pritchard family

while dad is away...

2012-01-20T21:18:00.000-06:00

we play!! link and i were SO SAD to miss out on dad's work trip to santa monica this week. we had decided to go, but at the last minute, decided with both of our work schedules it just wouldn't work. :(

so link and i decided we had to make the most of it and have a fun week anyway. we spent a night at hunny and papa's house and they spent a night with us, which was so much fun for both (scratch that, ALL) of us. really. i just adore my parents and the fact that link does just as much makes my heart so happy it almost hurts. seeing his joy when he talks about, sees, plays, hugs, kisses them just is almost too much!

we also had friend lunches, a couple of days at 'cool (school), a couple of fun dinners with friends, a lot of trips to the park, the gym, and the car wash (one of link's favorite things, haha). and now we are excited to have dad back tomorrow!

football in diapers

fun with rosie

rosie is a very special friend, like a third grandmother. i had one of these special grandmothers growing up too, and i'm so happy that link does as well. very special to have "non-family" members that really are just like family. :)

this is link's newest face - he gets so focused and serious sometimes. in this case it was on the car wash and his chocolate chip cookie, two of his favorites. i love the furrowed brow. kills me every time!!

link and his buddy wade, experiencing a-teenage-like-beatles-euphoria over the chick fil a cow. jay's company does the chick fil a commercials and he said they have these costumes in the office...we may have to borrow one after seeing the kids reaction. third birthday party? haha...

cool kid, cruising'

happy new year!!!!!

2012-01-03T21:12:00.004-06:00

it's always funny to look back at last year's new year post and think about your frame of mind at that point all the way to this point. and to think that next year i will look back at this time in my life and think about all that has changed. in some ways a lot, in some, not so much.

our biggest change to kick off this new year is that jay has started a new job! he accepted a position with the richard's group here in dallas and is so excited to start his new gig. we are excited for him and for the promise of new beginnings.

link is two, still growing like a weed and becoming his own little man every day. what an adventure life is with him in it! he is going to "school" two days a week and spending the others with me, where we create lots of adventures and i stay in awe of how wonderful it is to have the privilege to be his mom.

reflecting on the ups and downs of the last year, i've thought a lot about link's (and all of george mason's other infant dedications) baby dedication, and my favorite phrase that he uses that goes something like this..."god give him a good life, not an easy life." i happily tear up every time i think about that phrase and the small baby he holds in his arms. such promise, such hope, such comfort, and so much truth. and it holds true through life, even to today, as adults. and with His grace and strength, we keep moving forward, through the hard times and the good.

i'm not gonna lie, i have high hopes for 2012. we have some lofty (but attainable) goals we have set in place for ourselves and are already striving to achieve. i'm excited to see all that God will do in the next twelve months. i pray that we will live up to the challenges we have set for ourselves, be ready and willing to bend when necessary, and strive each day to be more like Christ.

happy new year to you, my friends! a few pics from the beginning of 2012...

at the park, link's favorite past time

with papa, watching some hoops (link's cousin, tra-tra, kyle)

breakfast tacos at rusty's, link's favorite spot

his first movie, with my parents and me, "muppets"

he cuddled with me during previews - so sweet. :)

kissing the "cash cow" :)

mom, look at the "mamooooooth!"

hi five, bob! your exhibit is awesome!!!

HAPPY 2012!

merry merry merry christmas

2011-12-26T22:46:00.000-06:00

we had a WONDERFUL week. for memory book purposes, here's a recap.

we started christmas with dinner at babe's in arlington on wednesday night with most of my family, then christmas with the link family on thursday morning, our family football game that afternoon, and more good homemade food that evening. friday evening we had dinner with the pritchards and link's great grandmother, meme, at colonial and christmas at their home.

saturday was christmas eve and jay's parents (nana and poppy) and grandmother (meme) along with my parents (hunny and papa) celebrated together with us at the christmas eve service at our church, wilshire. our little family even lit the christ candle, and link did great. he loves light and candles and proclaims it all "HOT" which was hilarious. we had tamales and chili here that night and enjoyed a beautiful night. christmas day we all joined together again along with my brother, jarrod's family here at our house for brunch and a few more gifts. lots of fun, lots of family, and lots of worship - of that miracle baby, jesus. talk about amazing. thank you, God, for the gift of your Son. thank you, Jesus for your gift of love.

fall on your knees
oh hear the angel voices
oh night divine
oh night when christ was born...

some pics from our christmas week-

reindeer games

link fam

football boy

finley "walking the aisle" to link. adorable!

post xmas eve service romp!

stocking stuffers

little drummer boy

wow! cool! reaction to the farm...haha

tired little boy

he loves, loves airplanes. future pilot?!

with daddy celebrating a much needed night out, just us, christmas night at snuffer's. what a great way to cap it all off! yum!

much love to you and yours - merry christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!!!!

2011-12-19T23:13:00.002-06:00

a lover of christmas already...

a trophy, a broken tent, screaming santa, and a choo-choo

2011-12-14T15:48:00.010-06:00

i haven't blogged since thanksgiving, so i'll do a "quick" recap before christmas is suddenly upon us. :)

jay and i went to waco with some friends to cheer on the bears against our hated longhorns, and they did not disappoint!! and of course this week i made sure link saw the heisman trophy presentation and he chanted, RGthreeee! so cute. amazing to watch the baylor nation accept their first heisman. love it!

courtney was thirsty ;)

we've also visited santa with jay, papa, and hunny (my parents) and gone to see the trains at north park with one of link's very best friends, finley. let's just say the trains were the hit, as was time with finley. as to santa, i LITERALLY do not have a picture (with santa) that doesn't have me in it, trying to keep link calm. so at this point, we have no pic with santa. happy family pre-santa pics will have to suffice. :)

isn't finley precious? no wonder link has a crush. he RUNS to hug her every time they see each other.

HOLDING HANDS. adorable. :)

he clearly had not seen santa yet in this photo

my dad has white facial hair, so this may have to be our santa photo this year!

and on sunday, link busted out of his crib tent. he has already pretty much completely broken his pack and play crib tent (yes, we had both. don't judge. :)), so we decided it was time. wow. i had no idea what i was in store for...these last few days we have been operating on very little sleep in this household. what is up with waking up early once you aren't confined? this morning he was up at 3:45am. and the last few, 5:30...what gives?? and of course he just climbs out of his crib and comes in and jumps on our bed, shrieking with laughter. suggestions??

anyway, today we decided it was time for a big boy bed. we already have a set of twin beds, so it was just a matter of mattresses and bedding. we pulled it together this morning and had him in his new digs by nap time. funny that it took me three months to decide on crib bedding and one morning to pull together this ensemble. pregnancy must make me lack in decision making abilities. :)

oh, he felt like such a big shot. first he got to sit at the counter for the first time at HP pharmacy for lunch, then he got a big boy bed, and all this just in time for his afternoon nap. quite the afternoon for the little man!

you see that finger he has up in the last photo? probably not a coincidence that he spent the following hour NOT listening to me and getting out of bed at every opportunity. haha. but, now, he sleeps. amazing to think someday he might actually choose to go get in bed on his own. ah, this too shall pass. it's so hard to keep a straight face with some of the antics he tries to pull getting in and out of the bed. and even through the exhaustion, i know i will someday miss the fact that right now he wants nothing more than for me to come in and lay next to him, play with those precious blonde curls, and tell him, "mommy is here." and i do. and i love it. sigh. :)

thanksgiving

2011-11-28T16:12:00.001-06:00

the older i get, the more i love thanksgiving. what a special holiday, just a time to be together with those you are thankful for, wow, what a concept! haha. we got to have several thanksgiving meals with special people in our lives. the first was at our church on sunday, the whole crew of us have a thanksgiving service and meal. we sat with our sunday school class and shared a fun evening.

next was our friends-giving, which we hosted here at our house with our newly formed supper club. OH-SO-FUN. who knew i had so many friends that are such great cooks?!?! it was amazing and all of our kids had a blast, too.

the next morning we headed northbound for tulsa to spend the next few days with my family. i LOVE, LOVE, LOVE getting the whole crew of us together. even when we do nothing, i just love getting to really spend time with each and every one of them. we had our traditional link family turkey bowl, my favorite tradition, thursday morning. you see there is a reason i am a football fanatic. i was raised by football fanatics! we had so much fun and quite the workout to prepare us for our big meal. if you have never experienced a lavon link turkey dinner, you are missing out, because OH MY GOSH, can that woman cook! my sisters-in-law and i help a lot, but if we are honest, we know my mom does it all! amazing.

okay, i'll let my pics do the rest of the "talking"...

the two youngest links - best pals :)

our little rock climber. i'm amazed at the physical skills of my two year old!

my two favorite monkeys

link playing with our jackets during the turkey bowl

my brothers transporting hot food in the bob stroller. this is seriously hilarious to me.

can anyone guess when this was taken? approximately three hours after turkey bowl and approximately ten minutes after turkey consumption. cowboy game relax time!

at the tree lighting at utica square, one of my favorite tulsa spots!

fine-tuning josh's xmas lights

tulsa v houston game

saturday, dancing to the OU fight song on the way to norman!

day 14-16, more thankful for thoughts...

