JESUS: what Christmas is all about

On the way home tonight I was talking to Addison about the presents she got and how Santa Claus was going to come to her house tonight. Trying to explain (over and over) the whole Santa Claus thing is pretty exhausting, but I asked Addi if she had been a good girl, cause Santa only brings presents to good boys and girls. She immediately started to whine and said she had been a bad girl! Of course, I felt bad and explained to her that she had been a good girl and Santa would bring her presents. Then I started feeling bad because I don't want Christmas to be all about presents and Santa Claus.
I was telling Addi how tomorrow is baby Jesus' birthday and that is why we sang "happy birthday" to him tonight. Then she asked me where baby Jesus was and if we were going to have a cake for his birthday. I told her that he was in Heaven because he lives there. She said, "I want to go see him!" After explaining that it is really far away and we will see him when we are older, I told her that we could talk to him. So I told her that we could pray. So we prayed for our sick friend to get better (because Jesus can make sick people feel better) why? (because he loves us and he is smart and strong). Then all of the sudden Addi started to cry (we are driving) and I asked her why she was crying. She says," I want to take Holly with me to Heaven". I told her that when it's time to go to Heaven she can take Holly (her stuffed cow) with her "{by this time I am crying...driving in the dark rain!} Then she asks when she is going to see baby Jesus (I say he's gonna come again one day) she says (I think he should stay at our house). I laughed and said that would be okay (she says she will give baby Jesus crackers, play ponies, and they can play Angry Birds). I can't remember how it came up, but she she said something about wings and I said when it was time to go to Heaven she would have wings... she says "good so me and Holly can fly to Heaven and see baby Jesus".
This year has had some big "ups" and some big "downs" and we have lots of wonderful presents and a big wonderful family that we have shared many memories with, but I think my favorite part of Christmas this year was having that conversation with my 2.5 year old. She might not fully understand CHRISTmas but she has such a big sweet heart and no matter what happens I know that one day she (and Holly the cow) will be in Heaven with baby Jesus...maybe they will be playing Angry Birds...who really knows... I'm just thankful that my family loved me enough to tell me about baby Jesus, so that I can tell her about him.

May you all know the real reason for the season, Merry Christmas.

We have a very exciting week ahead of us! We beat Pearland Dawson Friday to advance to the state championship game this Friday at Cowboy's Stadium! Poor Ryan (and the other coaches) have been working tirelessly for months to get to this point and this week they are working twice as hard to ensure a victory. Ryan goes in early, works late, and his laptop is alway infront of him (watching film). The boys have worked hard too :) I don't think anyone really understands just how much work goes into a single football season. We are so lucky that the parents and administrators here really notice all the hard work. Throughout the year parents cook meals for the coaches and always offer heartfelt thank-you's for all their hard work. They also acknowledge all the sacrifices their families make too :) I just can't wait to see all that hard work pay off when we make history and become the only team in state history to win 5 championships in a row. This could be a record that my hubby will be a part of...one that might never be broken again...pretty cool!

Mommy & Me

So, like many mothers, I have a million pictures of Addison and Addison and her daddy but very few of the two of us! In an effort to keep her from forgetting about me one day, we took some mommy and me pictures a few months ago. I know I shared one, but I got the rest of them in the other day, so I thought I'd share. So thankful to my friend Jenna @Brigham Mayfield Fine Photography for taking our pictures, she's a real artist. My little girl is growing up so fast and changing so much, that is why I take pictures ALL THE TIME.

