet some of the various Sesame Street characters in person and take pictures with them. This has easily become one of Abigail's favorite places within the Sesame Street Bay of Play. So far she has managed to meet: Tilly, Elmo, Count Dracula, Bert, Ernie, Cookie Monster, Big Bird, and Zoe. While there are a few characters/costumes she is still a little timid of, she has come a long way since the days of crying in Santa's lap. In fact, during our most recent visit she got up on her own and ran over to give Cookie Monster a big hug during one of the Sesame Street sing/dance along performances.

Last Monday we went back for our second visit with some of our good friends here in Kerrville and again, had a blast! This time Caroline went with us and I have to say, for an 8 month old, she handled it like a champ. We spent a good portion of our time in the Sesame Street splash park. I imagine us frequenting this area more and more throughout the summer as the Texas heat wears on. We're looking forward to making the most of our season pass and returning to Sea World many more times with friends and family. Although it can be tiring telling Abigail every other day that "we are not going to Sea World today", it is pretty stinking cute to see her pop out of bed with Shamu in hand and hear the first words out of her mouth be "We going to Sea World today?". It's fun to see one of my favorite childhood memories quickly becoming one of my daughter's.

Easter

2011-05-19T21:44:00.005-05:00

Hoppy Easter from our little Easter Bunnies

Somebunny Loves You!

Story time with Grandpa before bed

Let the Easter Egg Hunt begin

Owen, Ashley, Abigail, and Ellie

Our Easter weekend was hectic and busy but nevertheless we had a great time. We spent actual Easter Sunday with my family in Austin. Both of my brothers were in town with their families so it was fun to have all of the Peek siblings and cousins together. We didn't arrive into Austin until dinner Saturday night so unfortunately our visit with everyone flew by pretty fast, but regardless it was well worth the trip to spend such a powerful and meaningful Holiday with some of the people you love most.

Abigail is becoming quite the avid Easter Egg hunter. Then again it's hard not to be when every Easter you have 3-4 Easter Egg Hunts to attend. At one point Josh had to step in at one of the Easter Egg Hunts and politely tell her to put some of the eggs back...apparently her Easter basket was beyond full and to the point of overflowing. Luckily she didn't put up a fight and seemed content with giving back some of her eggs. I should mention that I wasn't at this particular Egg Hunt. I'm relaying the story as it was told by my husband, aka the one in charge of overseeing the lil' avid Easter Egg Hunter. Although her basket was embarassingly full he promised me that each egg was collected with proper egg hunting etiquette and that no one was harmed during the collection process. Seeing as how he was distracted with a 7 month old in his arms, I'm not so sure his recounting of the story is 100% accurate. So if you happen to be reading this and your son/daughter might have taken an elbow to the nose as Abigail blocked out in order to collect a shiny pink Easter egg...I apologize. I can't promise that her mommy didn't teach her a few techniques from her glory days of playing high school basketball, but I can promise that we will work on our manners and try our best to abide by any and all Easter Egg Hunt rules when next year rolls around.

Potty Trained and Proud of It!

2011-04-19T22:58:00.005-05:00

Once again I've managed to fall behind on my blogs. Imagine that! At this point it would just be easier and probably smarter to start over on a clean slate but I just can't bear to overlook some of the highlights and major milestones we have reached here in the Smithson household over the last few months. Perhaps one of the biggest milestones and one definitely worth celebrating (over and over) is the fact that Abigail is now potty trained! Goodbye diapers, hello Dora panties!

We started down the road of potty training a month or two before Caroline was born. At that point in time, potty training really just consisted of humoring Abigail by placing her on the potty anytime she remotely showed a slight interest in it. That interest quickly faded however and once Caroline was born it was all but non-existant. We decided to drop the idea and just wait until Abigail began to show interest in it again. After all, I always heard from others that you can't force potty training. Our patience paid off...somewhere towards the end of January Abigail began showing an interest in potty training again. Despite the fact we were in uncharted territory and had no idea what "training method" we were going to use, we didn't want to let this opportunity pass us up again. We pulled out all the stops we could think of and tried every potty training trick in the book and in the end we realized that with a little consistency, a lot of patience, and a willingness to be on standby 24/7 while your daughter runs around the house completely naked, potty training is well worth the madness. Don't be fooled...I may have made it sound smooth sailing and simple but I also skipped over a lot of the details, such as there were a lot of stickers, m&ms, and creative potty dances involved.

In the grand scheme of things I know this milestone will be one that quickly fades with time. I know it won't be one that she lists on her college application as a proudest achievement (at least I hope not) but for now and for the next few months to come, it is one that as a mommy I will gladly celebrate any and every time I hear the toilet flush.

A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words

2011-03-11T21:52:00.007-06:00

"The Death Grip"...while Caroline insists it's a sign of her love and affection for Abigail; Abigail begs to differ as she grimaces in pain
Seriously...how cute is that?

Our little model...already striking a pose for the camera

Ravioli? What Ravioli?

What's cuter...The Hillbilly Hat, the huge cheesey smile underneath the hat, or the low-rise jeans that proudly display her Elmo diaper?

Eat your heart out Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders!

Grandma surprises Abigail and cousin Lillie with fun, new festive pom-poms.

Caroline sneaks in a little snuggle time in with her cousin Ashley

Well it seems I have fallen behind in my blogging...again. We've had a busy month since I last blogged about our Sweets n' Treats Valentine's Party. There's plenty to share and while I have managed to catch a lot of the precious moments with the girls on camera the problem seems to lie within finding the time to actually sit down and write about those moments. So in effort to catch you up to speed without leaving you with a novel to read, I will let the pictures do the talking this time around. After all, "a picture is worth a thousand words".

Sweets and Treats

2011-02-19T15:31:00.010-06:00

The "Sweets and Treats" attendees: Claire, Anna, Marley, Kate, Abigail, Haley, and Caroline (not shown: Leah)

Jessica and Haley making a candy necklace together
Kate Kate is all smiles after putting the finishing touches on her heart candy necklace.
Such a Valentine Diva!

While Josh has his Valentine's Day tradition of taking the girls out on Daddy/Daughter dates I decided it was time to start my own Mommy/Daughter tradition. My sister-in-law gave me the idea of doing a Mommy/Daughter Valentine's Tea Party. For years she has put together a little Tea Party for my nieces and their friends. It's been fun to hear her stories and see sweet pictures of these little girls all dressed up and spending an afternoon with their mommies. I love the idea of using Valentine's Day to celebrate the special bond shared between a mommy and her daughter.

Seeing as how Abigail is just now 2, I wasn't quite sure how an actual "Tea Party" would go over. Call me crazy but I just couldn't see a bunch of 2 and 3 year olds sitting around and sipping tea. So instead, I opted for this first year to just throw a "Sweets and Treats" party and let the girls go at it and fill up on cupcakes, brownies, and strawberry lemonade. We had a great time. All in all there were about 7 mommy/daughter pairs who came. For the most part it ended up being a glorified playdate with an invitation but we did have a short craft time where the girls made heart candy necklaces.

I'm looking forward to building upon this tradition as the years go on. More than anything I'm just thankful to have such incredible friends in my life with whom I can share the ups and downs (and drama) of raising such precious girls.

Daddy's Little Valentines

2011-02-19T14:42:00.006-06:00

We had a great Valentine's Day. Not only was Josh off of work but he decided not to take any sub jobs either so that he could spend the full day at home with his girls. The night before Valentine's Day Josh and I managed to sneak in a last minute date and catch a late showing at the movie theater after the girls were in bed. It was nice to get away and be in the company of each other without having to worry about feeding Caroline or tending to Abigail's potty training schedule. Surprisingly, despite our exhaustion we both managed to stay awake during the entire movie. (Is it sad that we judge whether or not our date was a success based upon whether or not we stayed awake the entire time?) Welcome to parenthood!

The real Valentine's date worth sharing with you however took place Monday afternoon. Josh decided he wanted to start the tradition of taking his girls out on a Daddy/Daughter Valentine's Date. Seeing as how Caroline is still a little too young to actually partake and interact on any sort of date, this Valentine's Day was all about Abigail. When asked by her daddy what she wanted to do on their date she mentioned two things...pizza and a cone (meaning ice cream cone). It's no secret that Abigail has her daddy wrapped around her little finger. Even so he still manages to hold his own at times and set a few boundaries. For their special Valentine's Date though? Now that's another story. You better believe for this date, the "princess" was going to get whatever she wished for. First stop? CiCi's Pizza. Abigail absolutely loves pizza...and believe me, she can hold her own when it comes to eating it. Typically Abigail is a pepperoni kind of girl...not anymore. Thanks to her daddy, Abigail has discovered Macaroni and Cheese Pizza. While it sounds disgusting to me, I wish you could have seen the smile on Abigail's face as she took in not 1, not 2, but 3 pieces of this so-called cheesy piece of heaven. As if that wasn't enough to kill any nutritional value in a 2 year old's diet, there was still one more stop to make. Next stop? McDonald's. After all, the princess did request a cone.

All in all I think the two would agree that this date was a great start to their new Valentine's Day tradition. I'm pretty sure Abigail already thought her daddy hung the moon but after Macaroni and Cheese Pizza and a vanilla cone from McDonald's, there's no question in her mind...he did. Happy Valentine's Day!

4 Months Old

2011-02-04T21:53:00.008-06:00

It's amazing how with the first child you know every single detail of his/her life. Not only do you know what milestone should happen and when, but you more than likely have it recorded and displayed for all to see in a scrapbook along with a photo next to it. Then comes the second child...as much as I would like to be a historian for my sweet Caroline and record every minute just as I would have with Abigail, some days I'm just lucky to make sure she gets rotated from the playmat to the bouncy seat to the swing in a timely manner so that she doesn't get bored while I tend to my potty training 2 year old. All this to say, I can't believe my little girl is already 4 months old. She truly is growing up way too fast.

Stats:

12 pounds, 6 ounces

23 1/2 inches

My Firsts:

*Rolled over for the first time

*Started eating Rice Cereal

*Started laughing

Likes/Dislikes:

*Loves putting her feet into her mouth

*Loves when you play Pat-a-Cake with her

*Likes to watch Wrigley

*Still loves to be swaddled during naps and at bedtime

*Loves for her big sister Abigail to play with her

*Loves playing peek-a-boo

*Gets frustrated by the fact that she has figured out how to take her paci out of her mouth with her hands but can't always seem to find the coordination to put it back in

I couldn't believe it at our last doctor's visit when our doctor told me she was ready to start on rice cereal. With Abigail it seemed like we were always looking ahead and counting down the days until she would be old enough to reach the next "big milestone". With Caroline I feel as if I can't keep up. Just when I think we've settled into somewhat of a routine it's already time to move on and adjust to the next big thing. It's only a matter of time before she's scooting around the floor on her own. Call me crazy but I'm not so sure this body of mine is prepared nor ready to switch to a zone defense and chase around a potty training 2 year old and a crawler all at once. I have a feeling the adventure is only beginning.

Merry Christmas from the Smithson Family

2010-12-28T21:30:00.006-06:00

Our Little Gifts with Santa
Sweet Sisters

Happy Birthday Baby Jesus

Grandma with Caroline

Leaving cookies and milk for Santa with Kaitlyn

Santa is coming tonight mommy!