2011-11-16T14:28:00.009-06:00

day 14 - my nephews and nieces. i'm not sure they will ever know what they mean to me. i feel so selfish in my love for them - they have brought me so much joy, and what the heck did i do!?!? and they still do. carter, kyle, audrey, nathan, asher, carson, caroline and jack...i love each of you with all my heart!! God blessed me to be your aunt, and not a day passes that i don't pray for and love you.

day 15 - on a lighter note - drinkable yogurt, toddler squeeze pouches filled with nutritious fruits and veggies, chicken salad, cheese, granola bars, elmo whole wheat mac and cheese, edamame...all of the foods that make my little boy happy and healthy. that and mi cocina. just 'cause ooooh, is it yummy! :)

day 16 - this is a BIG one. a part-time job (with a solid, family business!) that can be done from home. this is what so many moms hope for and not many can find, and it's perfect for us (which is all that matters - not judging anyone else's choices!). i am so blessed. as far as link knows, i never "work" because i can do most everything while he is napping or down for the night. it takes a lot of discipline (and sleep!) to keep up with both, but it is all worth it in the end. FOR SURE!

because of said job, i don't have to miss any of these moments from the last couple of days...SO THANKFUL! and so very blessed.

i'm smiling here b/c he didn't stop smiling, laughing, and repeating CHOO-CHOO at the top of his lungs yesterday riding the dart train home from his first wee volunteer project :)

pajama-knight-face-off. he was seriously looking tough and talking smack. hilarious.

at approximately 10:30 this morning, link pretended to be a space commander for the first time :)

our little climber

watching the thankful posts...

2011-11-12T21:23:00.002-06:00

and have been keeping my own private file. the only way i will keep up with this is to post it here. i don't want to do this on Facebook, but those of you that are the few and proud will have to live with it on the blog. :)

day 1 - a daddy that works with the force of a thousand suns to make sure his wife can be an at-home momma to his little boy.

day 2 - the workers at our gym and their effortless devotion to my son, who they call "slim" - he loves them, going to the gym, and being the life of the party

day 3 - football season - and all it implies. glorious. college football is a haven for me.

day 4 - my mom. her complete devotion to her family. her love of all things beautiful. her patience with all of us, because she is - and i mean this, completely perfect.

day 5 - my brothers. how they have earned my complete devotion since the day i was born. i still worship them and know they can do no wrong.

day 6 - my church - wilshire is our church home, i'm so thankful that God led us there and showed us where we belong.

day 7 - our home. i love our neighborhood and our home. part of me wishes we could stay right here forever.

day 8 - this time in my life. i know that someday, as hard as it is a lot of the time, i will wish for all of this back. I KNOW THIS.

day 9 - thankful for legs and a body that can run, for the bob stroller, and that link enjoys the ride!

day 10 - my dogs. i have kids, and i still love my precious pups. they put up with us and still love us unconditionally. bless their hearts. they are the best.

day 11 - compassion. the holidays are upon us, and watching people show some kindness to their fellow man makes my heart melt.

day 12 - toddler love. watching link play with his little friends. hugging, wrestling, sharing. it's all just amazing.

day 13 - my daddy. I'm a daddy's girl, and for good reason. he exemplifies all that i want to be in this life. love him so!

halloween

2011-10-31T21:57:00.001-05:00

super link, the boy wonder! we are lucky to have a great neighborhood - with many old friends and a lot of new friends, too. link had so much fun tonight, and so did we! halloween is seriously one of the best holidays - candy, costumes, and so much fun!!!

a little bedlam commentary with some neighbor boys. (tra-tra's if you are link...all big boys are tra-tra's.)

hudson, link's across the street buddy. they are three weeks apart!

playing w/ hudson and his sister

link, mom, meg, and charles @ our neighborhood parade.

one of at least three suckers this evening

sweet boy

time for a bath, you think?

giving dad an "O-U!"

picking one last treat for the evening

and the M&M's were a hit!

a lot can happen in a week

2011-10-28T15:19:00.003-05:00

happy almost halloween!

jay turned a year older. nice birthday cake, huh? this is what he gets when his wife is on a diet. for realzzzzz. happy birthday, jay! enjoy your bite. haha. oh, and the sooners lost on said birthday, sending jay into a tailspin for at least 24 hours (let's face it, both of us). :)

the rangers have made it to game seven of the world series (who would have ever thought? two years in a row!?)...and play tonight. we could wake up champions tomorrow!!!

i lost six pounds on the above mentioned diet. YIPEE!!!! (ok, in fairness, that was a week and a half)

i learned a lot about moses thanks to my friend, cameron, for doing a series in sunday school on exodus. i started studying it more on my own and have learned so much. thank you, cam! i highly recommend re-reading this book if you haven't in a while. so profound.

we had our first halloween party and were running late, so my kid was the only one not in costume. i let him have extra cookies since i had already sucked at being a mom. who forgets their kids costume?!?

out-takes.

cutie pies

some of my favorite kiddos

my six year old (you heard that right) macbook died, and i got a new macbook air. and it is worth noting that it is the tiniest computer i've ever seen. i swear when it's closed it is skinnier than my iPhone!

i literally ran to greet the fed ex guy on our front walk. dork-out.

OH, AND, i had to rush link to the pediatrician before his office even opened to get FOUR STAPLES IN HIS HEAD. ohmygoodness, it was the scariest morning of my life!!!!!! mothers, get anchors for your furniture. these kids are stronger than you think.

it hurts right here, mama.

first traumatic injury. 4 staples. it was hard on me, but geez, look at that sweet face! bless him. this could have been so much worse - thank you God, for protecting our little boy! and thank you dr moore, for being a wonderful pediatrician! we are blessed and healing nicely.

there you have it, a week of our lives, in pictures (something i'm sure you've been dying to see, haha), all of which i hope will be capped off tonight with the TEXAS RANGERS WINNING THE PENNANT!!!!!! i've waited my whole life for this!

the beginnings of october....

2011-10-11T21:08:00.000-05:00

we love fall around here. football, cooler temps, football, holidays, football....and these last few years, some very exciting baseball post-season games!! :) it is such a fun time of year to be in these parts of the country. our weather is hovering between 80-55 degrees, with a nice breeze most of the time. we've been spending our time watching rangers baseball, lots of football, and enjoying our time outside in the yard and the pumpkin patch at the arboretum.

link flirting with the cheerleaders :)

with his cousin kyle after scoring the game-winning TD for his JV team! he is one of only two 9th graders on the JV squad and he is awesome! so proud of "tra-tra" as link calls him.

boomer sooner!!! OU/tx gameday, early morning before our jog.

WOW! OU BEATS tx 55-17!! BOOMER!!!!!!!! we had so much fun, thanks to my parents for keeping link again so we could go!

the game day crew

trips to the arboretum

already making the ladies cry....haha

ellie, let me see if i can fix my car for ya...

finley has a secret :)

they look like they are in a thanksgiving play or something!

2011-10-03T14:33:00.002-05:00

happy fans

pictures from a very memorable weekend...and some oldies to compare from a similar trip a couple of years ago. too funny!

a date with jay and some friends to see the rangers in a-town on friday

sooners in norman on saturday

playing with peyton at the tailgate

chasing little sooner cheerleaders :)

lovin' on cousin jack

he was maybe, kinda, just a little, excited to be at the game :)

happy little boy watching the players take the field, he catches on quick, #1!!

and below, a similar picture taken two years ago in the same place...

link, screaming along with the fans...OOOOOOO U!

go OU! the sooners win BIG! undefeated!

the fam two years ago...

and the fam this weekend! he's grown up a lot, to say the least!

we hope our big sports weekend continues into this week, we want to see the rangers clench this series and watch our sooners beat texas! GO RANGERS and GO OU!