after beating Cedar Park (again) 12/2/11 @ DKR

There were times when I had serious doubts about being a coach's wife. I didn't know if I could handle the long hours, moving frequently, and the smaller paychecks. I will admit, at first it wasn't easy for me, we didn't have Addi so there were lots of times when it was just me! I like "me" time, but even I crave some human interaction. Fortunately, we had a great "coaching family" in Athens and the rest of us wives helped to entertain each other. Since Addison has come along, there is very little time for me to get bored and very little "me" time. Thankfully, I have found some great friend in my LT wives too, and we try our best to get together for girls nights! Since most of us have small children that's not always easy to do. Alot has changed, I no longer feel jealous of football (sometimes just a little) because I really do enjoy watching my husband coach and cheering for his team. I feel geniune pride for our team and the other coaches (and their families). There is something very special about being a part of a "team" and watching my husband do his job (that he loves so much). Now, obviously our success over the past few years doesn't hurt either! In the three years when have been at Lake Travis we've played enough games to equal five years (I think??). When you are winning, you don't realize how much time has passed. We've missed Ryan at home and other events, but in many ways it feels like it was just July when football started. It's hard to believe it is December and we will playing in the state semi-final game this Friday. I'm so proud of my husband. He really is my best friend, a wonderful father, and an amazing football coach. Just being around him has made me fall in love with high school football and I am so proud of all his success and I know that he is only going ot continue to be successful. I love that Addi loves it too, she looks forward to going to "Daddy's football game" all week, and pretty much everyone know that she will be running (barefoot) on the field post-game. One day I can see her out on the practice field giving those football boys some advice! Life is great and only getting better... hopefully we can make history on December 16th too!

Sweet Girl

Don't get me wrong, I have always loved my daughter, but I have really been loving me some Addi lately. She is growing into such a sweet, lovable, and funny little girl. In the last few weeks she has started talking like someone three times her age. Sometimes she can be sassy, but at this point it's still cute. I am really enjoying all the extra hugs, kisses, and sweet things she says. I will admit, there have been some dark days where I mostly see a TERRIBLE TWO, but lately she has just been lovable. One of my favorite times of the day is when I go to check on her (before I go to bed) and I see that sweet little angel sleeping soundly. Sometimes I see little horns during the day, but all I see at night is a halo. I love her so much. I am so lucky that of all the moms in the world, God picked me to be her momma.

She loves going to her daddy's football games and cheering for LT and the CAVS. She would be happy if everyday was game day. Lately, she wants Ryan and I to tuck her in at night and tell her stories about cows and horses. It is quite entertaining to hear each other's stories. Tonight she went down without a fight, but I can tell that here lately she has been missing her daddy, because she does everything she can to stay up and see him. She's such a stinker, but she loves him so much. It's hard to believe that my handsome husband is about to be THIRTY! I have discovered that Addi is a horrible secret keeper, she's already showed Ryan one of his birthday presents and told him all about the cookie cake we made. When she hears the word "secret" she can't run and tell fast enough!

FOOTBALL TIME :)

<3 Addison & Daddy after the game <3

We won our round 2 game against Smithson Valley! Round 3 next Friday! Can't wait... only 4 more games until the state championship game! DRIVE for FIVE!

Addi & cousin Aubrey watching the Cavalettes dance :)

Aubrey is officially a LT fan! She always has fun at the games but she was breaking out the "L" tonight!On the way to the game we had to stop by Cabela's aka "The Animal Store" and look at all the animals. It's funny, Addi has been here at least 3 times, but she got so excited. It was like the first time she had been there :) love to see her little eyes light up

A Day at the Museum

Love this quote! I am so happy to report that we are all very happy these days. Addison is growing into a wonderful little lady. I am enjoying the time I get to spend with her and we are moving forward in the football playoffs! Looking forward to the holiday season with our families. Good times :)

petting the t-rex @ the dinosaur exhibit

Getting ready to milk the cow!

Of course this was her favorite thing...like she's never seen a cow!

cooking lunch with her buddy Trevor

making pigs fly!

We had a fun day with some of our friends at the Austin Children's Museum. Addison kept calling it a "moo-see-um". She had so much fun playing with her friends. Our little girl is so lucky to have so many friends and people that lover her!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Since Addi HAD to be Bambi...Hitch had to be Flower and Harley had to be Thumper. The didn't enjoy being dressed up! Can't say I blame them!

