Chasing Cars...

If you have ever been to our house then you will be familiar with Erin's way of saying goodbye. She likes to "chase" any visitors down the street as they are leaving. I took this the other day as she was returning from a chase. Remember she is only 2 and therefore likes to dress herself. So never mind the pink t-shirt, emma's size 6 tinkerbell undies, red socks, & the hair that just never got brushed this particular day. Totally ghetto I know, but hey she is my little miss independent and she is Happy! Her little ritual reminds me of the McClellan wave.......the McClellans waving goodbye will continue to wave or just hold up their hand till you are no longer in sight - and those in the car also continue waving till no longer in sight - however long that may be! Grandpa Mac & Uncle Bruce are pros at this and it has been a fun little tradition that is now part of our family.
In other new around here, If you haven't heard I am now a crossing guard for the Allen ISD. It is a great little part time job that doesn't take much time away from my family - about 1 1/2 a day. This morning as I was at my corner I got bit by a yappy little dog! Enough to even break a little skin through my jeans. Crazy dog! That wasn't in the job description. I have been scared of getting hit by some car but never attacked by a puppy.
Today is also Seth's Birthday....so we are off to celebrate! I'm sure I'll post more later. I still can't believe I have a 10 year old.

Special Sunday Meeting

This past week we were truly blessed to have been taught by living disciples of Christ. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we believe that just as there were prophets in the days of old that the Lord has not forsaken us in our day now. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf (the 2nd counselor to President Monson) along with Elder D.Chad Richardson spoke to just the Allen, Tx stake. It was amazing to be present in such an intimate gathering, well there were actually 1400 in the stake center and others joined through broadcast in different buildings. The messages were wonderful! It was a mini General Conference. Elder Richardson focused on the plan our Father in Heaven has for each of us and that none are beyond His reach. He promised that if we do our best Christ will meet us and make up the rest. Grace is a daily gift and He will bless us in every affliction & sickness. We were also addressed by Brother Gerard who is the Dallas Temple Pres. He reminded us that we are not immune to discouragement and to "Cowboy up & Soldier on" - to live by faith not fear as we see the happenings in the world around us! And lastly, President Uctdorf was such a neat and very personal kinda guy! His personality and smile are infectious. He counseled us to remember who we are, to search for truth and to stand up for it! He also went over the importance of the "For the Strength of Youth" guidelines and need to Follow the Standards. He spoke of reaching out to one another & to forgive. He promised us that the Lord is aware of our challenges and that we are in His hands & through prayer the things of concern in our lives will be answered. I know that I personally left with the desire to recommit myself to stand a little taller & do a little more. As he was leaving he blew kisses to all. It was a neat experience not to be forgotten.

A good lookin' Emma & Seth as we waited in line....yes, there was a line! The mtg. started at 10am and we were in line by 8:15. Thankfully, they opened the doors at 8:30 although they only allowed 12 people through every 30 seconds so there was no stampede into the chapel.

Back to School..

We are in our second week of school now and it feels so good to finally get back into a routine. So far, so good! The kids are enjoying their classes. They each have great teachers. Emma was a little bummed that none of her good buddies were in her new 2nd grade class this year, so it has been an adjustment to go outside of her little comfort zone and make new friends. This will be her first year she will be getting grades too! She came home with her first 'homework packet' and has been working very hard each day. Seth began 4th grade this year and is an old pro at this school thing. He is even rotating classes this year. My babies are growing up too fast!!! As for my little Erin, she is loving having the house & mommy all to herself during the day. She keeps busy with playing dress-up, babies, and playdates with friends.

Louisiana Trip

We went over to Shreveport last week to finally meet little Fox. Mandy & Andrew came down from Indiana. It was so fun to visit with them. Erin enjoyed having a cousin her age to play with. They are still 2 yr. old toddlers so there was a lot of "mine, mine, mine" going on. With 6 grandkids there it sounded more like a daycare at times but it was so just so good to all be together again. While we were there we spent a day at Gator & Friends. It is an alligator park with lots of other animals to see and feed. We discovered that Erin is such a chicken while Eden has absolutely no fear at all! They actually feed the gators each day and that is pretty crazy to watch. There are at least 50 or so alligators jumping out of the water for food! Check out the clip.