CHOO-CHOO, LINK IS TWO

2011-09-26T23:25:00.002-05:00

happy birthday, link! you are two and we still can't believe it. your party was so much fun - you loved the train, the friends, the family, and all the fun. it was so special to watch your big day unfold in front of you. we were blessed to have such wonderful friends and family to share the day with us. we love you so much, sweet boy. i cannot grasp the fact that you are two. it's just another reminder to cherish every day of your todder-hood, because it is pretty fantastic. thank you God, for our sweet boy!

link, ellie and finley, his church buds

train in full motion with smoke!

jules, steph, ashleigh, and the dean boys!

finley and garrett

poppy, cousin jack, papa and link

birthday boy

the two conductors :)

scott and ellie

lindsey and lauren

jack and jay d

baby cole

elle, sutton, and addie

lauren

silly link

cousin jack

ashleigh and finley - so sweet

jules

choo-choo, link is two!

fall

2011-09-15T21:07:00.001-05:00

football, cooler temps, and an almost-two-year-old boy (and his big upcoming birthday bash) have been occupying most of my time lately. link is really developing his own little personality (that's his rock and roll personality pictured above. he is definitely a lover of music!) now that he is really able to communicate with us. i really cannot believe he is almost two years old. i think each month that goes by easily trumps the last for how wonderful it is - have i mentioned how much i love being this little guy's mom? :)

watching baylor beat those nashhhhty horned frogs with his buddy wade

boys. wrestling. it starts early, folks.

the next day, cheering on the sooners! TOUCHDOWN!!

on the trolley in uptown with papa. he LOVES all things train.

watching a little yo gabba gabba with his buddy, jules.

hanging out at his friends, baker and edward's house

our (almost) two year old boy!

santa fe

2011-08-24T15:40:00.001-05:00

we spent the last week in santa fe, new mexico with some of our favorite people. we joined our church just at the time a new sunday school class was forming last summer. over the past year we have become the directors of the class and have watched it grow from it's infancy to a large class of wonderful people who have quickly become some of our very best friends. we are so happy to have such a special group to share our lives with, and this week, we got to spend time with a group of friends (and their kids) from our class. it was so fun.

santa fe is a place jay and i both grew up going. we have also been many times together, but this was our first time in a few years. the weather is SO MUCH COOLER there! we did things like wear long sleeves, jeans, even FLEECES, people, haha! we saw rain, too, something we haven't seen in so long. but my favorite part of going to santa fe (or any mountain town, for that matter) is the hikes. every morning i got up, took a jog through town in the crisp, cool weather, came back, joined the rest of the crew, and we loaded up the kids and headed for the hills! it was so much fun.

the second favorite item on the list in santa fe is the food! holy geez, it's amazing. you can get green chilies on everything and i can assure you, i did. give me that food, a nice prickly pear margarita and a porch, and i am in heaven.

and last, the shopping in this place is unreal. indian market was going on while we were there, so we got to spend a lot of time perusing the galleries and enjoying art, plus beautiful handmade jewelry and lots of great clothes. link made out like a bandit, of course. and i came home with nada. seems to be the case often, these days!

lunch at the shed - best enchiladas EVER.

cutest pic. ever.

wait, maybe this is. link and little finley shared a lot of kisses this trip!

the lean in

he is looking so grown up to me these days. :(

all smiles. he LOVED hiking.

la bamba at rancho de chimayo.

ellie, link, and finley. best buds.

no more photos, mom! for real!

prickly pear margies and capri suns all around, please.

so thanks to camille, scott (aka ezra), cameron, garrett, scott d, audrey, and of course to little finley and sweet ellie, for such a fantastic trip! we loved every minute of it, especially the beautiful time at the house in the evenings. can't wait to play "celebrity" again soon. hopefully the cops won't show up this time (true story, we were being so loud playing a game that the neighbors called the cops on us! and at like 11pm on a saturday night! whoops, but i think the cops were more embarrassed than we were when they saw the "wrecking crew" they were coming to bust - pretty lame for them, i'm sure. we mentioned to them that there were three babies asleep in the house and they just mumbled something about seeing toys and strollers and walked off. :)). haha. anyway, love you guys! thanks for sharing in a great week.

it's getting hot in here

2011-08-10T14:41:00.002-05:00

i am normally a defender of summer, but HOLY GEEZ! this is frickin' ridiculous! we are about to set a record for the longest heat wave (temps over 100) ever, and man does it feel like it. however, i will still take this over living somewhere that it's cold a lot of the year. at least we have plenty of sunshine and can still (somewhat) enjoy the mornings. after all, when i finished my morning run at 8am it was only 85 degrees! haha.

we have been spending a lot of time outside before lunch. all of our time, in fact, to attempt to keep link and me from going crazy being stuck inside all day long. because post-nap time is ROUGH coming up with things to do with a boy and mom who would much, MUCH rather be outside playing. luckily we like to read and do puzzles for short periods of time and again lucky that link takes a long nap (1-4pm most days) so there is typically only about an hour until dinner when he wakes up!!

yay for rhodes and drew and their kaycee pool! we love it there!

on our way to the circus on saturday - notice the sign, shout out to our champs, the mavs!

link touching every over-priced junky toy there. oh joy!

clapping for the motorcycles (which were AMAZING)

link playing with one of the over-priced toys mentioned above :)

walking in from the circus. wiped out!

mid morning trip to the park

tree hugger

water! what is this stuff?!

we heart one arts plaza

so there's some of our beat-the-heat-cheap strategies. we also do the spray park, play in the water hose while we water the trees, go to the gym, and visit hunny and papa. what are some of yours?! looks like this will be going on for a while. we are really, REALLY looking forward to our vacation next week...off to cool temps and beautiful scenery! until then we will be in the a/c or in the water! :)

seaside 2011

2011-07-31T14:59:00.002-05:00

we got back yesterday from a week long vacation to seaside, florida. this has quickly become a family tradition in our house that we hope to make as many years as possible. this year, we were able to go with my brother, jarrod's family and my parents as well. it was so much fun having so many of us together under one roof for a full week (although of course, we missed josh's family oh-so-much!).

we played in the sun, enjoyed the cooler (yes, it was much cooler!) temps, and just enjoyed our time away from it all. and by all, i mean ALL! we didn't even get in a car after being dropped off by the car service from the airport until we left for the airport seven days later. golf carts, bikes, and our own feet were our transport and i LOVE that. i love not having my phone on me, a watch, worrying about schedules, oh-so-lovely!

we are so thankful for DFW play areas!

evening chat on the porch with the fam

link cooling off :)

fried pickles + ranch dressing = genius.

i think jay is going to sell his car and get one of these big golf carts. seriously. so fun.

the boys playing games after dinner

at bud and alley's for our anniversary dinner - 4 years!

celebrating my sweet dad's 29th - err, 69th, birthday!

papa, or "boppa" if you are link :)

divine.

our little life guard

link's little beach house

blowing off steam during the professional photog shoot

link ADORED our photographer. she could just smile at him and he would giggle. (none of those pictures are here - these are iphone pics!)

link was full of kisses for the camera. my adorable little show off. :)

last day on the beach

jay and i hung out at the adult pool during link's naps while my mom babysat. glorious.

link and his big cousin, kyle, who he calls "tra-tra" :)

fake smile? this is so cheesy, we were cracking up.

movie night

concert night on the lawn

it was such a fun, fun trip! i always say an actual goodbye to that beautiful stretch of beach when i leave with a tear in my eye and a lump in my throat. seaside, we will see you next year!!! LOVE THAT PLACE!!!!

time flies

2011-07-11T20:47:00.000-05:00

he was what, maybe 22, 23 inches long in that first pic? now he is 37 inches tall, wearing a size 9 shoe, a 4T top, and is stronger than anyone i know. oh, and nearing two...ever heard that term, "terrible two's?" i always thought that was a joke. uh-uh, nope, no, sure isn't. the tantrums are here and my goodness, can he throw them. jay and i can't seem to figure out why, i mean neither of us are opinionated or outspoken or anything (if you can't see the sarcasm, you don't know us too well), haha! alas, have been refining our disciplinary tactics and trying to laugh instead of cry. because some days, i don't know which one is more appropriate. :)

we are still having a blast and with all the craziness, realizing that at some point we will miss all this, or at least laugh at it. the weak knees and refusal to walk while throwing a tantrum in a public place, wanting me to hold him or hold his hand as he takes me to every individual water spout at the spray park, and even the crawling atop every piece of furniture in our house and attempting to dance (hoping this isn't a fast forward 18 years to college frat parties?!)...yes, we will miss all of it. and sometimes i need to write it down, just to remember it. :)

oh, did i mention he has been falling asleep again fairly often in the morning, like for two naps? the above pic was taken after my morning jog, at like 9am!!! maybe if he slept past 6am he wouldn't be sleepy at 9?? :)

the new water table, link's personal hot tub

dancing on the dining room table, then counting to three and jumping. yes, this is one of the disciplinary things we have "reviewed" (ie put a stop to!)