This year Halloween lasted about a week! We had the PUMPKIN PARADE, FALL FESTIVAL, and TRUNK-OR-TREAT at church. Our little Bambi had lots of fun, but by the time Halloween night came she didn't even want to go trick or treating!

What's going on?!

(Mommy and Me pictures by Mayfield Fine Photography)

We have been so busy lately! I started a new part-time job (which I will be quitting in a week!), football, and Addison are a lot of work. Every week there is somewhere to go, a gift to buy, or a party to go to. Right now I am working on Halloween costumes. Of course, Addison wants to be Bambi and you can't buy a Bambi costume. It's a miracle but I have her Bambi costume sewed and ready to go, but now I am working on Thumper (for Harley our dog) and Flower (for Hitch our dog). I somehow managed to sew her costume in a few hours, but these dog costumes are giving me grief.
Speaking of grief, Addison is making me CRAZY these days! I think I am just ready for a little break. Ryan is working all the time and the only time I am away from her is when I am at work...not much of a "mental" break for me! Right now she is being so cute, she is having Ryan and I babysit her puppies and horses. I've noticed in the last few weeks she spends alot of time talking to her animals and making them talk to each other. I have to laugh at some of the conversations these animals have!
Let's see...what else is going on. Of course football games. We are still undefeated, heading to the playoffs and hopefully a 5th state championship. We all love football season, both of our families really enjoy going to the games and Addison looks forward to Friday night's as much as her daddy. We joke that she will be like that little girl on Remember The Titans! The other night at the JV game she ran out on the field during halftime and told me "I have to go to work and coach those boys!"
Addi is still doing great on the potty. Every now and then she gets busy with her toys and forgets, but she only wears diapers at night :) so proud of her. Her favorite song right now is "Mean" by Taylor Swift. She wants to sing it all the time, it's pretty cute. Of course when I get out the video camera she wants to act silly.
http://youtu.be/iNn2vTGKqM0
Addison still has the same boyfriend, Kyler. Kyler is about to be a big brother, we are all anxiously awaiting his sister Paisley who was supposed to be here yesterday! She loves Kyler and he loves her! It's so funny to see how excited they get to see each other. We are hoping her obsession with BOYLIES (can't say boys very well) will fade by the time she gets in junior high!

Sweet Berry Farms 2011

Just a few pictures from our 3rd trip to Sweet Berry Farms. We've come a long way in 3 years. The first visit we had to prop Addi up against the pumpkins because she was barely sitting up...this year she was running and and rode her 1st horse. We had a good time and I was grateful to Ryan for not being a grump the whole time. He was home from work long enough to change clothes and then we headed to the pumpkin patch. Addison had so much fun. She is still talking about riding Strawberry the horse and picking flowers. Everytime we get ready to go somewhere she asks, "are we going to the pumpkin patch?"

The life of a coach's kid...

Lots going on these days. My new "job" teaching TOT basketball classes is in full swing. It's just a few hours a week, but with a toddler and a house full of 'chores' we keep pretty busy. Not to mention the weather has gotten nice (it's like 90 instead of 105) so we have to squeeze some trips to the park in there too. Then there's football...which means making "treats" for the boys with Mrs. Amber & Ky Ky and games. Last week we played Kerrville Tivy. I should say they watched us play and score a lot of touchdowns...but that wouldn't be very nice. Addison was such a toot to and from the game. She really gives TERRIBLE TWO'S a whole new meaning. It always starts off "cute" with the singing and talking (always saying something silly/cute) and eventually she's laying in the floor throwing a fit. On the way to the game the other nite I put my face in my hands (me not driving) and she says,"momma you hibernatin'? I was stunned and then she says "Flower is hibernatin' " Of course, yet another Bambi reference! Have I mentioned she wants to be Bambi for halloween...not sure how we are going to pull that one off. Back to my story...so she was her usual hyper self @ the game and the proceeded to cry most of the way home, mostly because she was exhausted and it was late. All the while her daddy rode home in a nice quiet charter bus...once again proving that life is not fair. Then again he has to work very hard and I get to stay home with Addi (making me her favorite) but as you can see below she thinks he's pretty awesome too... (please ignore the saggy diaper!)

