Family Pictures!

We had family pictures taken this month, and it was such a fun experience! We hadn't had them taken since Katelyn was nine months old, and those were done in a portrait studio. This photo session we opted for something a little more non-traditional. Our photographer, Chera, was wonderful! She was a recommendation from a friend, and we really enjoyed working with her! We met her at the Frisco Heritage Museum for our session, and she did quick, wonderful work! For any of you who are looking for professional, low-cost pictures, shoot her an e-mail! I included her contact information and package details at the end of this post (we did the mini photo session). A few of my favorite pics are below along with a link to the full set.

http://flickr.com/gp/33511885@N00/jSHhvo

Chera25 Photography

http://chera25.com
mrs_smokey25@yahoo.com

Full session (50 pix/ approx. 1hr.) (with TX state sales tax = $150.00)

You will receive a Sneak Peek within 1-2 days & an online link in about 2 weeks. At that time, I will mail a CD with all full-size edited images.

Half session (25 pix/ approx. 30min.) (with TX state sales tax = $75.00)

You will receive a Sneak Peek within 1-2 days & an online link in a week or so. At that time, I will mail a CD with all full-size edited images.

Mini session (10 pix/ approx. 15min.) (with TX state sales tax = $30.00)

You will receive an online link within a week & an online Flickr album with all full-size edited images to download to print as you wish. *This is the package that we chose*

Miss Patty Cake in Concert!

Tonight we attended a long-awaited, highly-anticipated event in the life of our daughter. Katelyn attended a Miss Patty Cake concert. If you've never heard of Miss Patty Cake, let me encourage you to visit her website. In short, the Lord has gifted her in a very special way to share the Gospel with children through song and dance! Some of our friends in China (thanks Wickershams!) sent us the DVD 3-pack when we moved back to the States three years ago, and Katelyn has LOVED watching them as long as I can remember!

Anyways, I randomly decided to visit Miss Patty Cake's website one day (they advertise it at the beginning of all her videos) to see what I could find out about this cool lady, and I noticed that she was coming to perform at a church in our area! I about wet my pants (and Katelyn is the one who just finished potty training!). I quickly ordered tickets (can you beat $5 a piece!!???), and invited Reese, one of Katelyn's best buddies/fellow Miss Patty Cake groupie, and her mom Jessica (who also happens to be one of my best buddies!) to join in the fun! We started out with Chick-Fil-A. Between the chicken nuggets, the play area, and ice cream cones, it wasn't for certain that the night could get any better. It did. We drove over to the concert, and walked inside the sanctuary. The girls had both been so excited all day about the show, so watching them enjoy it was just about as much of a treat as the show itself! At the end, Miss Patty Cake took a short break and then took her seat in the foyer to take pictures and give hugs to each child in line. She does this at all the shows, and it was so sweet to watch! What a fun memory tonight was!

Asleep at the Door

Katelyn has had trouble lately staying in her bed once she is down for bedtime. Common excuses are "I need to go pee pee! I need a drink of water! Pat my back! Rock me! Sing 'Away in a Manger!'" The list could go on. I can't tell you how many times an evening we say, "Katelyn, get back in your bed." So, at first, when she stopped coming out, we assumed that she had gotten back in her bed and gone to sleep. Lesson learned: don't assume. On more occasions than we can count, we have found our sweet, tired daughter asleep at her door (and sometimes even in the hallway outside her door). Not quite brave enough to come out and take on mom and dad one more time, but too tired to get back in her bed....

Painted like a Princess!

This past week, we went to a local outdoor concert, and much to my surprise, they had free face painting for the kids! We waited in a super long line, and I even had to gently ask some kids who cut in line to step to the back. I guess they thought the back of the line meant just somewhere in the back of the line, so they cut in front of some different people. Then their grandma stepped in and not-so-gently showed them where the true back of the line was. Awesome! Anyways, I was preparing myself that once it was Katelyn's turn, she could possibly flip out and not want her face painted anymore. However, she did fantastic!! She stayed so still while the lady painted her "princess face." So, in case you're wondering, here is what a princess face on an already princess looks like...

Happy Birthdays!

I can't believe it has been over a month since I last updated our blog! Yikes! Over the course of the last month, I turned 32 and Dave turned 33!

My birthday: We went out for a family dinner at Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Dave and Katelyn bought me roses and made me a card, and I met some of my close girlfriends for lunch at Souper Salad (one of my favorite restaurants!). Fun times had by all!

Dave's birthday: Dave took the day off, we had some good family time, he went on a motorcycle ride, I made him a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, Katelyn made him a card, and we went out for a family dinner at Chili's. Again, fun times had by all!

Family dinner at Chili's

Yummy chocolate cake my mom bought us when we passed through Austin at the end of this month (thanks mom and dad for watching Katelyn while we retreated to San Antonio!).