"talking" with his bear friend at lakeside park tonight. a very sweet moment. :)

HAPPY FOURTH!

2011-07-06T20:45:00.001-05:00

we spent the fourth in tulsa again this year with my brother, josh's family and my parents. it was so much fun!

jay got in a lot of golf at their club with josh and our nephew, asher. carter, my oldest nephew, got a lot of practice driving us around. he has his permit and is turning 16 in less than a month. so unreal. my oldest nephew is almost as old as i was when he was born! ohmygoodness!! we also got in SEVEN trips to the pool, lots of cookouts, a night out for sushi with josh and joy, and link had a REALLY good time with his big cousins and all their friends at their annual fourth of july party.

we had fun livin' on tulsa time. :)

swimming with daddy and caroline

waiting for the parade down their street with mom

hangin' in the parade car with all the lovely ladies

link and care-bear

two sleepy pics, one at fireworks, one on the road trip :)

adorable.

happy fourth!

i hope you all had a great holiday and time with friends and family celebrating our great nation.

cousin's camp, part II

2011-06-26T13:55:00.004-05:00

oh.my.goodness. i am tired. what an incredible week! if you read part one, you saw day one, after the water park. well the kids just left and link went down for a much-needed nap, and now i am on my computer for the first time in days. :)

we greeted soliders at DFW, went to legoland, rode a carousel, ate some bubba's, swam at SMU, ate some chuy's, watched a movie at jay's office theater, played hide and seek, played some xbox, slept a little at our house, swam at colonial, helped uncle jay caddy at colonial, ate burgers, saw cars 2, had time at hunny and papa's house, slept a teeny bit more, ate at mi cocina (with most of the older cousins, almost the whole fam at once!), and oh-so-much more! jay and i also managed to squeeze in some work, taking link to his cousin jack's first birthday party, taking link to get a few more naps, church today, working out, keeping a friend's sick dog this week, and for jay, a LOT more caddy-ing at judd's club championship. :) that's all my brain can process and/or remember right now. :) there were warm fuzzy exchanges for good behavior, prayers, bible verses, and songs. oh, and a lot of fun memories made. thanks kids, for a wonderful week!

(p.s. i also got a taste of what it would be like to have five kids. HATS OFF to anyone that does, because i barely made it through one week!)

greeting solders - welcome home troops!

diving at SMU - even papa got into it (above)

precious boys! so sweet.

lots of snuggles, above with hunny at movie night, below with caroline in his tent

below, link after camp, and showing EXACTLY how i feel!

byebye for now, time for me to catch a quick nap while my crazy kiddo catches up on sleep, too. :)

cousin's camp, day one

2011-06-23T15:30:00.000-05:00

well i guess technically it's day two, but the first full day. it's that time of year again, and the youngest link cousins (asher, caroline, carson, and nathan) are in town for camp! it's so much fun, and today has been perfect thus far. as the youngest participant, link has to take breaks from camp for naps and early bedtimes, but he sure gets a lot of special treatment from his older cousins, which he LOVES.

it's so amazing because we took the kids to this same park last year and link wasn't quite yet walking, but definitely not swimming or sliding. this year he was running all over the park, swimming to us in the lazy river, and sliding down every slide he was allowed on. crazy how that seems like it was just a couple of months ago!

with papa

with sweet caroline

splish, splash! summer is so fun...and we still have three days of camp left!! woohoo! (i promise we got more pics of the other kids, just not on my iphone). i'll get more tomorrow!

2011-06-06T15:07:00.001-05:00

these pictures were taken almost exactly a year apart. this is going by so fast!!!!

8 months old

20 months old

we've already hit over 100 degrees here in dallas, had our first pool party of the summer today, and vacations are all booked, planned, and ready! before we know it it will be september again and link will be two. unreal. i'm just trying to take time everyday to sit down and thank the Lord for each day, savoring the little moments, snuggles, and sweet smiles of our precious boy! he keeps me on my toes and is the busiest little guy i've ever known, but i love him so and wouldn't have it any other way!

it's may, we are in texas, so if you ask me, it's SUMMER! :)

2011-05-23T21:07:00.000-05:00

today link graduated his first year of "school" at the early childhood learning center at our church, wilshire baptist. his wonderful teachers put together a graduation picture of each child, their class, and gave out certificates of graduation. it was pretty adorable, and i can't quit smiling at the above pic. priceless. although i am certain there will be many more cap and gown moments in link's future, it will be hard to top the cuteness factor pictured above, if you ask me. :)

his hunny and papa (my parents) make every effort to make sure they see us at least once a week, since we all live so close. i can't tell you how much i cherish this time with all of us together. it's so fun to see them with link and how much they all adore each other! :)

we have done a lot of work in our yard lately, and last weekend we cleared out a very shady section in the back where link can dig, rake, play with trucks, and just get messy all summer long! i am thankful for a spot where he can stay cool and play. he cracks me up below, such the outdoorsman. he loves that hat, such an old man hat, right?

here's a pic of link and his buddy wade. they had a play date last week and i couldn't help but snap a few photos. they are a pretty cute combo, don't ya think? link has started giving hugs and kisses to all his friends. i love that, even the big, loud, rowdy kid he is, he still has a soft side. :)

a few of my favorite "things"

bring it on summer, we are ready for a couple of great vacations, a lot of backyard cookouts, some good pool time (i'll have to post a video of the swim lesson progress soon!), and fun in the sun!!!

happy mother's day

2011-05-08T23:05:00.003-05:00

dancing in my backyard with my sweet boy and his daddy giggling. priceless. (link's favorite dance songs are old 97's, U2, and willie. good taste, if you ask me!)

oh my goodness, i love being your mommy, sweet link! and i am so thankful for the amazing God that gave us our happy family: your daddy, YOU, and our fur babies, mckenzie and owen! i love you all! thanks for a wonderful mother's day.

and thank you so much to my sweet mom. words cannot express what she means to me. i could go on and on and ON (no really, i could!), but to keep it simple let's just say that if i can be HALF the woman/mom/wife/friend she is, i'll be doing this thing right. she is a living legacy of what a wise, godly, feisty, caring, comforting, teacher, nurturing, sweet, overcoming-any-obstacle, STRONG, LOVING, and never forget truly funny woman. MOM, you are the definition of class and a true lady.

to my favorite woman on earth, my sweet mother, my inspiration and my love, lavon link. i love you with all my heart. and i thank God every single day of my life for YOU.

(here she is, loving on her 8th grandchild. yes, that's link, 19 months ago!) she has three kids and eight grandkids and loves them each in her own special way with all with all her heart. everyone that receives her love knows how special that feels. thank you, sweet mama!!! that's living life to it's fullest, if you ask me!!!

loves.

2011-05-05T15:21:00.000-05:00

at 19 months, some of your favorite things...

as you can see above, your dogs (well, all dogs for that matter!). the pics with owen are much sweeter than the ones with mckenzie. he is typically carrying her around while she growls at him. she's not a big fan of that. after all, he did put her in the oven (if you are a friend on facebook, i'm sure you read that funny story, where no animals were harmed, btw. thankfully the oven wasn't on. :)).

the pool. sprinklers. the water hose. well, really any water. even the kitchen sink is a favorite of yours. (above, on the way to swim lessons. yes, for this very reason. he loves water!)

trains. airplanes. cars. motorcycles. heck, just things that make loud noises and move. haha, now that i write that, i realize maybe you love these things because you all have so much in common!

ice cream. but who doesn't love ice cream?!

rain boots, being outside, and pushing things. thankfully for the latter, it's normally just a toy. :)

baseball. you have no idea how happy that makes me. :)

easter

2011-05-05T14:50:00.003-05:00

we had a good time this easter with family. on saturday with the pritchards at colonial, easter egg-hunting and brunch. then on to sunday with my family at my parents' church, then easter lunch, more egg hunting, cake pop eating, confetti egg smashing, bubble blowing, candy eating...whew! lots of fun.

there is one hymn i always want to hear/sing on easter. it always reminds me of my mom. she always has such a big smile on her face when she sings this song. anyway, as i've grown older and really listened to what i was singing, i've grown to love it, as well. now everytime i sing this song i smile, too. it may be old, but it is still so very true and powerful. happy easter! here's the chorus...