Sweet little Fox all decked out in his gator gear

Gator & Friends

In other news around here....I finally finished the Twilight series. My mom was kind enough to "share" the last book with me. We took turns reading chapters and at night I would steal it! They are such addicting books. I'm just glad I have actually finished! Now I can finally get some sleep, a little laundry done, interact with my children more and maybe stop thinking of Ryan as my vampire!!!

San Antonio

We were a little sad that we didn't get to make it out to Utah this summer so we decided we needed a little family vacation. We have lived in Texas for the past 8 years and have never made it down to San Antonio. We spent a few days there checking out the Alamo, Riverwalk, Market Square, the Temple and of course Sea World. We had a blast! The first couple of days were super hot - over 100 degrees! Tropical Storm Eduardo decided to roll through and it actually cooled things off a bit for us. We caught all of the fun shows on this first rainy day and the next day went for the rides and the water park. I was so happy to find out that I have children after my own heart - they love rides- big rides!!! Seth loved the roller coasters and Emma was quite bummed that she wasn't quite tall enough to ride the big stuff just yet. Seth rode the coasters over & over taking mom or dad with him. Emma loved the Journey to Atlantis (major log ride) and little Erin was even big enough for a few of the rides. Here are a VERY few pics from our adventure because Shamu got my camera wet and it didn't work at all the 2nd day. It still isn't the same - hopefully a new battery might help.

The kids loved feeding the dolphins! $5 for a tray of fish brings them right up to you

Shamu right before my camera went dead! Seth & Ryan sat right down front in Splash Zone city and I took the girls up a little higher and we ended up getting more wet than they did!

The kids on the Riverwalk

Dave & Bruce in TeXaS

I finally found a minute to actually sit down and update the blog. We have been super busy 'round here. Dave & Bruce were able to come out for their annual summer Texas trip. We had so much fun and maybe a few too many late nights. I'm still catching up on much needed sleep! We packed a lot in for a fun filled week including a trip to Hawaiian Falls, Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D, and an afternoon at the Zone for some laser tag which was a blast. Seth beat me but I did come in 2nd! I was also able to get my "game fix"! We played lots of Settlers of Catan,Speed Scrabble and a little Guitar Hero. This year Dave doubled the glow stick count for our 2nd annual "glow party" and even made homemade rootbeer which was a big hit! The kids loved having their uncles here to spoil them! The girls especially loved playing with their uncle Bruce and he such a good sport as they tend to be very possessive of him. Here are pictures from the week. (Just click on the collage to make it bigger) Dave took most of them on his super nifty nice camera so I can't take credit for them but he was nice enough to share and put them on our computer before he left. He is quite the photographer these days. Hopefully I can learn a thing or two from him!

Grandpa & Grandma Mac's Visit

We were so lucky to have Grandma & Grandpa Mac come all the way from Utah to visit all of their Texas kiddos. We had a fun filled week of swimming, movies, stars, shopping, decorating, eating out, games and just enjoying one anothers company! Here are quite a few pictures from the week.

Grandpa and Grandma with the kids on their last night here.

We went to Lifetime Fitness with Emily for an afternoon swim. Erin loved these fountains!

Grandpa was such a good sport! Letting the kids drag him all aound the pool. The girls were so brave too with his help! Despite their fears they went down a couple of really big and fast slides and loved it!

The boys worked up a sweat and tackled a home improvement project one day. They put new mulch in the flower beds. Two full truckloads! They did a great job!

The kids packed up for a little morning bike ride down to the park where grandpa even let them wade around in the yucky pond water.

Erin loves to go on bike rides!!!

We also went to a RoughRider baseball game. They totally lost but it was still fun to just hang out and be together. Plus the tickets were a great deal - $7 at Kroger and that includes a lawn ticket, free hot dog and hat! Not bad!

Sporting our free hats! Notice I chopped my hair off....summer fever I guess!

The girls with Grandma! All so pretty!

I just love this picture of Erin chillin with her hot dog at the game!

For the Fourth of July we went to McKinney for Red, White and BOOM! It was a really nice night and not a bad firework display either. Performing was Josh Gracin (former A.I. contestant). I thought that was pretty cool so I had to sneak in close and get a picture even though my ears were ringing for the next hour.

The girls with our patriotic red, white and blue.

The little gals with their glow in the dark creation.


Emma with Grandpa at the fireworks