Christmas morning

Opening presents with Lillie

Daddy reading one of Abigail's new books

Our sweetest gift

Caroline and Luke (Luke is 2 weeks younger)

Abigail with her new kitchen from Santa

It's hard to believe we're only 4 days away from the New Year. Where did Christmas even go? It seems like just yesterday we were putting up our Christmas decorations and now it's already time to take them back down. Despite the fact that Christmas this year seemed to fly by faster than ever, we had a wonderful holiday season filled with lots of love and laughter that only the warmth of family and friends can fill. This Christmas was even more special for us as a family as we had an extra stocking to hang thanks to our best gift being delivered back in September. In addition to having Caroline, we also had an older Abigail that really got into the spirit this year. If you don't love Christmas try spending a few hours with a 2 year old singing "Frosty", asking about Santa every 5 minutes, and even finding the true meaning of Christmas saying "Happy Birthday Baby Jesus" every time you drive by a nativity...that will change your mind about this joyous holiday.

As parents, we found victory in the war of "Picture with Santa" as Abigail really enjoyed the Jolly Old Elf this year. As a 1 month old she slept in his arms for a good picture, as a 1 year old (last Christmas) she screamed and we got the classic wide open mouth crying picture where mom and dad had to be in it too, and this year we got her looking at the camera and sitting in his lap. Granted there was almost no expression in the picture, but nonetheless we consider it a victory. By the way, if you're looking for a great place to do a Santa Picture next year I would strongly recommend the Bass Pro Shop.

This year took us to Abilene for a Smithson Family Christmas with Josh's parents. The traditions include celebrating Festivus (it's a Seinfeld thing), Burger Beans on Christmas Eve, and Suck Nuts (Josh and his brother Bob will have to tell you about that). Other than that, anything goes and you can be guaranteed with the cousins ranging from almost 3 months (Caroline is not the youngest) to almost done with high school it was a Christmas to remember. Total there were 11 adults, 2 teenagers, two 3 year olds, two 2 year olds, two 3 month olds, and two dogs. As you can imagine family time was loud, opening presents was chaos, and the cousins had a blast in all of it. We are so happy that Josh's brothers and sister all had kids around the same time because it is a pure blessing getting to watch the kiddos all grow up playing together. There will be many fun holidays and family reunions with that clan.

We hope your Christmas season was filled with the joy of knowing the baby in the manger. We hope you were able to share that joy with those around you. We hope you'll continue living in that joy as we bring in the New Year in just a few short days. Merry Christmas from the Smithsons!

Happy 2nd Birthday Abigail!

2010-12-04T22:42:00.007-06:00

The Birthday Princess is all smiles in her new Pink Cozy Coupe

Party favors for our guests

Th pull-string pinata was a hit with all of the little ones

Abigail's cousins' Lillie and Kaitlyn made the trip down to celebrate her 2nd birthday

This is about as messy as Abigail got with her Monkey cupcake. For whatever reason, Abigail can't stand to have messy hands or a messy mouth when she's eating.

Abigail takes her turn at the pull-string pinata

We attempted to get a group shot of Abigail and and all of her friends...not bad for 11 kids all 4 and under.

Is this not the cutest picture? The timing couldn't have been more perfect to catch their sweet little smiles. Caroline and Luis are only 1 day apart in age.

We almost had the entire Smithson Family in attendance at the party. (We missed you Bob, Preston, and T-Bone)

Grammy and Grandpa made the trip in from Austin for the party

The 2 newest additions to the Smithson family, Caroline and Luke. For whatever reason the Smithson grandkids like to arrive in pairs...Caroline and Luke are only 18 days apart.

Calling all monkeys to come and play!
Let's celebrate Abigail's second birthday!

That's right, our little monkey turned 2. It's hard to believe 2 years have already flown by since she first entered this world at 12:01 am on November 17th, 2008. Seeing as how she is all about monkeys these days we saw it fitting to celebrate her birthday in style with a Pink Mod Monkey-themed birthday bash. When it comes to Texas weather, you never know what you're going to get, especially in November. Thankfully though, it was an absolute gorgeous day. We couldn't have asked for a better forecast. With 2 inflatables at their disposal we opened the doors and brought the party outside so that the kiddos could cut loose and bounce until they dropped.

Happy Birthday Abigail! I can't believe you're already 2. You're growing up way too fast. These past 2 years have truly been the best 2 years of my life. You fill our lives and our home with so much joy and laughter. Your smile alone is enough to brighten even the darkest of days. I couldn't ask for a better playmate to keep me company each and every day. I love getting to stay home with you and literally watch you grow up right before my very eyes. You are turning into quite the little lady! I love your passion for life and for others. I look at you and I'm reminded that we serve a compassionate and playful Father. I'm so very proud of you and am blessed to be your mom. I love you very much!

Love, Mommy

Happy 2nd Birthday my first little princess! I don't know how you have managed to do it, but you wrapped me up so tight around your little finger in just 2 short years that I can't believe it. I know we try to pretend like bathtime with daddy is your favorite part of the day, but secretly I like it more than you. Really, I like anything more now when you are doing it with me. I love making mommy "big girl waffles", I love reading the same book over and over, I love hiding from the monster, I love giving Wrigley treats, I love taking "baby walks", I love swinging you high, I love sharing my cereal, and I love taking "BIG BITES" all because those are things we do together. I just love life with you. I know I had a good life before you came 2 sweet years ago, but now I have an even better life...and getting to watch you be a big sister now makes it even greater each day. You are a very special and very beautiful little monkey and I love you to the moon and back. It is really fun being your dad.

Love, Daddy

Sweet Caroline

2010-12-04T21:58:00.006-06:00

It's hard to believe but in just another week our sweet little Caroline will be 3 months old. Where has the time gone? It's amazing how much little ones can change in just a short amount of time. It has been fun to watch Caroline's personality emerge over the last few weeks. When she's awake, she's extremely alert and happy. I get a kick out of hearing her attempt to communicate with me with her cooing, squeaks, and baby babble. My favorite is when I look into her eyes and she responds with a big, gummy smile. I can't help but fall more and more in love with this baby girl every day.

A dear friend of mine, Averi Blackmon, was sweet enough to drive over from Marble Falls a few weeks ago and spend some time hanging out with me and the girls. Averi is an extremely talented photographer and was sweet enough to take some 6 week pictures of Caroline while she was here. Like always, she did an incredible job and the pictures turned out super cute. To check out more of Averi's work, visit her website at http://www.averiblackmon.com/

Happy Halloween

2010-11-01T21:34:00.006-05:00

Trick-or-Treating for the very first time at Miss Kelly's House

Enjoying my trunk-or-treats with Claire and Reagan

Sharing Treats with my buddy Braedyn

Trick-or-Treater in Training

"What do you mean Halloween is over?"

Monkey See Monkey Do

This was Abigail's first year to officially go trick-or-treating and looking back now I have to say, she may never be the same. We weren't quite sure going into the night whether or not she would actually embrace the whole idea of Halloween. We did our part to hype up the fact she was going to be a monkey for Halloween and we practiced countless times saying "Trick-or Treat" but even so on Wednesday night during our warm-up practice run at our church's Trunk or Treat, Abigail didn't want anything to do with Trick-or-Treating. I guess I can't argue with my child for not wanting to take candy from random strangers who were wearing costumes and handing candy out from the back of their cars. She did humor us and wear her costume but other than that the only activity she desired to participate in that night was the one where she decided she would just sit down on the curb with her friends and gnaw on the outside of the different candy wrappers.

After regrouping and attempting to educate her more on the "Art of Trick-or-Treating" by doing a practice run on our own front door, we braced ourselves and prepared for another night of dragging her around and insisting to her that these traditions are fun and her parents aren't crazy. The night started out somewhat slow. We attended a Harvest Fest at another church in town. Abigail was a little reluctant to participate in the different carnival type games instead she opted to sit back and watch her mommy participate in the different games. Mind you, the games were designed for toddlers at best, not 30 year old moms. Nevertheless I did it for the sake of my sweet monkey. She didn't seem to mind; afterall she was the one reaping the benefits and stashing the candy away in her monkey pail. Slowly but surely she warmed up and even participated in a few of the games. She particularly was a big fan of the Cookie Walk...walking around to music and leaving with a bag of cookies...it doesn't get much better than that!

After the Harvest Fest we decided to hit up a few select houses and give Abigail a shot at Trick-or-Treating. First stop...the home of Kelly Kotara, one of my Young Life girls and Abigail's all-time favorite babysitter. With our digital camera and video camera in hand like proud parents we walked up to the door behind Abigail and documented every step along the way. What happened next I will forever store in my memories of sweet precious Abigail moments. Abigail knocked on the door as hard as she could (and as long as she could) and when Kelly and her mom opened up the door Abigail exclaimed loudly "Trick or Treat". I know I'm a little biased but it truly was one of the cutest things I have ever seen. Apparently Abigail was comfortable enough with her first trick-or-treat experience because she then proceeded after receiving her treats to walk into Kelly's house and look around at all of their pumpkin decorations. Thank goodness we took her to someone's house that we knew and not a stranger's. After leaving Kelly's house we went back to our neighborhood and hit up a few of our friend's homes. Needless to say, Abigail's confidence and excitement for trick-or-treating grew with each house that we went to. Not only did her loot grow as well but by the end of the night the smile on her face was the biggest I have ever seen it. If there was ever a moment I wanted to freeze in time, this was it. Who would have thought a little monkey knocking on random doors and taking candy from strangers would become one of our proudest moments as parents?

The Great Hill Country Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-30T22:33:00.006-05:00

Abigail's BFF Kate patiently waits and wonders why Abigail can't just smile for the camera (Abigail chose to throw a temper tantrum instead...hello Terrible Two's!)

This adorable punkin' is not for sale

Personal space? What personal space? Abigail can't get enough of her lil' sissy.

The Cutest Pumpkins in the Patch

Last week on Josh's day off we took Abigail and Caroline out to the Great Hill Country Pumpkin Patch in Medina. This time last year when we took Abigail out to the Pumpkin Patch she was still just shy of turning 1 year old and wasn't even walking yet. It's crazy how much changes in a year's worth of time. Long gone are the days of crawling, this time around we found ourselves chasing Abigail through the Pumpkin Patch as she ran from one activity to the next. As Abigail gets older, outings like this are becoming more and more fun now that she can actually interact and participate hands-on in the different activities. Despite a small temper tantrum outburst at the beginning of our outing we had a great time exploring all that the Pumpkin Patch had to offer. From the petting zoo to the train ride to the hay maze we did it all...right down to enjoying a cup of Apple Ice Cream from the Cider Mill on our way out of town. We look forward to continuing our fall tradition of visiting the Great Hill Country Pumpkin Patch for many years to come.

One Month Old

2010-10-23T22:49:00.006-05:00

It's hard to believe our little munchkin is already one month old! Where in the world has the time gone? I guess time flies when you're having fun, especially when fun is wrapped up in newborn Pampers and sleepless nights.

Stats:

9 pounds, 8 ounces

21.75 inches

My Firsts:

*Went to church for the first time (slept through the entire service)

*Went to her 1st Tivy Football Game (slept through the entire game)

*Went to the movies with Mommy and Daddy (again, slept through the entire movie...are you beginning to notice a pattern yet?)