He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives

today!
He walks with me and He talks with me
Along life's narrow way.
He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives:
He lives within my heart.

lately.

2011-04-13T23:00:00.001-05:00

link's second opening day, with cousin nate! GO RANGERS!

gardening, the new hobby

queso, the new soup. definitely my son. :)

time with owen. he loves his pups.

sunday school ready. the perfect look, it's short lived, people. enjoy. (we have to get a pic while he's strapped in, pre-play and pre-dirt. haha).

first half = new hobby!

2011-03-28T16:23:00.003-05:00

on sunday i ran my first half marathon here in dallas, the rock n' roll half marathon. i ran with my brother, josh, which made it extra fun. :) i started training in january after running the white rock marathon relay with my brothers and dad, and feeling very inspired. over the course of the last few months, i can honestly say i've gone from someone that ran some for exercise to someone that really loves running.

for years asthma and sports injuries kept me from really being able to run much more than three to five miles, but thanks to advair (asthma medicine) and ibuprofen, i think i may be able to keep up my new hobby.

our race was great. pre-race i kept saying i just wanted to finish, but internally i REALLY wanted to make it in 2 hours. with one bathroom break and a dead sprint at the last turn, we finished in 2:00:08! so exciting!! thanks again to my family members and friends that were able to make it out. it meant SO much to us that you were there!

now, to find another good half somewhere...any suggestions??

a week in review

2011-03-23T15:05:00.004-05:00

dirt and chocolate after a full day, this is typical pre-bath link, 7pm

i'm so happy it's spring. i have been and will continue to spend the majority of it chasing my rowdy, loud, funny, sweet son all over this universe! we spend all of our time outside, and i am not exaggerating. from the moment he wakes until he naps or sleeps for the night, he is ready to go outside and play, non-stop. i wouldn't have it any other way. link is a lot like his parents, in that he wants to go, go, go all the time. we love that he shares our zest for life, so we are just hanging on for the ride! in the last week(-ish) he has enjoyed his first stars game, another trip to austin, a couple of cookouts with friends at our place, and his second st patty's day on greenville. busy boy. here are a few pics from our last week...

first stars game, in the suite for family night with the fine family! thanks, dan, steph, and jules!

st patty's day on greenville, cook out at our place with friends.

corn dog at shady grove on sunday night in austin. good times.

life is good. we are all sleeping a lot later, thanks to daylight savings, and because of that, we are now officially down to one nap, typically from 1-4pm, give or take. we are two days from link officially being a year and a half old (on the 25th), so it's a good time to mark some memories for the baby book:

- you love being outside more than anything

- you climb. and climb. and then you climb some more. we have put a tent on your bed, and on a trip this week to austin, you climbed out of your pack and play. our days of cribs are short lived, i fear. but it is so cute that you are so active. it reminds us of us. :)

- you love people and love social interaction.

- we can't pass our church without you crying to go in, you ADORE your wilshire family. :)

- you love to stroll the neighborhood in your bob stroller, or any of your various cars. you just love all forms of transportation, especially trucks and AIRPLANES!!

- you are communicating on such a different level now, and it amazes us.

- you love your music class, and loving all that structure has surprised us, but then again...

- you are loving books. that makes me so happy. as active and crazy as you are, you still love to cuddle with mama and read a good book after your nap. :)

- you know how much you are loved. i can see it in your eyes, the way you look at us as your parents, the excitement as you see your hunny and papa, the way you pet your dogs, play with your friends (or pretty much anyone); you expect love, and i love that about you. it's precious.

i'm so proud and happy of my sweet son. sometimes i cannot believe it as i watch you grow and play, that God has blessed me with the son i always dreamed of as a little girl. your dad and i consider ourselves so blessed to have you in our lives. happy (almost) 18 months!

the jetsons

2011-02-25T14:52:00.004-06:00

do you ever imagine what it would be like to be yourself at age ten, looking over your shoulder into your life today? maybe i'm the only one, but i think i would be AMAZED. and no, not at the fact that i was married, living in a great house with two dogs and a beautiful son. nope, because those are things i was definitely dreaming of doing someday when i was ten years old. (although admittedly, it would be pretty trippy! but that's a lot deeper than i was thinking...) :)

at the risk of sounding old, here's where i am going with this thought...

what would amaze me are little things, things we take for granted now. like cell phones. the cell phones i remember were in a few of my friends parents' cars, mounted in the front console and were roughly the size of a microwave oven (something our parents would have never have envisioned as kids, btw - a microwave or a phone in their cars!). but now, we have these tiny, thin, phones. and for a lot of us, the phone portion of the phone isn't even the part we use most! haha. jay and i were talking about the fact that our first few years of dating were also about the time we both first started texting. and not many of our friends were texting yet because their phones WEREN'T CAPABLE. i mean, now we text videos, pics, and everyone is participating (even the grandparents!), just a few years later. what will what will happen in the next ten?!?

and this morning, i was driving to the gym. link was in the backseat, and a really fun song came on the radio. link's eyes lit up, he started clapping and head bobbing, so i did what any mom would do, i pulled out my phone (at a stoplight, of course :)), pulled up my shazam app, found the song, and downloaded it from itunes. SERIOUSLY. think about your ten-year-old-self seeing that! BAM! age-ten-katy used to sit for hours with a blank tape loaded, listening to Y95 (radio station) waiting for THE song to come on so i could tape it. and really, REALLY, that was just twenty years ago?

there are clearly SO many more examples, but the above is what had me laughing. in the span of about 20 seconds, an unknown song came on the radio, was discovered by my phone, purchased and downloaded, all at a stoplight.

what will they come up with next??

fun with a REAL camera

2011-02-20T21:54:00.008-06:00

jay's company, the wolf group, does lots of fancy schmancy media stuff. soooo, they also have lots of cool cameras. and this weekend, we got to play with one! i LOVE photography. it was probably my favorite class in college, but unfortunately the technology has quickly surpassed the nice camera i got as a graduation gift. but, the love hasn't died, and what a fun subject i had for my first time with a REAL camera. i can't believe a lens can cost 10 grand, by the way. wow. anyway, we CAREFULLY took turns snapping some photos today and had so much fun! here are some non-iphone pics for ya for once!! :)

doesn't he look like he just found out he won a new car on a game show?! haha.

sweet boy.

our little explorer

one of his favorites, opening and closing the front door

mother and son. :)

my funny valentine

2011-02-14T22:20:00.003-06:00

this was a fun valentine's 24-hours. last night the hubs took me out for sushi - kenichi sushi, which is sushi on a whole 'nother level!! this is good, good grub, peeps. it's always nice to get a date night, not to mention time with my valentine, whatever the occasion, right??!?

today was link's day at school, so he had a big valentine party with his little friends and teachers. normally when i come to pick him up there is a moment of nervous cry and laughter while running for the door, desperate to be reunited with his mommy. WELL, for the first time EVER he didn't come running to the door when he saw me appear. instead, he waved and shoved another cookie in his mouth, all the while running to the teacher to beg for more. i was laughing right out loud. can you blame him? the boy has his priorities!

this afternoon we went to a neighbor's house for a cookie party and time in the bounce house. he had so much fun, got so dirty, and declared his love for all things bounce house. he was hurling himself in and out of that thing, with sticky face and fingers covered in dirt and grass and an adoring mom watching on from afar.

spring weather is upon us and we have been outside NON-STOP for the last few days. it's made me realize how much my boy has grown up since fall (when we were also outside non-stop with the great temps!). and considering in texas "winter weather" is typically only a couple of months, that was a lot of maturing pretty quick. but he is so much more independent and capable. so fun to see him growing into a confident, self-assured little boy.

what a day! i think valentine's day is a hit with this kid. and so are cookies. :)

2011-01-19T13:49:00.008-06:00

what a fun few days we have had around here! friday morning link and i went to a-town to see hunny and papa. then that evening we met up with jay and went to fort worth. link got to play with his little cousin, jack...so cute. they are exactly nine months apart and both so interested in each other. :) then jack's nanny put the kids to bed and all us old folks went out to lonesome dove for dinner. if you haven't been, go. and try the white truffle mac and cheese. t0-die-for.

link is borrowing jack's teething ring. those dang molars are torture! :)

saturday night jay took one for the team and let me go out with a group of my college girlfriends. we got a back table at taverna and stayed for hours. we had so much fun. we all get together a lot, but we are usually surrounded by toddlers and babies. while that is fun, it's soooo nice to get together with just us girls now and again. i can't say how lucky i feel to have bonded with such a great group in college and even more, to have all remained so close. shout out to the baylor girls...love you all (and love to the girls we were missing that night, too)!!

oh, and my dad would want me to share that link has "papa" in his regular vocabulary now. when they are not around, he loves to point, giggle, and smile at pictures of his hunny and papa, all the while walking around saying, "bopa" (papa) over and over again.

but for now, link would like to dazzle you with his awesome dance move. yes, i said move because there is only one...that he does everywhere. and i mean, everywhere, he is given the opportunity. and then he always looks up as if to say, "did you see that? i just did that. i'm awesome." giggle. wait for it, wait for it...

hope everyone is having a great week!!!

happy 2011!