AND apparently she is going to lay on the field/ground at every game this year!

So I may as well get a picture for every game!

A little bit of history for Addi's scrapbook...

Central Texas Wildfires
Sunday (9/4/11) afternoon Addison and I were @ Target picking up a few things when Ryan called me and asked if we were "okay"?? Then he told me that there was a fire @ Steiner Ranch, a huge subdivision about 8-10 from our house. I didn't think much about it, I'm not one to freak out about things, then he called me about 5 min. later to tell me that our friends who live in Steiner were being evacuated and it was a serious fire. Then he told me there was another big fire in Bastrop. Bastrop is about 35 miles from Lexington, our hometown. As time passed the smoke spread our direction and then another fire broke out in Spicewood...another subdivision on the other side of us. I started to get worried @ this time, because the wind was blowing pretty hard and it is so dry here. I know we get droughts often in Texas, but the grass is dead, the trees are dying, and it hasn't rained here in so long. One little spark and everything goes up in flames fast. Our friends came really close to losing their house, but thankfully they were spared, unfortunately 24 families in Steiner lost their homes and another 30+ had damage. The Bastrop fire is still burning and last I heard about 600 homes were destroyed and like 68,000 acres burned...these numbers are still growing. Over 50 houses were lost in Spicewood, and that fire isn't completely out yet. Everyone is praying for rain... Dear Lord please send the great state of Texas some rain!

This is an image from Austin, that is the Bastrop fire as seen from our direction. That is downtown to the left.
This is an image of Bastrop (headed towards Lexington, San Marcos/Austin would be behind) , ... it's amazing... it really looks like the end of the world.

This morning I was taking Addi to stay with Katie Katie while I did some stuff for work... This is what we saw on the way! This is 11:00 am in Lakeway...can you say "deer problem"! There are just hanging out in the front yard, walking down the sidewalks! crazy!

Addi playing with her buddy Jason after the game Friday night.

lovin' on her daddy after a big win...kind of a boring game...but a WIN!

Addi and MiMi hanging out at the game :) 2 pretty girls

We've been pretty busy lately. Still don't see much of Ryan! BUT we love football and winning games! Ryan feels guilty that he doesn't see Addi so he has starting sleeping with her @ night...I have to go wake him up when I go to bed! She's so funny, she says, "come on daddy, let's go night night." Then she looks @ me and says, "night night honey". She is the funniest little kid I've ever known. She is constantly saying silly things. The other day she told me (outta the blue) "daddy is so crazy" and today she tells me "mama you a hosey"! I don't know what "hosey" means to her, but I don't think that's a very nice word! She is still in love with Kyler, she has lots of other boys that are her friends, but she still says he is her boyfriend! The other day she told my mom "Mimi this is your last chance!"... hmmm wonder where she's heard that?! Oh, she's not always cute! She has decided to start peeing AND pooping outside! yes, that's right. She goes outside and off come the clothes. I caught her pooping in the yard, just as Harley (our dog) was eating it!!! YUCKO! Of course, Addi loved it, so now she wants to poop outside so Harley can eat it. Gross dog. Gross kid. I am thankful that I don't have to change poopy diapers/panties anymore though! Oh, never a dull day around here.

PRAY FOR BASTROP. PRAY FOR TEXAS. PRAY FOR RAIN.

We LOVE football :)

LAKE TRAVIS VS. WESTLAKE @ DKR 8/27/11

There's our favorite coach : )
Addi was soooo tired after the game, decided to take a little nap on the field :) not every little girl gets to take a nap a Texas Memorial Stadium :) hook 'em

Addison LOVES Kyler and he loves her :)

A cool 109 degrees @ kick-off!

WOOHOO! OFF TO A GREAT START. LT IS 1-0 AND LOOKING FOR OUR 5TH STRAIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP! THE DRIVE FOR 5! LOVE FOOTBALL... MISS HAVING RYAN HOME :(