*Had her first bottle (given to her by her Daddy)

*Had a "paci" for the 1st time

*Was held in the arms of her Big Sister for the first time

Likes/Dislikes:

*She loves to squeal and squeak, especially when she's stretching and waking up. She has rightfully earned the title of our "little pip-squeak"...even Abigail has started to mimic her and start squeaking when she hears her "Sissy" making noises.

*She loves the great outdoors

*She loves bathtime

*She loves to lay in her crib and watch her musical mobile

*She loves to hold her head up...I'm telling you, this girl is strong. As long as I can remember she has always been one to hold her head up on her own. This can be tricky though...afterall, she is only 5 1/2 weeks old so don't let her strength deceive you, she has her fair share moments of floppy bobble head baby.

*She can't stand having a wet diaper

Happy 1 Month Birthday Princess! We can't wait to discover and explore many more milestones with you.

Precious Moments

2010-10-07T11:01:00.003-05:00

It's moments like these where my heart melts and the sleepless nights and moments of pure chaos and utter exhaustion just seem to fade away.

I love my life!

Caroline's 2 Week Check-up

2010-10-02T22:40:00.004-05:00

Caroline in the hospital, a day after she was born
Abigail in the hospital, a day after she was born

Caroline, 6 days old

Abigail, 3 days old

It's amazing how fast these past 2 weeks have flown by. Our sweet Caroline will be 3 weeks old on Tuesday. This past Wednesday we went in for her 2 week check-up and I'm proud to announce she passed with flying colors. She now weighs 8 lbs and is 20 1/2 inches long. Not only is she eating pretty well but she has started to settle into somewhat of a predictable routine when it comes to eating, playing, and sleeping. It looks like she will more than likely take after her sister when it comes to spitting up though. Abigail pretty much spent most of her first year in a bib due to the fact she loved to spit up and I quickly grew tired of spraying and washing every inch of her outfits. By the time it was all said and done, I'm pretty sure bibs outnumbered actual outfits in her closet. At this rate, unfortunately, it looks like Caroline will be turning to bibs for her main source of accessorizing as well.

Today was my first official day to be home alone with both of the girls without any reinforcements (aka Grammy or Josh) and I'm proud to say I survived. Needless to say it was a lazy day, the girls and I spent the majority of the day in our pajamas. In fact, if it wasn't for Abigail wanting to spend some time outside blowing bubbles and playing with sidewalk chalk we probably would have remained in our pj's the entire day. I didn't want the neighbors to start talking though so we did manage to get dressed for our "big" outdoor adventure. Abigail continues to be very sweet with her sissy. She gets a kick out of all the little squeaks and squeals Caroline will make when she's waking up from a nap and she loves the moments during the day when sissy's eyes are actually open. She remained patient throughout the day when I had to ask her to play by herself for a little bit so I could feed sissy and she continues to make adjustments to her normal routine so that she can be a big helper to mommy as I continue to recover from my C-section. For the most part we have figured a way around all of the daily tasks that would normally require me to pick her up. All in all, the day went pretty well. In fact I was even able to sneak in a little "mommy time" to myself this afternoon for a few hours while both of the girls napped. It doesn't get much better than that!

A lot of people have commented that Caroline looks a lot like Abigail did when she was a baby. I tried to go back through all of my pictures and pull out a few from each of their first few days so that you could compare and decide for yourself if there is a resemblance. Enjoy!

Caroline's First Week Home

2010-09-26T12:20:00.008-05:00

Enjoying our first Donut Saturday as a family of 4
Cutie Patootie

I love my Grammy!

Snuggling with Daddy after my first bath time

One of mommy's Young Life girls, Kelly Kotara, came to meet and snuggle with me for the first time

Sweet kisses from my Big Sister

Is it too early to get a babysitting contract on these 2 girls?

Daddy's Little Girls

Playtime with Sissy

Best seat in the house...waiting for the Homecoming Parade to start

Tivy Fight Never Dies...enjoying the Homecoming Bonfire with my Daddy

Ashley is all smiles holding her new baby cousin for the first time

Cousins make the best friends!

Well it's been about a week now since we first returned home from the hospital as a family of 4 and i have to say, so far the transition has been pretty smooth. Of course the only reason I can make that statement is because we have had tremendous help from Grammy as well as some very dear friends. My mom (aka Grammy) was sweet to stay with us for a week and help out around the house. From cooking to cleaning to running errands and keeping Abigail entertained, she did it all with a smile on her face. I can't imagine what we would have done without her. As if that wasn't enough she is now entertaining Abigail at Camp Grammy for the next few days so that Caroline and I can continue to adjust and work on somewhat of a routine while Josh returns to work. Thank you Grammy from the bottom of our hearts for all of the extra TLC you have given us over the past few weeks.

Caroline's first week home has been pretty low-key. For the most part our days and nights consist of a repetitive cycle of sleeping, eating, pooping, and playing. If we're lucky we may throw a shower into the mix for mommy, but unfortunately that hasn't made it quite into the "daily" routine of things. Considering Abigail is on the brink of entering into the Terrible Two's, she has done pretty well adjusting to her new role as Big Sister. That's not to say we haven't seen an increase in attempts at acting out...believe me, we have found ourselves repeating things twice as often to Abigail lately than we ever have had to before. Then again, what do you expect when you're asking your little princess to move over and share the stage with the new princess in town? For the most part Abigail continues to be Miss Independent when it comes to playtime but every now and then you can catch her drifting over to wherever "Sissy" is and attempting to play with her. The first words out of her mouth in the morning have quickly become "Where's Sissy?" and the last words out of her mouth in the evening are now "Night Night Sissy". Although I'm sure we have a looonnngg way to go before these two are the best of friends, it warms my heart to see the relationship already developing. Coming from a mom who has only known what it's like to grow up with older brothers, I'm looking forward to discovering and experiencing first-hand what the special bond of sisters is truly all about.

Seeing as how my range of activity is limited due to the fact I can only pick up something equivalent in size to Caroline and I'm at the mercy of others when it comes to driving, there have been a few moments in the past week where I have found myself going a little stir crazy. Thankfully though, with the help of my hubby, we have managed to break free from 108 Ivy Lane and attempt a few family outings. Our first official family outing was to Donut Palace. It has become tradition since Abigail was born to hit up Donut Palace every Saturday morning together as a family. Although we never made it actually out of the car on this particular outing (we cheated and elected to go with the drive-thru option) it was refreshing nevertheless to just get out of the house. Our next outing was the Homecoming Parade and Bonfire on Thursday night. We met up with some friends and enjoyed a nice pizza picnic while taking in the sights and sounds of the 2010 Tivy Homecoming Parade. Caroline of course managed to sleep through the entire thing. To this day, it still amazes me how babies can practically sleep through anything regardless of how loud or crowded a particular place really is. Abigail had a blast getting out and spending time with her friends. She especially loved the parade. Our final outing was to the actual Homecoming football game on Friday night. Our main purpose in going was actually to catch the pre-game Homecoming festivities. Quite a few of our Young Life kids were nominated for Homecoming King and Queen and we wanted to be there to support them. Not feeling up to the challenge of keeping up with a 22 month old and a 1 week old during the actual game, we left shortly after the announcement and crowning of this year's King and Queen.

All in all, it's been a great first week home with Caroline. Sure there's been moments of utter exhaustion but all it takes is one glance at the 2 most adorable and precious gifts God has ever given Josh and me, and the exhaustion just seems to fade away.

Caroline Day Smithson

2010-09-16T21:14:00.005-05:00

Sweet Caroline having awake time

Tiny Footprints

Tiny Baby Girl

Proud Daddy...or is that Dr. McDreamy?

Grandpa and Grammy are so excited!

Papa and Grandma welcome Caroline

Morning after delivery brought lots of smiles

Thanks Aunt Christy for our incredible Diaper Cake

We had a really fun birthday celebration as a family

Curious Big Sister

Are you sure she's coming home with us?

Snug as a bug

The nurses didn't recognize Sally after her shower

Smithson, Party of 4 heading home

Showered, shaved, dressed, and ready for action

Abigail is excited to show Caroline the real world

Home sweet home!

To quote Dora (since that's a reputable person in our lives), "We did it!" We were discharged and made it home today around 6:00pm. Lets back up to September 13th to fill you in on the journey that led to today in case you haven't heard the full story...told via Josh since Sally is resting.

As most of you know, we were wanting to try a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After C-Section) with Caroline since Sally went so far with Abigail and then found out Abigail was facing the wrong way so they had to perform a C-Section. All along our doctor was willing to let us try so when we found out on September 13 that was still an option we had to make decisions. Just before 5pm on the 13th Sally called the doctor and told her we would be coming in the next morning at 7am to have her water broken. We decided, knowing there was a small chance of success and there were risks involved, to give it a shot.

We woke up Tuesday, September 14, 2010 ready to have our sweet little Caroline. Once they got Sally checked in, settled, and comfortable our doctor came in around 8:15am and broke her water to try and spur on labor. Once her water was broken everything else had to happen on its own...so Sally tried to use gravity. We walked laps like we were in training. She sat on a birthing ball (a large excercise ball) almost everytime she left her feet. She just stood around sometimes. She danced to "Sweet Caroline" hoping it would attract that little baby to come out (assuming she knew what her name was). Needless to say, Sally either sat down in a chair or laid in her bed a total of about 45 minutes from 9:00am-10pm. The other 12 hours and 15 minutes of that 13 hour labor was doing something causing gravity to work in her favor. Throughout the day she made progress. It was slow and painful, but consistent so we remained positive. Knowing that pain medicine can sometimes slow labor, Sally refused any pain killers all day long. She did everything she could to try and deliver Caroline.

As 10pm rolled around her doctor came in and did what was our final exam. Though contractions had increased in pain and stayed very consistent, Sally's body had stalled in the dialating process. We were told for the safety of Caroline and Sally another C-Section was the best option. So at 10:55pm, as I sat at Sally's head holding her hand through surgery, we heard the first cry of Caroline Day Smithson. She weighed 7lbs 3 ounces and measured 20 inches long. Our hearts were filled with joy as we realized we were now officially a family of 4 (or 5 counting Wrigley). Life was and is getting better.

Thanks for all your thoughts, prayers, gifts, love, and support through this process. We are excited for you all to meet Caroline. She really is precious, has a full head of hair, and will be a great little sister for Abigail.

Scripture Haven

2010-09-09T14:54:00.011-05:00

A few of my girl designs

A few of my boy designs

A glimpse inside one of the scripture books

"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it."
Proverbs 22:6

To say I have learned a lot over the past 2 years as a new mom would be a huge understatement. Looking back now I realize I really didn't have a clue just how much of an undertaking becoming a parent really was. Sure I could put up a small argument and say that Wrigley really was a great warm-up to parenting for us; I could even say that certain books like "What to Expect When You're Expecting" and "Babywise" were great guides for us as we attempted to study up on all of our parenting knowledge before Abigail arrived. As time has gone on though I have realized the cold hard truth that there is no magical formula to perfect parenting. You can abide by all the rules and try out all of the tricks in the books but when it comes down to it, you still won't have "a perfect kid by Friday". As we prepare to welcome the newest member of our family into our lives in just a matter of days I can't help but reflect over the past 2 years and think about how much our lives have changed since Abigail's first arrival. There's no doubt we have made our fair share of mistakes when it comes to parenting along the way but if there's one thing we've done right and one thing we've noticed that will never fail us or steer us wrong, it's the power of prayer.