2011-01-12T13:28:00.009-06:00

a few years out of college i remember complaining that every year was starting to seem the same. go to work, hang out with friends, take a weekend trip here and there, see movies, take the dogs to the dog park, work out, sleep in...wait, what was i complaining about, again? :) but it seems that from the moment jay and i got engaged, each year has been a new adventure and a new roller coaster, which i love. i guess that's what happens when you go from a lifetime of taking care of just you and start a life with another person (and then start creating other little people!). gosh, it's been fun.

it always seems like each year flies by, and then i look at pictures and realize how much has really happened in such a seemingly short time. it's unbelievable to see a year on a toddler (teenagers seem to be the same way - every time i see my older nieces and nephews they look five years older!). i thought these "stages" i always heard about would be six months long. heck, some of them are six days long! too funny. anyway, it is hilarious to me to look back at link last january...

just chillin on the couch

taking care of some tummy time

and hanging out with mama

and now...my big boy that can't stop growing...he's grown almost three inches since his birthday in september! when did this happen?!

now he can dunk ;)

run...

and climb up on anything he wants!

read (vanity fair! ha!)...

and jump on the bed with his doggies!

2011 has a lot on the calendar for the pritchards...check in for updates when you get a chance, and keep us posted on you! can't wait to see what this wonderful year full of promise will bring. happy new year to you and yours!

christmas.

2010-12-28T23:10:00.005-06:00

15 months old on xmas morning - and loving his toys!

christmas eve was spent with just the three of us. link, jay and me. we went to our awesome church, wilshire, for the christmas eve service. watching link's face light up during "silent night" with candlelight all around us was definitely a moment. one of those that pulled me in and brought tears to my eyes. link knew this night was special and it definitely was for us, too.

after the service we went to the grape. what a wonderful place and so close to home. love it. we came home, put the boy to bed, and started our work as elves. jay had a couple of clark griswold moments putting together the toys. but heck, jay has clark griswold moments everyday, which is part of why we love him. but seriously, what a great night. a great time of worship, a great meal, and spending time with my husband preparing for our child's christmas. beautiful.

so christmas morning came, and just as we expected, link was THRILLED to see his new toys. we had so much fun here and then headed to my parents for time with some more family, games, more presents, and some seriously good home-cooked food.

still loves the car and his stocking

with big o on xmas eve

i love christmas. it is such a wonderful time for reflection of our faith, time with family, and lots of fun!!!

what a weekend...

2010-12-05T20:40:00.004-06:00

we had the link family christmas, went to the big 12 championship, and ran the rock! WHEW! let me say before i even start, that is too much in one weekend, even if it was reeeeeaaaally fun. :)

so friday we just played around at my parents house, had christmas dinner and opened presents. link had such a blast. he LOVES his big link cousins (all seven of them). and they all get the biggest kick out of him. after all, it's been several years since we've had a baby around, so it's pretty fun for all involved.

HOOP IT UP!

SLAMMA JAMMA with josh

papa taking caroline and link in the wagon :)

saturday we shopped here in big D, had dinner at the new babe's chicken house in arlington, and headed to the big 12 championship! it was so much fun and an incredible game. OU and nebraska are old rivals and to have nebraska's final game as a big 12 participant played against OU was fun for all involved. we got hooked up with great seats from our friend, craig (thank you!) and took most of the fam. BOOMER SOONER!

big 12 trophy presentation

sooners take the field!

OKLAHOMA, BIG 12 CHAMPS, AGAIN!!!

after a VERY short nights rest at my parents house, we were up bright and early to head back to dallas and run the white rock marathon relay. i really wish i had more pics of the day. it was my nephew, kyle, dad, brothers, (josh and jarrod) and me, running in that order. everyone runs between 5 - 6.5 miles to complete the race. it's like a scavenger hunt getting everyone in place and jay did a great job helping us out and getting the rest of the fam to different locations to cheer us all on. white rock is such a great event and this is definitely something we will all do again. the family that didn't run all seemed to want to participate next year because it is just so fun! we had a goal to run it under 4 hours and beat our own goal, which was exciting!! i got to finish the race, which was so much fun. there were thousands of people cheering us on at the finish line. what a pumped up feeling that was! great event, great cause. and can you believe we didn't take ONE picture? we may have to pay to order a few since we were too pooped to remember!

we wrapped it all up with a trip to our favorite spot, mi cocina, after the race. it was a GREAT way to start off the holiday season and totally got me into gear. december, i LOVE you! not only do we get to share the advent season spiritually, but it is such a wonderful time of year to enjoy our family and friends. good times this weekend and good times ahead. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

giving thanks.

2010-11-24T15:51:00.003-06:00

(linkers with some of his best pals at lunch recently)

gosh. we have some great friends. and some really great family. we are blessed. it's fun to see link becoming buds with my friends kids. not to forget that he is totally adored by his older cousins, and trust me, the feeling is obviously mutual. they have so much fun when they all get together. :) it's a-mazing. i am thankful.

i have told friends lately that i feel like i am always sweating. and that is not just because i love to work out. that's because i have the most. active. toddler. that has EVER lived! (i swear, some days it feels like it. :)) but you know what? i could not be more thankful for that fact. link is a healthy, happy, energetic little boy and i thank God everyday for this incredible gift. i thank God i get to watch my parents be his hunny and papa. that i get to see his face light up with joy when they walk in the room and i feel a lump in my throat because it touches me so. being a mother is a wonderful gift, like none other i have experienced thus far.

i thank God for my husband, my little boy, all of my family, friends, church, home, all of it. i believe life is all about perspective, and even when it gets tough sometimes, from where i'm sitting, life is pretty, pretty (insert larry david voice) good!

"Attitude" by Chuck Swindol
The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important then appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company…a church…a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we embrace for that day. We cannot change our past…we cannot change the fact that people act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you…
we are in charge of our ATTITUDES.

i remember...

2010-11-12T23:27:00.003-06:00

a time not so long ago...

when i said i will never:

- stay home on a weekend night (haha...and i thought i would hate it. that's even funnier.)

- not be a totally focused career-woman (hiiiii, link!)

- put my kid on a schedule, b/c isn't that so annoying?! haha. (can i also say how thankful i am for "healthy sleep habits, happy child"??? maybe the best book ever!? dr, weissbluth, we love you.)

- work-out in the mornings...(coming from the woman who now runs at dawn and gets to the gym the moment the childcare opens. at 8am. :))

- continue in my baptist-raised tradition with my own family (if you know me well, you can ask...it's been a long journey over the last year...fair to say, i'm baptist. an apathetically democrat voting, not-your-typical-baptist, but none-the-less, baptist, mama)!

and so much more. life has changed a lot, and really most all of it has been good. :)

but so much has changed so quickly. and not that i was ever the type to tell other parents, friends, family, how to live their life or raise their kids, but inside i had my own thoughts and opinions on the above and so much more. it's amazing, the more i give of myself, the more i discover about myself...and the more i let go and give, the more i learn. i know that i have by no means figured it all out, but it is nice to see myself discovering new things. i just gained another year and can't wait to see all that is in store for me to learn. on my own, with my family, and with my friends. i love and am thankful for you all. :)

a disco dancin' halloween

2010-11-01T00:06:00.006-05:00

disco man.

when the nightfall hit, we were all dancin' fools.

dinner and passing out candy

yoga to prepare for his big dance moves

good times :)

beautiful days

2010-10-26T15:34:00.005-05:00

the weather right now in texas is nothing short of spectacular. not cold, not hot, just right. i want to be outside ALL THE TIME. and we are outside quite a lot around here.

today has been a fun day. i've thought a lot lately about how much fun we are having, link as a toddler and all the fun it entails. i want to remember some of these seemingly ordinary days on down the road, so i want to document them now and then in an effort to remember the regular days, not just the big occasions.

so i started off with a morning jog (link in the BOB), a trip to the gym, and then link's nap. pretty standard day for us around here. but after, instead of our usual lunch at home, we took link for his first trip to deep sushi in deep ellum. yummo. then we went to main street garden downtown for a quick playtime before jay had to go back to work. when we got back, i loaded link back up in the stroller and we walked up to greenville to society bakery to split a chocolate chip cookie (also YUMMO). all afternoon link was all smiles, happy shrieks, lots of "talking" and head bobbing, just so happy. and that makes me happy. so now we are back and he is down for his second nap of the day, and i am working around the house (or blogging, ha).

this is a day that i am thankful for. this is a day that i will remember (mainly b/c i am writing it down!). every day i have with my precious little boy is a gift and i do-not-ever take it for granted how lucky we are that i have this time with him. i know i am going to look back years from now and realize how quickly this toddler time flew by, but it's little days like these that i hope i can recall with ease, as these are the kind of days i love most. :)

hunting in the gardens for treasures (mainly rocks and acorns) ha

we don't walk much anymore, we RUN!

toddler playground. genius.