One thing I noticed that drastically changed once I became a mommy, was my prayer life. I have never been on my knees more than I have been over the past 21 months. Last spring Josh and I covered "The Power of a Praying Parent" with our small group. I can't even begin to tell you how much this study and our time spent together each week with our dear friends praying over our families has impacted my life. Since then, my prayer life has not only become more consistent and intimate, but it has become more specific and focused on God's Words rather than my words. If anything, I have learned it's never too early to start speaking scripture into your child's life. I truly believe there is power in praying God's actual truth over your children.

As part of a send-off to our small group after we completed our "Power of a Praying Parent" study I made each of the families a scripture book that they could use as a guide to pray scripture over each one of their children. Each scripture book has 25 different scriptures listed inside with the child's actual name inserted into the verse. ("Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of Abigail's mouth, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." Ephesians 4:29) I soon realized after making these that not only did I enjoy making these for others, but it brought me great joy in knowing there were other families out there who were just as passionate as I was about praying scripture over their children.

Fast forward a few months and what first started out as an attempt to be crafty and sentimental has now turned into a small at-home business for me. Not too long ago I decided to launch an account on Etsy and try my hand at selling some of these scripture books. Listed as Sweet Blessings Scripture Books you can visit my Etsy shop and order a custom-made scripture book for your friends and family. To view these books as well as a list of available designs, simply log onto http://www.scripturehaven.etsy.com/. I'm hoping as time goes on to expand upon the variety of items I offer. This of course will depend upon just how crafty and creative I really can be. Ultimately though I would love to offer more than just Sweet Blessings Scripture Books.

Who knows if and when this will actually take-off outside of the realm of family and friends? All I know for now is that I love making them and if it can bless even just one other family's prayer life in the way it has mine over the past 21 months, then it will be well worth the time and effort.

Our Little Girl is Growing Up!

2010-08-12T22:33:00.006-05:00

Abigail chooses which animal she will build and take home as her new Big Girl Bed Stuffed Animal
And the winner is...Monkey (let's be honest, the other animals didn't stand a chance against monkey)

Abigail helps to stuff her monkey by stepping on the pedal

Picking out the perfect heart for Ahh-Ahh

Time to make a wish...(if only we knew what went through their heads at this age)

Helping put the heart in Ahh-Ahh

Ready for a slumber party with her new Big Girl Bed Best Friend

A true shopper at heart...ready to retire with her purchases after a hard day's work at the mall

Abigail's Big Girl Bed

No more monkeys jumping on the bed!

Thanks Grammy and Grandpa for my new Dora PJ's

All smiles with her new Ahh-Ahh

Snuggled in and ready for her bedtime story

Monday marked a major milestone in the Smithon household...it was the day Abigail made the big switch from her crib to her big girl bed. I was a little hesitant and unsure of how the transition would go, especially since Abigail has always slept like a champ in her crib. With only a month and a half to go though before Baby Girl #2 makes her debut we wanted to make the transition far enough ahead of time so that Abigail would have time to adjust to her new surroundings without associating it with the arrival of sissy. We figure sissy's arrival will be a big enough shock to sweet little Abigail, especially once she realizes we can't return her.

In order to mark this special occasion we decided to throw Abigail a "Big Girl Bed Party". Abigail and I met Josh in San Antonio Monday afternoon after he got off of work. We then headed to the Build-a-Bear Workshop at La Cantera so that Abigail could pick out and make her very own Big Girl Stuffed Animal to sleep with. Abigail has been on a "monkey-kick" lately so it was no surprise to us when she chose to build a stuffed monkey. You should have seen the look on her face. I wasn't sure she would get into the whole "Build-a-Bear" process, but boy was I wrong. She loved every minute of it! From stuffing the monkey, to picking out a heart, to washing the monkey, after it was all said and done, she was enthralled by the entire process. Out of pure pride and determination she even managed to drag her Build-a-Bear box the entire way back to the car. It was the cutest thing I have ever seen! She has started to call monkeys "Ahh-Ahh's" after the sounds they make (oooh-oooh, ahh ahh), so when it came time to name her new friend, the decision was unanimous...her new friend would be named Ahh Ahh.

By the time we made it home, it was way past Abigail's typical bedtime...which looking back now I think may have worked to our advantage. Not only did she have her new friend, Ahh Ahh, to keep her company but awaiting her on her Big Girl Bed were new Dora pajamas from Grammy and Grandpa and a new bedtime book, "I'm a Big Sister". When the time came to turn out the lights and say good-night she was a little confused and intimidated by her new surroundings but after letting out a brief cry the exhaustion set in and that was the last peep we heard from her until 8am the next morning. In all honesty, I think mom was more of a nervous wreck than Abigail. Her new bed is quite a bit taller and bigger than her crib and even though it has a guard rail I couldn't help but imagine my precious little girl falling out of her bed in the middle of the night. We are now going on night #4 and I have to say, up to this point, naptimes and all, the transition has been pretty smooth (knock on wood). A word to the wise...one thing that I think has helped us in all of this are black-out shades. We put them in behind her curtains and let me tell you...they work like a charm. I think it helps that the room is close to pitch dark during both naptime and bedtime. I like to think it keeps her from wanting to get up out of bed and explore her new-found freedom within her Big Girl Room.

It truly is amazing how fast the time flies by. One minute you're holding back tears as you move them from the bassinet to their nursery and the next you're watching them climb up a step stool into their very own big girl bed. Although each milestone is an accomplishment well-worth celebrating, I'm not so sure I'm ready to let my little girl grow up so fast. One thing's for sure, we couldn't be more proud of her. She is going to make an incredible big sister!

It's a Girl!

2010-05-09T21:49:00.006-05:00

Mommy's going to have a baby!
Little Peanut's First Sonogram at 10 weeks

"Big Sister" Abigail announces to family and friends that she is going to have a new sibling

Believe it or not, this shirt wasn't a dead giveaway to some that Abigail was going to be a Big Sister

Daddy only thought he had his hands full with one girl...

Judging by the mouth-open reaction, I'm beginning to wonder if baby girl could see us somehow through the sonogram. Do you think she's excited to have us as parents or scared?

Sweet, precious baby girl

Baby girl's feet (they're kind of sitting one on top of the other)

You can see one of her hands/fingers here

For those of you just now joining our regularly scheduled program, don't worry you haven't missed a blog. You may be thinking to yourself, "did I even know the Smithson's were expecting again?". Hopefully this isn't the first you're hearing of it. We tried our best to cover all of our bases. If it is though, I apologize. I had every good intention of writing a specific blog to share the exciting news about our expanding family but then life with a 17-month old happened and well, the rest is history. I guess this is only the beginning. The first child receives the grand entrance. She is the one who has a blog set up for her, a pregnancy journal marked with every sign of nausea and milestone, and a baby book waiting for her completed upon her arrival. The second one...well, she will be lucky to have any sort of footage, documentation, etc. marking her arrival. Of course, I'm saying all of this to bring humor to the blog and make up for the fact I am years behind where I was this time 2 years ago when I was pregnant with Abigail. I really am hoping to pull out my inner domestic diva and Super Mommy skills over the next few months and make this next little girl's arrival just as grand and memorable as Abigail's was. It's high expectations I know but hey, it's Mother's Day...let a mommy dream big for now.

So, with all that being said...guess what? We're expecting! Not only that, but as of last Thursday, we found out that our new little peanut is A GIRL! That's right, Abigail will soon have a little sister to play dress up with. We couldn't be more excited. Coming from a house full of boys, I'm excited for Abigail to be able to have a sister/friend to travel through life's ups and downs with. While Josh is now busy wondering how on earth we will ever be able to pay for 2 weddings someday, I am busy fretting over what our life is going to look like 16 years from now when these two little angels become teenagers in high school. And I only thought my life was full of drama now...

For now I guess we will just take life one day at a time and marvel over the fact that God has blessed us with two of his most beautiful and prized possessions. What a huge privilege and honor to know that he has entrusted us to love on these girls and raise them up to know, serve, and love Him every chance they get.

We received a good report from the last sonogram. Not only am I continuing to gain weight (which pleases the doctor), baby girl is healthy and measuring right on track. I am currently 20 1/2 weeks along and my due date is set for September 23rd.

While Abigail is still too young to truly grasp what it means when we say, "mommy has a baby inside of her tummy"; it sure is cute to see her walk over to me, lift up my shirt, and give my belly a kiss. Little does she know that in about 4 months her entire world will be flipped upside down. Of course she will forever be our little princess...she will now just have to scoot over and share a piece of her throne.

It's Spring Time in the Hill Country!

2010-04-15T22:41:00.004-05:00

It's Spring Time and that can only mean one thing in the Hill Country...Bluebonnets! Although there's no sign of spring in our yard (our yard is desperately hurting for some landscaping and a little touch of color), there are quite a few patches of bluebonnets in and around the Kerrville Area. Josh and I decided to take Abigail out for a mini photo shoot the other day and capture some of the beauty of the Hill Country at its best.

Spring Break

2010-03-23T22:54:00.004-05:00

My nephew, Owen, decided to take a pony ride. What a cute cowboy!

All Aboard the Peek Family Express!

I had my doubts on this one...nevertheless it held us up (despite the 200lb weight limit...oops!)

My sister-in-law Julie and one of her precious daughters, Ashley

Abigail's Cousins: Ellie, Ashley, and Owen

Driving Miss Daisy

Grammy's Lil' Sidekick

Abigail's 1st Time on a Carousel

This past week was spring break here in Kerrville and although spring break doesn't really affect Abigail quite yet, it did give us a short break from some of our normal week-in, week-out activities such as Children's Day Out, Mom and Tot Gym Class, etc. The weather was absolutely beautiful so we tried to spend as much time as possible outdoors. The highlight of our week was a quick mini-trip over to Austin to spend some quality play time with Abigail's cousins. On Wednesday we took the kiddos to a mini-amusement park for kids, called Kiddie Acres. Abigail is finally getting to the age where she can start to join in on some of the activities her older cousins and friends are doing and it makes outings like these a lot more exciting and enjoyable. I was really excited to see how she would react to all of the different rides, sights, and sounds.

Now I should preface our Kiddie Acres adventure by saying that Kiddie Acres is in desperate need of a makeover. The place has been around for as long as I can remember. In fact, I'm pretty sure I rode on some of the same rides Abigail did when I was a little kid. I can't guarantee there have been many changes or renovations made to the place since those days, but I can guarantee that Kiddie Acres will bring a smile to any kids face. Abigail had the best time riding the different rides. I can already see a little dare devil emerging from my sweet little 16 month old. Although I accompanied her on all of the rides, I'm pretty sure she would have taken them on by herself if I would have allowed it. We're looking forward to returning to Kiddie Acres a few times this summer when we visit Grammy and Grandpa.

Let's Rodeo!

2010-02-23T22:27:00.004-06:00

Bundled up and ready to Rodeo
Let's Rodeo

You tell me...which "Chick" do you think is cuter?

The Cutest Billy Goat You Will Ever See

Pig-ture Perfect!

Kate and Abigail are wiped out after an eventful morning at the Rodeo

Last week Abigail and I spent the majority of our time quarantined inside our home. Abigail came down with some sort of infection over Valentine's weekend and spent the remainder of the week running a pretty high fever. As most mommies can probably testify to, after a few days of being stuck inside with no real contact with the outside world you tend to go a little stir crazy. Luckily Abigail's fever broke early Thursday morning and she began to resemble her normal happy-go-lucky self once again. To celebrate we decided to hit up the San Antonio Rodeo on Friday morning with two of our favorite playdate pals, Sarah and Kate Seefeldt.

Despite the fact that the weather was a little overcast and even misty at times, the Rodeo didn't disappoint. I was a little hesitant at first about how Abigail would do, considering she's only 15 months old but let me tell you, Abigail had a blast and was entertained the entire time. If you haven't taken your kiddos to the Rodeo, I highly suggest you put it at the top of your to-do list the next time the Rodeo is in town. It's the perfect outing for everyone! In fact we plan on making it an annual tradition from here on out.

More than anything it was just fun for me to watch Abigail's face light up as she watched her favorite bedtime books come to life right before her very eyes. Before now, pigs, cows, horses, and chickens were animals she just looked at in books and heard her mommy and daddy poorly try to imitate when reading. Talk about being mesmerized. She could have looked at those animals forever.

We're looking forward to many more rodeos to come in the future. Note to self for next year though: cowboy boots and a cute pink cowboy hat are a must for my little cowgirl!

Abigail's 1st Haircut

2010-02-03T23:32:00.004-06:00

Abigail is mesmerized by the princess movie on tv

Seriously, she should be the poster child for Sharkey's

Cool, calm, and collected

Mommy's little girl is growing up way too fast!

Princess Abigail on her purple Barbie Jeep throne

How come when mommy tries to put a ponytail in Abigail's hair there are nothing but tears and screams?

And now for the finishing touches...What hair-do would be complete without a little teasing?

Our little Pebbles...all set and ready to go!

Today Josh got his first glimpse at just how expensive it is going to be to raise a daughter. Today, Abigail took her first "official" trip to the beauty salon. Okay, so this beauty salon was called "Sharkey's"...not quite the most glamorous or prestigious of salons...but to kids, it is the Disneyworld of hair cut places. What better way to entice a child to hold still while you hold a sharp object close to their head than to entertain them with movies, video games, and of course their very own luxury car to sit in. Let me tell you, the gimics, the princess movies, the purple Barbie Jeep, it all works! Abigail didn't move an inch the entire time her hair was getting cut. She was off in her own princess world. We pulled out all the bells and whistles for this milestone. Not quite sure how she would handle the experience we splurged and went for the "Baby's 1st Haircut" package, complete with a certificate, picture, and of course a few locks of her hair to save as a keepsake. Don't ask me what we're going to do with the locks of hair. I highly doubt Abigail will open up the ziploc bag 30 years from now and shed a tear because of the fond memories she made at Sharkey's. You can go ahead and say it...we are "those" parents...the ones who shovel out money for ridiculously over-priced "Baby's 1st" packages. I'm sure we'll look back years from now and wonder why we didn't put aside more money for her college fund rather than spend it on Baby's First haircuts, Baby's First pictures with Santa and who knows what other "Baby's 1sts" are still to come. For now though, I take one look at her and my heart just melts. She has us wrapped around her tiny fingers. I would bend over backwards and gladly give her all the money in the world time and time again just to see those beautiful blue eyes look up at me and flash me that gummy, two-teeth smile.

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

2009-12-30T11:03:00.005-06:00

Abigail is all smiles on her new musical pony that Santa brought her
Not so sure about this whole sledding thing...

The Pickle Champions once again

Abigail and her cousin Owen sporting their Christmas pajamas

Ready for Christmas Eve service

Clear the path! This lil' Snowmobiler is ready to hit the trails with her Daddy.

Abigail's 1st time to build a snowman

Snuggling up with Grandpa after a long hard day in the snow

Daddy's Little Snowbunnies

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone had an incredible time celebrating our amazing Savior's Birth with friends and family. There's no doubt it truly is the "most wonderful time of the year". To say our Christmas was incredible, would be a huge understatement...We had the time of our lives! For Christmas this year we spent a full week up in the mountains of Colorado. Talk about having a White Christmas! Who wouldn't want to spend a week surrounded by hot tubs, ski resorts, sledding hills, snow mobiles, and pool tables? Did I mention the fireplace or the endless supply of hot chocolate? Vacations like that are hard to come by and hard to beat! Needless to say we took full advantage of our time there and made sure to make the most of our White Christmas.

Abigail didn't quite know what to think of the snow. Part of the problem may have been the fact that she was bundled up so much she couldn't move her arms or legs. Wait until you see some of the pictures though...she makes one ridiculously cute snow bunny! We managed to take her sledding a few times and for a first timer I think she enjoyed it. She also found a new love and passion for Frosty the Snowman over the trip. I know it sounds silly to even say that but you should see her face light up when she sees or hears anything to do with Frosty. Josh's parents had a Frosty the Snowman stuffed animal there at the cabin for decoration and once she laid eyes on it for the first time she then had to carry it with her wherever she went. Needless to say we decided to re-gift Frosty and give it to her for Christmas. (Thanks Mom and Dad Smithson...I guess we owe you a new Christmas decoration!) My mom and Josh swear that at one point she actually said "Frosty". I wasn't there to hear it for myself but if so, that would officially be her first word outside of Mama and Dada.

Our little snow bunny is growing up! Right before the trip she took her first official step...at the doctor's office of all places! She still resorts to crawling as her main mode of transportation but I have a feeling it's only a matter of days before she becomes an official walker. Since we've been home she has been experimenting and taking little walking trips of 4 0r 5 steps from one piece of furniture to another. I have a feeling my mommy world is about to be turned upside down once again now that she's about to enter this new phase. My friends and family have warned me about it...I guess now I will finally get to see for myself what they have been talking about.

What an incredible year it has been! No words could possibly describe the joy our precious Abigail has brought to our lives. Not a day goes by where we don't thank the Lord for loaning us this precious gift. It has been a miracle and a blessing to watch our little one grow up right before our very eyes. It has been a year of many "firsts"...first time to crawl, first birthday, first words, first steps... We look forward to the New Year with excitement and anticipation. There's no doubt there are still many more "firsts" to come. We wouldn't trade our adventures in parenting for anything in the world. Hold on tight, it's sure to be a wild and crazy ride. We hope you will continue to follow us in 2010! May you and your family experience the wonder and the fullness of God's richest blessings this next year. Happy New Year!

Bon Voyage

2009-11-21T15:35:00.007-06:00

Celebrating with my hubby after finishing 13.1

Pre-race photo-op in the hotel room with Angie...Half Marathon #3-Here we come!

This picture really doesn't do the sunsets from the cruise any justice...they were breathtaking!

Josh receives his Golden "Ship on a Stick" Trophy from Rachel, the Cruise Events Director

Ready to board our boat again after a full day in Cozumel

Spending the day on the beaches of Cozumel

Megan and I get ready to tackle the climbing walls at the Adventure Park in Cozumel

Who would have thought we could clean up so nice?

My proud hubby after his 3rd place finish in the Hairy Chest Contest

Braving the winds and the aftermath of Hurricane Ida up on the top deck of the ship

On Thursday, Josh and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. In addition to celebrating 5 incredible years of marriage, we are both celebrating our 30th birthday this year. Seeing as how both of these are pretty big milestones to-date in both of our lives, we decided this called for a special celebration. To celebrate, Josh and I embarked on a 5-day Carnival Cruise out of Galveston with one of my dearest friends (and roommate from college) Megan, and her husband, Darin. Although we love our little Abigail more than anything in the world, this was one trip she wasn't going to make. Vacation means sleeping in, relaxing, catching up on a good book, etc...and let's be honest, it's hard to really accomplish any of those with an 11-month old in tote. So with Abigail in goods hands at "Camp Grammy and Grandpa" we set sail and left our worries behind to enjoy a week relaxing together with great food, good fun, and incredible company.

I won't bore you with all of the details of our adventures at sea, but I will tell you that Josh managed to bring home 2 medals and a golden "Ship on a Stick" trophy. Although I wish I could brag and say that our prize earnings were racked up from our time spent in the casino and gambling on several different rounds of BINGO, I guess I should brag and find pride in the fact that my husband came in 3rd in the Hairy Chest Contest and 2nd in the Jeopardy-like game show. I probably should throw a little disclaimer in here that Josh was awarded 3rd in the Hairy Chest Contest not because of the amount of hair he has but because he and Darin decided to win style points by shaving a "Smiley Face" into the chest hair that he does have. As if two medals and a "Ship on a Stick" trophy weren't enough, we had the privilege of watching re-runs of Josh's performance in the Hairy Chest Contest over and over and OVER throughout the week thanks to the camera crews that were taping and broadcasting highlights of the week on the different tv screens throughout the boat. Needless to say Josh quickly earned the unspoken title of Carnival Cruise Lines Mr. Congeniality. I wish I could say I was able to fly under the radar and avoid the spotlight altogether, but it wasn't too long before we were all quickly associated and recognized as being part of Josh's group. We were frequently stopped and asked about Josh as to whether or not he was always this funny and silly. I've said it before and I'll say it again...marriage doesn't change a man. What you see is what you get with my husband and as crazy and off the wall as he can be sometimes, I love him even more today than I did when I married him 5 years ago.

By the time it was all said and done, we came back completely refreshed and relaxed. As if a week on a cruise wasn't exciting enough, I ran the San Antonio Half Marathon the day after we got back. Despite the fact my body had grown accustomed to endless buffets and a daily afternoon snack of pizza, I managed to finish the half in 1:55...not too shabby considering a year ago to the date of the half marathon I was cooped up in a hospital bed awaiting the arrival of Miss Abigail Rose.

What an incredible trip! Thanks again to Camp Grammy and Grandpa for watching Abigail so that we could get away and spend some much needed time together. We will update the blog soon with an official report card from Camp Grammy and Grandpa.

Until then, thank you to all of our friends and family who have blessed us beyond belief with love, support, encouragment, and most imporantly prayer, over the last 5 years of marriage. Our journey wouldn't be the same without you. We are looking forward to discovering what the Lord has in store for us as we enter into our 6th year of marriage. We are even more excited about having you all by our side as we continue this incredible adventure. Hang on...there's no doubt it will be a wild ride!

Happy Halloween

2009-11-01T14:40:00.003-06:00

Abigail and Mommy at Trinity Baptist Church Harvest Fest
My Busy Bee is on the Move Again

Abigail participates in her first carnival game (if I would have let her, she would have gotten in the pool and stayed there all afternoon)

Diva on the Move

"I have a feeling I'm going to like this whole Trick-or-Treat thing."

Trick or Treat? I'll Take Treat!

The Cutest Bumble Bee You Will Ever See

So serious, yet so stinkin' cute!

A Time for Every Season

2009-10-30T23:25:00.006-05:00

Hanging out in Bricktown with the McCasland Girls
Dancing with my Prince at Sarah Shenold's Wedding

Cousins Make the Best Friends...I love you Lillie!

Luke Mosley takes advantage of his one-on-one time with Abigail

"Reunited and it feels so good"...Abigail reunites with her beloved Quanny

Hook 'Em Horns Grandpa!