RANGERS!!!!!

2010-10-23T21:45:00.003-05:00

jay's birthday was yesterday, and all he wanted for his birthday was tickets to game six. my big brother jarrod came through and last night, for jay's birthday, we witnessed history. i've spent so many years watching, working for, and loving the rangers. i don't ever miss opening day and every year i have held on to the hope that this could happen. and so it is. THE TEXAS RANGERS ARE IN THE WORLD FRIGGIN' SERIES!!! my goodness, i am beyond excited. and what a birthday treat for my hubs!!

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, YOUR TEXAS RANGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

tulsa time

2010-10-22T21:51:00.000-05:00

we went to tulsa last weekend and visited some of our cousins. coney islander, utica square, BBD, visits with old friends, shops on peoria, a couple of runs at riverside park, and beautiful time with family. so much fun. i love tulsa, and the peeps in it. ;)

the above pic is of asher and link, so precious. asher is the quarterback of tulsa raiders 4th grade black, and he is AWESOME! ash had a great game and they won big. link was very excited to have sideline passes. we get perks since asher's dad (my bro, josh) is the head coach. ;)

josh and ash-man, our QB stud

link liked running on the track

cute kids

carter, link, josh, audrey, caroline and asher

first trip to the state fair and cotton bowl

2010-10-12T12:07:00.002-05:00

this time last year was the height of swine flu, so there wasn't a snowball's chance we were taking our brand-new baby boy out to the fair. sooo, his first trip happened last weekend. and my-oh-my did we have fun!! we saw the ferris wheel, big tex (who was a big hit with link), and he loved seeing all the rides that spin and play loud music. he loves anything loud and crazy, much like his parents. ;)

we also took him to the baylor v tech game. we lucked out at the last second with some VIP lounge seating (read: place for a one-year old to run around) and decided to give it a whirl. he did great! he would sit for periods and watch the game, the band, the people, then he would get up and run around like a wild man! it worked out great and i think he ate about 5 of the complementary brownies. he was WIRED! ;)

meeting big tex

ferris wheel shot :)

watching football with daddy. all is right in the world.

BOOMER SOONER

2010-10-02T21:22:00.003-05:00

one of my two favorite weekends in dallas is coming to a close and OKLAHOMA won! all is right in my world. :)

seriously, some of my favorite things all come together at once...lots of friends, lots of passionate college football, and the state fair. what could be more fun?? we lucked into some 50 yard line seats and i have to say, we were very lucky! there could not have been a better seat in the house. we had so much fun enjoying the day and most of all the SOONER VICTORY!!

28-20, sooners win.

the party

2010-09-29T10:49:00.004-05:00

before i get to link's big birthday bash, i just have to say, it's fall, ya'll! how awesome is this weather!!?!? loving it. we started fall with link's party, then this week we had our first trip to the pumpkin patch at the arboretum, and this weekend is OU/tx. yay! i love this time of year!

bubbles, balls, and birthday cake was the theme...we should have added balloons, b/c the kiddos loved all the balloons, too. gosh we had a great time. so many of our friends and family members came to celebrate with us, and link soaked up every moment. we had a kid's wonderland set up with a zillion balloons, ball pits, bubble machines going everywhere and tons of toys to play with. then to top it off, lots of cake! we could not have had a better set up and are so appreciative of all the friends who came to share this special day with link.

he tried to eat the whole smash cake. loved it. :)

playing in the party favor/ball pit with lily and eve :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LINK!!!!!

2010-09-22T14:58:00.004-05:00

i'm not having a lot of the sadness i hear a lot of moms talk about when their babies turn one. of course it has brought a lot of reflection, like that a year ago this was about the most miserable i have ever been. couldn't wait for baby boy to get here, 9 months pregnant in the heat, a herniated disc in my neck...and the list goes on. :) but it was all worth it. and now, here we are a year later and mom and dad to the most precious boy i know.

dear link,

happy birthday!! this year has been nothing short of spectacular. the light that you bring to our lives is indescribable. the love we feel for you is deep and unconditional. seeing you learn and grow at such an amazing rate is so much fun. you are a ball of energy and i am just trying to keep up. i don't want to miss a moment!

your dad and i want so much for you. i pray that you will always have the energy and zest for life that you do now. i pray that you will allow the Lord to work in your life, that you will grow to love him intimately and always seek His will first. i pray that you will find yourself surrounded by great friends, that build you up and laugh with you. i pray that you will have confidence, knowing that your parents love each other and love you, no strings attached. i pray that you will thrive as you grow to be more independent and that you will embrace the gifts God has given you. i pray that your dad and i will make good decisions as we raise you. that we will listen to you with an open heart and mind, and you will know that you always have a voice. i pray that as your parents, we will earn your respect the way our parents have earned ours. i pray that you will love God with all your heart, and that you will find yourself constantly seeking His face. i pray that i will leave a legacy for you that you can be proud of, and that someday, when you have a family of your own, you will want to emulate. just as my parents did for me.

so much. we want so much for you. please know that we will always give you your space, so you can grow on your own. but know that we are here for you always. may your life be filled with love and laughter. you are our joy, and we love you with all our hearts.

happy birthday, son.

love,
mom

"and jesus grew in wisdom, and in stature, and in favor with God and man." luke 2:52

two things...

2010-09-17T14:06:00.004-05:00

first, i'm re-reading a book right now, one of my favorites, intimacy with the almighty. just read one of my favorite quotes in the book:

...what you long for, unless i miss my guess, is intimacy with the almighty. you want to be profoundly aware of His presence, in touch with Him at the deepest possible level, thinking His thoughts, gleaning His wisdom, and living as close to His heart as humanly possible, operating your life at the nucleus of His will. i desire the same, i freely admit.

i'm jumping up and down with my hand in the air, screaming, "that's me! that's me!" such a good book. i highly recommend it.

second, i love the below picture. it was taken last night at a dallas contemporary arts event. and i love it not because i think it is particularly spectacular of either of us, but because it shows us being us. happy, laughing, and together. i love, love my family and spending time with all of us together, but it is nice for jay and i to get our own time now and then. and we did last night. and we had a lot of fun. :)

winner, winner, chicken dinner

2010-09-09T15:38:00.003-05:00

this is the title of an email i received this a.m. from the hubs. apparently he entered my sweet son and golden retriever, owen, in a contest given by the austin american statesman. and forgot to tell me. or else i would have personally voted for, along with begging you all to vote for, our kiddo and pup...but oh well, they won anyway!

jay got an email this morning and realized he forgotten about it altogether. too funny. anyway, we are going to take a little road trip to austin for a free family photo session, courtesy of the austin newspaper! how hilarious is that?

holiday weekend

2010-09-06T20:28:00.003-05:00

we had a great weekend. opening weekend for college football, birthday parties galore, the fort worth zoo, meeting baby caleb (peavy), and mom and dad's night out in fort worth last night with friends! a good time was had by all.

baby caleb peavy, my friend jill's third little boy, in from san antonio!

walking around at our favorite park this afternoon

he loved all the animals on his first trip to the fort worth zoo

he already knows it. the first day of college game day is GLORIOUS!

p.s. now that he is really walking, link is wearing shoes a lot more. we have lots of shoes for him, but only one pair for "new" walkers, a pair of 12-18 month "pedipeds." they are already squishing his toes, so we need to buy some new ones. how long did your kids wear the thin soled shoes like this? any other brands you love?

stonewall babies

2010-08-31T16:20:00.005-05:00

hey kids. do you know anyone that lives in the m-streets area (specifically for stonewall jackson elementary school) of dallas? if so, please tell them to look us up on facebook, stonewall babies.

i, along with two other girls, am helping to re-start the early childhood PTA for stonewall jackson, formerly known as GWRA (there is still an active yahoo board for the group, but no activities). sooooo, we had our first event today, a play group, and had a great turnout! but we want to grow more, so please tell your friends in our area about us. and if you live in the area, come to one of our upcoming events!

find us on facebook here.

spread the word! and if you don't live in the area but would still like to be involved, feel free! the more the merrier.

eleven. exactly one louder.