All smiles with my Grammy

"Don't tell anyone, but my mommy's an Aggie"...I did this for you Uncle Scott and Uncle Jeff

Dazed and Confused by all the orange...I still love my cousins though!

With everything going on lately, Josh and I decided to make the most of this transition and take advantage of the extra time we have together as a family. What better way to spend time together as a family than to take a little road trip. A week and a half ago we set out to travel the open road and spend some time visiting family and friends. First stop? Dallas, TX. While in Dallas we managed to have a date night at the State Fair, have lunch at school with my niece Ellie (who is in Kindergarten), enjoy a good ol' fashioned Texas/OU tailgate party the night before the big game, and even had the chance to catch Josh's brother Zack preach as Senior Pastor at his new church in Euless.

Next stop on our road trip? Oklahoma City, OK. We don't get to visit our friends in Oklahoma near as much as we would like to these days so we decided to go ahead and take the extra time while we had it to travel north and embrace the wind and the cold. While there we got to have dinner with the Quanny (formerly known as Amy Quade), we spent time catching up with our favorite SNU crowd at City Bites, hung out with the McCasland Family in Bricktown, had lunch with one of our favorite engaged couples Kiley and Josh E., and of course goofed around with some of our favorite families, the Mosleys and the Wrights. To top it off we ended our 11 day trip with a wedding. We set out to make the most of our time together as a family and I have to say, we did just that. For those of you that are worried we are goofing off and enjoying this time of "retirement" too much, don't worry...Josh managed to line out 3 interviews while we were on the road. :)

We feel extremely lucky to have such an incredible support system in our family and friends. It is through them that we are constantly reminded of God's Great Love and Faithfulness each and every day.

Happy Fall!

2009-10-12T14:12:00.006-05:00

Abigail's friend Ethan and his mommy Jenny came with us to the Pumpkin Patch

The Cutest Pumpkin of the Patch

Not only are pumpkins great for decorating but they make perfect drums too!

Daddy's Lil' Pumpkin

Abigail loves looking at the goats

There's no doubt fall has arrived. Josh and I just finished up our first batch of soup, the delicious smells of Sweet Cinammon Pumpkin and Harvest Apple fill our house via our nifty wallflowers, and one of my favorites, the Pumpkin Spice Latte, is back on the menu at Starbucks. Now if only we could get the cool weather to stick around for more than a day or two at a time...

One of our favorite traditions since moving to the Hill Country has been visiting the Great Hill Country Pumpkin Patch in Medina every year. As hokey as they may seem at times, some of our fondest memories have come from participating in these small town festivities. This past weekend we decided to take Abigail on her first outing to the Pumpkin Patch. Seeing as how this will be her first Halloween we wanted to make sure she had just the right pumpkin picked out. Although I think it will be another year or two before she can really appreciate the Pumpkin Patch and fully partake in all of its fun kid-friendly activities, I think it's fair to say our first visit was a success and we all had a great time. For the most part we just strolled around and took in all the sights and sounds. One thing we did participate in however was the petting farm. Abigail absolutely loves animals! She got the greatest kick out of petting the pony, watching the goats and sheep, and playing with the baby chick. Unfortunately we're still working on what it means to be "gentle" with something so we weren't able to play with the baby chick for too long. The chick was a good sport though and I'm proud to say it's still alive!

Although the pictures weren't perfect (we were lucky just to have her sit still for a minute) I'm realizing more and more that it's not necessarily the pictures you take but the memories you make that will be what you carry with you for years to come.

We had a great afternoon and by the time it was all said and done Abigail left the Pumpkin Patch with the perfect baby pumpkin in tow. Of course what visit to Medina would be complete without a stop at the Cider Mill for some good ol' Apple Ice Cream? Life doesn't get much better than that!

2009-08-29T21:19:00.006-05:00

Abigail and Claire Flores
Abigail and Blaire Bridges

Future "Holla" girl Abigail with Erin Kennedy

Abigail's beloved "Quanny"...Amy Quade

Abigail with Shannon Sullivan

"We Are Family"

Abigail with her cousin Lillie and Aunt Corrie

Abigail with Kiley Stone (soon-to-be Kiley Edington)

"A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove...but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child."

Perhaps one of the things I was most anxious about going into this summer was how I was going to juggle my role as girl's camp director and my role as mommy, both of which require attention 24/7 during the summer months.

Going into the summer Josh and I had this "genius plan" of not hiring a nanny but instead toting Abigail around everywhere we went and taking care of her ourselves. We figured she was young enough and small enough to where she wouldn't be too much of a hassle. Somewhere between April and May we decided that we were out of our minds and would quickly be in over our heads if we didn't have some extra help. So the search for the nanny began...The only problem was, all of our recruiting trips were over by this point and most college students already had their summer plans set in stone. (Insert STRESS!!!) Thankfully God's plans were set in stone as well and His plans trump anyone else's plans.

Summer camp for us runs 12 weeks long so starting out we were 12 weeks short when it came to a nanny for Abigail. I can testify to the phrase "God Answers Prayer" because one by one, week by week, our nanny position was filled. Possibly the greatest blessing given to me this summer were Abigail's nannies. I couldn't have asked for more incredible, Godly women to take care of our precious gift. To these women, I am forever grateful. I can't thank you enough for selfelssly giving up your time to come and love on our sweet Abigail. Your playfulness, your joy, your love and endless hugs, were priceless and more impressionable to Abigail than you will ever know. Abigail is forever changed because of the impact you made on her this summer.

Looking back now I wonder why in the world I even wasted an ounce of time stressing over something so small when my God, who is so much bigger than my selfish worries, was in control the entire time.

Surviving Summer Camp with an Eight Month Old

2009-07-29T20:47:00.005-05:00

Go Poke Thursday

Swimming at the pool with Daddy

Abigail makes an appearance in her 1st Fourth of July Parade

Bobbing for Abigail

Ready for the Barnyard Bash

If you would have asked me this spring if I thought life was busy and hectic trying to raise a 4 month old while working full-time, I would have said yes without thinking twice. Ask me now what life was like this past spring with a 4 month old and I would respond by saying "piece of cake". The difference? Summer camp! Never in a million years did I imagine myself running a summer camp from 7am to midnight 3 months straight out of the year while also running around chasing an 8 month old. In case you're wondering, yes I do question my sanity at times. I often wonder what in the world I used to do with all of my "free time"? Long gone are those days. Despite it all though, I wouldn't trade my life for anything in the world.

Needless to say this summer has been an experience in and of itself. With two weeks left to go we are beyond the point of exhaustion and looking ahead with much anticipation to the time we will get to spend together as a family. Although it's been a long summer, it's been an incredible one...one we will forever remember. I went into this summer anxious and worrying about how we would manage to take care of Abigail while also taking care of our campers, our staff, not to mention ourselves. My worries and anxiety were quickly put to rest however. With the help of some incredible friends and our amazing family adjusting to camp with an 8 month old has been fairly smooth.

Abigail is changing daily...just when I think she couldn't possibly get any cuter, she does. Her smile continues to melt my heart each and every day. She has one of the most easy going, flexible, loveable personalities of any baby I know and I attribute that to the campers and staff of Deer Creek Camp. If she wasn't a people person before summer began, she sure is now! When it comes to camp she is the life of the party.

She is a little over eight months old now and seems to be hitting a new milestone every day. She crawled for the first time last week and is now crawling all over the place. I'm quickly finding out for myself how fast paced your life truly becomes once your baby is on the move. There's no turning back now! She loves to wave, attempts to clap (quite spastically I might add) and occasionally will try to give you a high five. Her favorite word to say is "da da" although I will say her first official word was "ma ma". She absolutely loves being in water whether it's a pool or a bath. While she loves playing with toys her favorite things to play with over the last few months are spoons, nalgene bottles, whistles, and name tags.

All in all, I think it's fair to say she's a "Happy Camper".

Happy Birthday Wrigley!

2009-07-22T14:53:00.003-05:00

Wrigley's Birthday Celebration at Camp
Wrigley's Birthday Celebration at home

Two Peas in a Pod

Abigail + Wrigley=Best Friends

This past weekend we celebrated Wrigley's 3rd birthday. Since Wrigley's birthday falls smack dab in the middle of summer it has become tradition to celebrate her birthday by inviting our staff over for a mid-summer cookout/birthday celebration. Josh and I feel so fortunate to have a place in town that can serve as a much needed retreat for friends, family, and especially staff during the summer months. We love being able to provide them with a "home" on their off time where they can relax and enjoy fellowship with their peers.

Although Wrigley is no longer the queen of the house and has had to pass her crown down to the new "princess" in town, she will always hold a very special place in our hearts. I must say there was debate in the beginning as to whether or not Wrigley would ever warm up to the fact that Abigail is now a permanent fixture to the Smithson household but after months of persuasion via Abigail feeding Wrigley treats I can honestly say they are now truly two peas in a pod.

Easter

2009-04-19T22:29:00.004-05:00

The New "Normal" in Smithson Family Portraits

(At least the moms are looking at the camera)

Dazed and Confused (Lillie, Aiden, and Abigail)

Ready for the Easter Egg Hunt

We had a great Easter. Josh's parents came into town and spent a few days with us. It was so nice to be able to hang out without having an agenda or a long list of "to-do's". Josh and his dad had a chance to play golf while his mom and I went shopping with Abigail. Strollers make great shopping carts! You wouldn't believe how many clothes we managed to pile on top of that thing. Note to self though, if you're not careful strollers can get a little "top-heavy". I guess you could say our shopping got a little out of hand...we managed to tip the stroller over twice with all of our stuff. Luckily, both times, Abigail was in my arms and not in the stroller.

Although to Abigail, Easter was "just another day", we did our best to try and introduce a few traditions to her. In the spirit of Easter, and in our case competition, Josh and I hid a few eggs around the house and had an old-fashioned Easter egg hunt. Everyone, including Wrigley, had 4 eggs to find. We realize that Abigail didn't have a clue as to what was going on but for Josh and me, the Easter Egg Hunt meant bragging rights. I'm proud to say that I am the 2009 Champion!

On Sunday after church we drove to Brady and spent the afternoon with Josh's family. It's been a few months since the entire family has been able to get together, so it was fun to catch up and get all of the cousins together. It's amazing how much the little ones have changed in such a short amount of time. Lillie is now walking. It's a hoot to watch her and Kaitlyn tag team and run all over the place. Aiden is training to be a professional wrestler...you should see the thighs that little man has. It's only a matter of time before Abigail and Aiden are on the move and Smithson gatherings become a big game of Cat and Mouse.

We're thankful that Holidays give us the opportunity to take time out from the busyness of life and spend time with loved ones. Although golf, shopping, and Easter Egg Hunts make for great stories, nothing compares to the greatest love story of all time...Jesus Christ dying on the cross for our Sins and giving us Eternal Life in the power of His Resurrection...that is the Story we are looking forward to telling Abigail about the most.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

2009-04-08T23:28:00.004-05:00

My first Cubs lesson...reading Cubs 101 with Daddy
7th Inning Stretch

Thanks Kim Davis for our Cubs dresses...we love them!

Buy me some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks

Cubs Win! Cubs Win! Cubs Win!

Our tired little Cub

Play Ball!

One Proud Daddy

Opening Day 2009-Minute Maid Park

All decked out in Cubs gear and ready to go

Monday, April 6th will forever go down in the record books as one of the happiest days in Josh Smithson's life. Not only was it Opening Day and his beloved Cubs were taking on the Astros at Minute Maid Park but it was his first time to be able to take his daughter to see a baseball game. Anyone who knows Josh knows that Opening Day for him is arguably the "Most Wonderful Time of the Year" so to be able to share in that with his little princess, you can only imagine how happy he was. To say he was floating on Cloud 9 would be a huge understatement!

It all started this past Christmas when Abigail gave her daddy tickets to see the Cubs take on the Astros on Opening Day. He has literally been counting down the days ever since. What's sweet is that it wasn't the fact that he was getting to see the Cubs play that made him so happy (sure that was an added bonus) but it was the fact that this time he was getting to share the experience with his precious Abigail. As a matter of fact we had several offers from friends in the Houston area to babysit Abigail for the night so we could enjoy the game as husband and wife but Josh wanted nothing to do with it...he insisted that it was going to be a family affair. I'll admit I was a little hesitant on how the evening was going to turn out; after all I don't know of many 4 1/2 month olds who are entertained by watching an entire 9 innings of baseball. Josh however was convinced otherwise. In his head he pictured it as one of the most memorable evenings of his life. I have to say, this time he was right. Our little Abigail was a champ! Of the 9 innings, we actually sat and watched 6 complete innings from our seats. The other 3 we spent walking around the ballpark. The only time Abigail actually got a little fussy was during the 1st inning when her dad got a little too excited after Alfonso Soriano hit a lead-off home run to put the Cubs up 1-0. She was caught off guard and got a little scared after her dad jumped to his feet and started cheering. (Of course it probably didn't help that while he was cheering he was holding her up in the air as if she was some sort of trophy). We quickly came to the realization that we were going to have to find "alternative means of celebrating" if we wanted this family affair to last long. After taking in the sights and sounds Abigail managed to catch a quick "cat-nap" during the 3rd and 4th innings...I think the excitement and the stimulation from her surroundings finally wore her out. My favorite moment of the night was watching Abigail and her daddy sing "Take me out to the Ballgame" in the seventh inning stretch together. I've never seen Josh happier or more proud than he was at that particular moment. To put icing on the cake, the Cubs beat the Astros 4-2. It looks like Abby may be the Cubs lucky charm. Dare I say this may be the year?

4 Months Old

2009-03-22T21:54:00.005-05:00

As you can see, Abigail is in awe of Wrigley as she peers through the back door window...Wrigley on the other hand...not so mezmerized

Our Little Easter Bunny
Doesn't your heart just melt?

My little snuggle buddy

1st Playtime in the Exersaucer

Two Peas in a Pod...Abigail is all smiles with Sam

Abigail turned 4 months old this past Tuesday. I still can't get over how fast time has flown by since our little munchkin was born. We went to the doctor on Friday for her 4 months check-up. Although she hasn't gained much weight since her last appointment, she's growing like a weed in the height department. She now weighs 13 pounds and is 25 inches long. She has her mom's bright blue eyes but other than that, she's all dad (at least that's what everyone says). She has a full set of fuzzy hair. It often looks as if she has stuck her finger in an electrical socket. In fact, just the other day I caught myself doing something I swore I never would do as a mom...something I used to roll my eyes at when my mom would do it to me...I licked my hand and attempted to "pat" Abigail's hair into place. I have a feeling this is just the beginning.

It has been fun to watch Abigail's personality develop more and more as the weeks have gone by. One thing's for sure, she loves playtime! Now that she has discovered her hands and her feet playtime has become a lot more active. She loves watching Baby Einstein videos and playing in her exersaucer but by far her favorite thing to do these days is play with Wrigley. You should see the smile on her face as she follows Wrigley's every move. Although Wrigley probably wouldn't be quick to admit it, I think she is discovering she has a new best friend in the house as well. It's cute to watch the subtle way they will interact with each other. Wrigley will kiss Abigail's feet only to have Abby shriek and kick back at her; Wrigley will then kiss her again and the shrieking/kicking cycle repeats all over. Although Wrigley still has her puppy moments, she seems to know her boundaries with Abigail. As a matter of fact, she is actually quite gentle and protective of her baby sister.

With only 10 weeks to go until camp begins we're trying to spend as much family time together as possible. It will be a busy 10 weeks but we'll be sure to include you along in the journey. Until next time...

A Friend Loves At All Times

2009-02-26T21:55:00.004-06:00

It doesn't get any cuter than this...Samuel Mosley pleading his case as Bachelor #5

Abby is looking forward to having a dance party with Lindsay Seward someday (she's heard all about her crazy dance moves from her mom)

Even our dear friends Josh and Lorrie Macy made a trip in from Guatemala to meet Abigail

Colby McCasland's first time to hold a baby! Looks like a pro to me :)

My best friend from high school, LJ, and her adorable daughter Annie (LJ is expecting and will be having her second daughter in just a few weeks) We're excited our girls will be so close in age!

"Happy Day" Friends forever...Kate Gomez and her beautiful daughter Ava hang out with Abby and me in our College Station hotel. Ava and Abigail are exactly 2 months apart.

Abigail had been counting down the days until she met her Aunt Ge!

Abigail and Baker...two of my most favorite people in the entire world!

"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13

One of the greatest joys over the past 3 months has been introducing Abigail to our family and friends. From childhood friends to college roommates it has been fun to see our little one wrapped in the arms of the people we love most. Thank you for loving our precious Abigail as if she was your own.

Our Little Road Warrior

2009-01-28T23:43:00.005-06:00

Abigail's 1st official trip to Aggieland
Bathtime at the Quality Inn and Suites

"Gotta have my shades"

Daddy's Alma Mater (Southern Nazarene University..."It's a time to begin"!)

Abigail gets her 1st taste of "Go Pokes Thursday" with the OSU girls

Abigail's 1st Hot Tub Adventure with Daddy

Pistol Pete welcomes Abigail onto the OSU Campus

Abigail gets a picture in the MSC with the newest Reveille

Recruiting season has begun and that can only mean one thing...time to hit the road! For 7 years now, Josh and I have been blessed to spend our springs traveling together recruiting staff for camp. Traveling together is not only easy but fun! In a sense you could say we have recruiting together down to a perfect science...that is, until now. Let's just say that this year recruiting will look a little different for the Smithson's. For one thing, there will now be a car seat in the back seat of the two-tone camp suburban. That's right, we're taking Abigail with us. She will officially be the youngest recruiter on the road. We're hoping this will work to our advantage...after all, who wouldn't want to stop by the table and look at the cute little baby?

We just finished our longest stretch of recruiting and I'm proud to say that Abigail was a champ! For 3 weeks now we have been out on the road recruiting in both Oklahoma and Texas and for the most part she was a little angel. She had her fussy moments, but who could blame her? It's hard getting off schedule, sleeping in different places, being passed around from one person to the next, and constantly having people cooing in your face.

Nothing quite could prepare us for recruiting with a 10 week old but after much trial and error I have compiled quite the list of words of wisdom and advice to take with me on the road in the future:

1. Not only is it necessary to take multiple changes of clothes for Abigail whenever we go out but for myself as well. Nothing beats having to reschedule an interview so that I can run to the hotel and change my pants because my has daughter pooped on them.

2. You can't really have the luxury of picking clean, relaxing places to nurse/pump...when it's time to eat, it's time to eat. From the floor of a bathroom stall at OSU to the back seat of the two-tone, Abigail and I have seen it all over these last few weeks.

3. If Abigail can spit up on the floor of a hotel room and I am okay with rubbing it in with a towel, there's no telling what other kind of filth has managed to soak into the floors of hotel rooms over the years and we just don't notice it.

4. According to "Daddy" it's never too early to introduce your daughter to the "Hot Tub" scene.

5. In the world of school mascots, Reveille is much nicer and better looking than Pistol Pete (Sorry if you are a Poke and following this blog...it's the truth though...just look at the pictures for proof).

6. No matter how much practice you have it's never easy to focus 100% when interviewing someone if you daughter is screaming in the background.

7. Recruiting with a baby produces 10 times more female applicants than male applicants.

8. You can never be too prepared when it comes to packing for your child. If you thought I was a horrible packer before, you should see me now! The difference is, Abigail is now the one with multiple pieces of luggage...not me!

9. It's never too early to start "arranging" marriages for your daughter, especially when all of your friends are having boys.

10. There will be good days and there will be bad days but regardless, at the end of the day I still have the most loveable, huggable, precious baby girl in the whole wide world.

I'm sure this list will only multiply with each trip we take. I'm thankful to have a job though that is flexible and allows me to travel and work day in and day out with my two most favorite people in the entire universe. I am blessed beyond belief.

A Smithson Family Christmas

2009-01-05T22:15:00.006-06:00

Look what Santa left under the tree!

Our 1st Family Christmas

Timber!

Aiden and Abigail...Mr. and Mrs. Claus

4 healthy babies = 4 tired but very happy mommies

Watch me grow...7 weeks

Mommy's greatest gift

Christmas Eve Service

Abigail's 1st Christmas was definitely an eventful one. For the first time in about 10 years the entire Smithson family was together under one roof celebrating Christmas. All in all there were 12 adults, 2 teenagers, 4 infants, and 3 dogs. Needless to say it was a little chaotic at times but in the end it's the laughter, the stories, and the memories that we shared that we will remember for years to come. When it comes to a Smithson Family Christmas, it's not the quality of gifts that matter but rather the quantity. Let me tell you the gifts add up when you're buying for 18 people. It's almost embarassing how many presents were under the tree. We managed to tackle the task of unwrapping the gifts with grace and finesse. The Christmas tree however didn't quite survive the unwrapping mayhem. Perhaps the highlight of the day was when our brother-in-law, Travis, went to retrieve a gift from behind the tree when all of a sudden he accidentally sent the tree tumbling to its side. The miraculous thing about all of this was not a single ornament was broken in the fall. Just call us the Griswolds...you never quite know what is going to happen when the entire Smithson family is together.

Despite the millions of gifts that were under the tree the greatest gift of all this Christmas for the Smithson family was the celebration of life. Over the past 14 months, 4 little Smithsons have entered this world. We have been blessed beyond belief with 4 healthy pregnancies and 4 precious bundles of joy. I can't even begin to imagine what Christmas will look like 2 years from now when the little ones are all walking and are entertained more by the actual present than the box and wrapping paper it came in. I have a feeling the craziness is only beginning. I'm thrilled that our family is finally all together in the same state and I can't wait to watch Abigail grow up with her cousins by her side.

Today marks 7 weeks for Miss Abigail. It has been fun to watch her personality begin to emerge over the last few weeks. She is beginning to smile a lot more and let me tell you...nothing melts a mother's heart more than to see her little girl smiling up at her.

We're looking forward to seeing what 2009 holds for our new family.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

2008-12-17T22:45:00.003-06:00

Is there anything more precious?
"Cousins make the best friends"
Abigail with her new cousin, Aidan

Not necessarily love at first sight

Abigail's first picture with Santa

Santa Baby

It's hard to believe, but today marks Abigail's 1 month birthday. I have no idea where the last 4 weeks have gone. I do know however that we are having the time of our lives with our little girl. Since my last post the past few weeks have been marked with several milestones...

Josh and I decided it was time to finally venture out into the "real world" and allow Abby to experience for herself a few of her mom and dad's interests. What better way to acclimate her to our active, over-involved lifestyle than to introduce her to a bunch of high school students at her first Young Life Club. I don't know how she did it, but she managed to sleep through the entire Christmas Club even with the music playing full blast. What a champ!

Abigail and I had our first playdate last week at the park next door. My friend Jenny and her son Ethan (bachelor #1) invited us to join them on a picnic and the offer, not to mention the weather, was just too good to pass up. Like every good mom with good intentions I made sure to leave plenty of time for us to get ready so that we could arrive on time. I quickly realized however that while it's great to strive for, punctuality is probably best to throw out the window from here on out...it's simply not possible as a mom (at least for me). After bathing, changing diapers (multiple times), packing up the diaper bag, and loading a screaming Abigail in the stroller, I was exhausted and ready to turn around and come home. The only problem was, I hadn't even left the house yet. We eventually made it to the park and had a great time with Ethan and Jenny. It ended up being well worth all of the hassle and fuss. I now understand however why some moms choose to never leave the house.

Abigail is no longer the newest Smithson on the block. 17 days after Abigail was born, Josh's oldest brother Bob and his wife Elia, welcomed their first child together into this world. Aidan William Smithson was born on December 4th, weighing 8 lbs, 13 oz and measured 22 inches long. We went this past Sunday to Brady and met Aidan for the first time. He sure is handsome! We are looking forward to watching Abigail, Aidan, and the rest of their cousins grow up together. There's no doubt they will be a tight-knit bunch.

With Christmas right around the corner, our nights have been jam-packed with all kinds of Holiday Parties. Abigail was invited to her very own Christmas Party by the nursing staff at Peterson Regional Medical Center where she was born. The party was thrown in honor of all of the 2008 babies that were born at the hospital. The festivities included cookies, punch, and of course, a picture with Santa. I'm proud to say there was no trauma or tears this time around with her pictures with Santa. As a matter of fact she couldn't have been a sweeter angel.

Today Abigail had her 1 month check up and passed with flying colors. She now weighs 9 pounds, 6 ounces and is measuring 21 3/4 inches long. Our baby girl truly is growing up fast.

So Much To Be Thankful For...

2008-12-01T19:16:00.005-06:00

The Cutest Turkey of All!
Dressed and ready to go for my first Peek Family Tailgate

Gig em' Aggies

"Holding My Own"

Abigail with her Uncle Scott and Uncle Jeff

Sweet Ellie holding her niece for the very first time

Thanksgiving is a time for family, football, fellowship, and the never-ending feast of incredible food. More than anything however, Thanksgiving is a chance to sit back and reflect upon the past year and the many things in our lives we have to be thankful for. For me, Thanksgiving took on a whole new meaning this year as I celebrated my first holiday with my precious, 10 day old, baby girl. One look at her and my heart just melts. I'd be lying if I didn't say that the last 2 weeks have been a challenge. No advice, books, or birth education class could have quite prepared me for the role of motherhood. Even so, any speed bump or challenge I have come across or may come across in the future is miniscule in comparison to the overwhelming amount of gratitude and thankfulness I have in my heart for the Lord entrusting me with such a beautiful gift. Through Abby I'm learning to find Joy and thankfulness in the simple things of life. From the way she turns her head and recognizes my voice as I walk into the room to the little peeps and squeaks she makes as she falls soundly asleep she is a constant reminder of how beautiful, powerful, and magnificent our God truly is. How anyone can witness or experience the miracle of life and doubt the existence of our Almighty Creator blows my mind.

Abigail spent her First Thanksgiving in Austin with the Peek side of the family. Considering the house was packed with 14 adults, 5 dogs, and 4 children, she seemed to do quite well. After all, how rough can life be when someone is constantly wanting to hold you and love on you 24/7? Probably the most precious and heartwarming moment over the Thanksgiving break was watching my 5 year old niece, Ellie, fall completely head over heels in love with her new baby girl cousin. The way her eyes would light up when she got to hold Abby was priceless. She may only be 5 but she has one of the most tender and compassionate hearts of anyone I know. She is going to be a great babysitter and role model to her younger cousins.

Also over the break, Abigail got to experience her very first Peek Family Tailgate. Josh and I decided to let Abby witness first hand her uncles' obsession with UT football by taking her to the Thanksgiving Day Tailgate. Of course while the majority of the Peek Family were wearing Burnt Orange, Abby sported maroon in honor of her mommy's alma mater. Despite the fact Abigail slept through the entire tailgate we managed to take plenty of pictures. The Aggies may have lost this year's annual rivalry Turkey Day game, but I know of one lil' Aggie who won over the hearts of many.

Needless to say our Thanksgiving break was jam packed with events. While it was fun to spend time with the people we love most, it's nice to be home. Josh returned to work today for the first time since Abby was born. Now the true test begins to see how well I can handle the role of mommy without my biggest supporter by my side to help. I'm sure there will be plenty of stories to share, so stay tuned.

Until next time,

Sally

Our First Day Home

2008-11-21T20:49:00.006-06:00

All snuggled up and enjoying my Aquarium Swing
Bachelor #2: Samuel Van Dusen (mommy's college roommate's son...born 12 days before me) "I love the older men"!

Wrigley is still a little unsure of what to think of her new sister. Josh gave her a boost so she could check out Abigail sleeping in her pack n' play.

Enjoying my first play time on my Baby Einstein Playmat

How could anyone not love this adorable face?

After an exciting yet exhausting 43 hour stay at Peterson Regional Medical Center, Josh and I decided to venture out into the "great unknown" and head home so that we could begin our new life with our precious baby girl. We arrived home around 7:25pm on Tuesday night and treated ourselves to a gourmet meal of Pizza Hut. It seemed only fitting that the one craving that began this 9 month journey and remained constant throughout my entire pregnancy would also be the meal to signal the end of this journey. As we tucked ourselves in bed that night I was prepared for a long night ahead only to find that Abigail decided to spoil us instead and only wake up once during the night. She went to bed around 8:15pm, woke up around 4:00am for a little "snack", and then didn't wake up again until 8:00am the next morning. I know I shouldn't get used to it but I have to say it sure was nice to catch up on a little rest.

Wednesday, November 19th was Josh and mine's 4 year anniversary and I have to say I can't think of a more special way to celebrate the occasion than with our precious miracle. Considering she was only 2 days old at the time she sure did have a pretty adventure-filled first day at home. She started off the day with her very first sponge bath, followed by some play time with Daddy on her Baby Einstein Play Mat. Later on that day she tried out her Aquarium swing and spent some time playing with visitors who drove in from out of town to play with her for a little while. Don't get me wrong, there was plenty of shut eye throughout the day but it sure was nice to see her eyes wide open and alert for a few hours.

The transition has been fairly smooth up to this point, a large part in thanks to Grammy who is here staying with us for a few days. A huge thanks also goes out to all of our friends and family who have been sweet to send phone calls and emails our way over the last few days checking in on us and offering to help with meals, errands, etc. More than likely it will be awhile before I get around to catching up on emails and phone calls, so please just know that I appreciate your love and support and that as soon as I get a chance I will get back to you. In the meantime I will do my best to keep the blog updated. I know a lot of you are anxious to see pictures of Abigail and hear how she is doing.

It has been a whirlwind so far and needless to say my life has changed drastically over the last few days. The funny thing is, I can't imagine life now without Abigail. I've always heard other moms say how rewarding it is to raise a family but until now I never knew how truly fulfilling life could be with Abigail in my arms. One look into her precious face and all of my worries and cares seem to melt away. She has brought so much joy into our lives in such a short amount of time. We feel blessed beyond belief and look forward to each new day that God brings our way where we can spend another 24 hours with our precious new daughter.

Love,

Sally

Happy Birthday Abigail!

2008-11-20T22:53:00.007-06:00

Snuggle time for Abigail and Mommy
Bachelor #1: Ethan Johnson (one of many men already in pursuit of our beautiful girl)

Happy Birthday Abigail!

Daddy's Little Princess

November 17th, 2008 will go down in history as one of the longest, hardest, greatest, best, most emotional, draining, fulfilling, loving, painful, exhilarating, _____(enter your word here) days in our lives. For those that haven’t heard, Abigail Rose Smithson blessed us with her presence early Monday morning. The good news is she was born at 12:01 am so we got to celebrate 23 hours and 59 minutes of her 0 birthday, the bad news is she waited that long.

My water broke at home at 5:15am on Sunday. We got up and started getting things together and Josh cooked breakfast. At about 6:15am contractions started and labor was underway. We arrived at the hospital at 7:30am and were admitted immediately. As the morning progressed so did my contractions and Abigail’s arrival time. At about 11:30am (5 hours into hard labor) they gave me an epidural to ease the pain and to start preparing me a little more for what was to come. The day kept slipping away and slipping away and my progress slowed, stalled, sped up, stopped, and unfortunately never got consistent again. At around 9:00pm they felt Abigail's head turned upside down so they started to do some things to move her around and get her to roll...it didn’t work. So at about 11:00pm (17 hours into labor) they called the doctor on call and prepared us for surgery. They wheeled me in at 11:30pm, took Josh back to join me at 11:50pm, and handed Abigail to her daddy at about 12:04pm just 3 minutes after her birth at 12:01am. Josh then walked her to the nursery where she weighed in at 7 lbs 11 oz and measured 20 inches long. Needless to say, both Abigail and I were exhausted.

We were finally all back together as a family at about 2:00am and slowly fell asleep around 3:00am. Because of the C-Section my recovery time will be a little longer but none of it compares to the JOY we had on Monday...Abigail's birthday. There is truly no way to describe the immediate love we feel for our beautiful little bundle of perfection. Thanks for your love, support, and prayers.

Any Day Now...

2008-11-12T18:21:00.003-06:00

The wait is on here in the Smithson household. With less than 48 hours to go until Abigail's due date we are anxiously awaiting her arrival. We went to the doctor for a check-up on Monday and unfortunately no progress was made from the last appointment. As of Monday I was still dilated at 2 cm and about 50% effaced. We have another appointment set up for next Monday morning in case nothing happens between now and then. At that point we will start looking at options for inducing. In the meantime Josh and I are hoping that Abigail will decide to take matters into her own hands and join us sometime over the next few days. They say crazy things happen when there's a full moon and it just so happens that there is a full moon tonight! Although I'm trying to not get my hopes up, I will say that I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Everything here on the home front is ready to go. The nursery is done, the bags are packed, the grandparents are on stand-by...now all we need is Miss Abigail to join us! Thank you for all of your prayers and support. We have been showered with emails and phone calls from family and friends over the past few days in anticipation of our little one's arrival. I can promise you this, there is no one more anxious or excited than her Mommy and Daddy. We will definitely keep you posted over the next few days. In the meantime I'm going to try and do my best to make the most of the sleepless nights, the uncomfortable aches and pains, the waddling, and of course the excuse of "needing" ice cream every night before I go to bed.

It's hard to believe our 9 month journey will be over soon. We're looking forward to this new chapter in our life. We can't wait to meet this precious angel that the Lord has blessed us with.

Psalm 139: 13-16

13 For you created my inmost being;
You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made:
Your works are wonderful,
I know full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
When I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
Were written in your book
Before one of them came to be.

We love you and hope to be introducing Abigail Rose Smithson to you soon!

Love,

Sally