2010-08-23T10:27:00.009-05:00

or in this case, one older AND one louder (if you haven't seen spinal tap, you don't get it, but trust me, it's funny). link, you have found your voice this month!!! and you know how to "talk" much LOUDER!! ;)

goodness gracious! my baby is so near one and i can't take it!! each month that goes by, he gains more and more independence. now that he is fully mobile and able to walk, this has taken on a whole new meaning. he is captain crazy pants busy - everywhere we take him we get comments and folks are wide-eyed with his energy level. it's EXHAUSTING and so much fun.

so here are some things i want to remember about this time in your life, link.

- you are starting to walk. it's precious, the confidence this has given you and the fun this has brought to all our lives.

- you eat. and eat and eat and eat. when we sit down for a meal, you start slapping the table for food, and you DO. NOT. STOP. until we take you away from the table. at most restaurants, i bring you some sandwich meat, fruit, cheese, crackers/bread, a full container of puffs, beans, some sort of veggie...and you eat it all. THEN, you eat an entire kid's meal. it's unbelievable. several people at restaurants have made comments in amazement (like, "does he need a shovel?"). i'm wondering how much you will eat as a teenager?!? my goodness, boy.

- your precious sounds and words. you've got dada and mama down. you say ball all the time, but not necessarily always directed at an actual ball. :) you're starting to say hi, which is hilarious because you LOVE the "h" sound and drag it out a loooong time. you love to make snake noises, ("ssssssssssssssss") and are absolutely in awe when someone sounds it back to you. you will mimic pretty much anything we say to you to the best of your ability, and you seem to love this sense of the beginnings of true communication. i bet! it's nice, isn't it?

- you absolutely love, love other kids and people. you smile and wave, giggle and grin and just get so excited to see people paying attention to you. you LOVE to flirt with girls. i'm in trouble. :)

- you adore music of any kind, dancing, and bobbing your head to the beat. awesome. baby einstein has you wrapped around it's warped and weird little finger. but it's okay - you also love the rolling stones, beatles, U2, justin timberlake, beyonce, and the black eyed peas (you should see him shake it to "single ladies"). ;) you light up like a christmas tree when you hear one of those videos start. you love elmo (especially elmo's potty - son, if you want to be potty trained now i'm okay with that. haha) and nothing is as cute as seeing you dance to the sesame street theme song.

we are starting to plan your birthday party and although you don't know it's coming, i know you will have so much fun. :)

we are blessed and thank God for every day with you. happy eleven, sweet boy!

2010 College Football Season for Housewives: What you need to know…

2010-08-16T15:54:00.008-05:00

It's the first post by me, Jay!

With the 2010 College Football Season looming upon us I felt like this is a perfect opportunity to help guide our readers through the basics of what to expect from your husbands’ and your teams this year. Hopefully this will give you some tidbits that might help out when your husband starts ranting or raving about his team or their opponents.

Teams – In Alpha Order

Baylor

Preseason Ranking – Not Ranked

Outlook

This is shaping up to be an interesting year for the Bears. Everything hinges on QB Robert Griffin’s health. He is practically the entire team. True this team is much better than it was 10 years ago, it will only go so far as Griffin can take them.

Best Player

QB – Robert Griffin – Athletic kid with world class sprinter speed and a decent arm.

Offense Rating – B (with Griffin) Defense Rating – C-

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 4 Sam Houston St, Sept. 11 Buffalo, Sept. 25 at Rice

Predicted Toss-ups: Oct. 2 Kansas, Oct. 16 at Colorado, Oct. 23 Kansas State, Oct. 9 Texas Tech (in Dallas)

Predicted Losses: Sept. 18 at TCU, Oct. 30 at Texas, Nov. 6 at Oklahoma State, Nov. 13 Texas A&M, Nov. 20 Oklahoma

Best Case Scenario Record – 7-5 Worst Case Scenario Record – 4 - 8

Oklahoma

Preseason Ranking – 8

Outlook

Coming off the disaster of 2009, losing Sam Bradford for the year finally turns into a positive with Landry Jones gaining a full year of experience. While the Offense will be good, the Defense will decide the outcome of the Season. Oklahoma’s defense should be among the top 3 in the Country. Oklahoma holds the longest home winning streak in the Nation with 30 consecutive wins in Norman.

Best Player

WR – Ryan Broyles – Fast kid with nifty moves.

LB – Travis Lewis – 3-Year Starter that will spearhead the unit.

Offense Rating – A- Defense Rating – A

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 4 Utah State, Sept. 11 Florida State, Sept. 18 Air Force, Sept. 25 at Cincinnati, Oct. 16 Iowa State, Oct. 23 at Missouri, Oct. 30 Colorado, Nov. 13 Texas Tech, Nov. 20 at Baylor

Predicted Toss-ups: Oct. 2 Texas (in Dallas), Nov. 6 at Texas A&M, Nov. 27 at Oklahoma St

Predicted Losses: none

Best Case Scenario Record – 12-0 Worst Case Scenario Record – 8 - 4

Southern Methodist

Preseason Ranking – NR

Outlook

Did SMU win a bowl game in 2009? You bet they did! After years of struggling and churning through coaches year after year SMU seems to have found the right guy to return the program to glory after the death penalty 25 years ago. June Jones has the Ponies headed in the right direction and look for a repeat bowl birth in 2010.

Best Player

QB – Kyle Padron – Former Southlake product that lit it up in the Hawaii Bowl.

RB – Shawnbrey McNeal – Dual Threat out of the Backfield.

Offense Rating – B Defense Rating – B

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 11 vs UAB, Oct. 2 @ Rice, Oct. 9. vs Tulsa, Oct. 30 @ Tulane, Nov. 6 @ UTEP, Nov. 20 vs Marshall

Predicted Toss-ups: Sept. 18 vs Washington State, Oct. 16 @ Navy, Sat, Oct. 23 vs Houston, Nov. 26 @ East Carolina

Predicted Losses: Sept. 5 at Texas Tech, Sept. 24 vs TCU

Best Case Scenario Record – 9-3 Worst Case Scenario Record – 6 - 6

Texas

Preseason Ranking – 4

Outlook

Losing in the National Championship to Alabama without Colt McCoy was very tough for the Longhorns because they rarely lose bowl games. Although it will be tough to replace the Seniors McCoy, Shipley, Cosby, and Kindle, this is Texas though and they truly don’t rebuild they reload. Garrett Gilbert will have some ups and downs at QB but will benefit from a relatively weak schedule to start and a very good Offensive Line. The Running Backs are going to have to step it up. On Defense, this looks to be a top 3 unit again this year.

Best Player

QB –Garrett Gilbert– Helped by a very good O-Line he has a great Arm

LB – Sam Acho – Great speed with a nose for the ball.

Offense Rating – B+ Defense Rating – A

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 4 at Rice, Sept. 11 Wyoming, Sept. 25 UCLA, Oct. 23 Iowa State, Oct. 30 Baylor, Nov. 6 at Kansas St, Nov. 13 Oklahoma St, Nov. 20 Florida Atlantic

Predicted Toss-ups: Sept. 18 at Texas Tech, Oct. 2 Oklahoma (in Dallas), Nov. 25 Texas A&M

Predicted Losses: Oct. 16 at Nebraska

Best Case Scenario Record – 12-0 Worst Case Scenario Record – 8 – 4

Texas A&M

Preseason Ranking – Not Ranked

Outlook

Coming off a disappointing 2009, the Aggies are very hopeful that their offense can keep progressing like it did last year with QB Jerrod Johnson. The Aggies were absolutely horrible on Defense last year and hope to get much better. Look for a ton of points to be scored at every Aggie game.

Best Player

QB –Jerrod Johnson– The most experienced returning QB in the Big 12

Offense Rating – A Defense Rating – C-

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 4 Stephen F. Austin, Sept. 11 Louisiana Tech, Sept. 18 FIU, Oct. 16 Missouri

Predicted Toss-ups: Sept. 30 at Oklahoma State, Oct. 9 Arkansas (in Dallas), Oct. 23 at Kansas, Oct. 30 Texas Tech, Nov. 13 at Baylor

Predicted Losses: Nov. 6 Oklahoma, Nov. 20 Nebraska, Nov. 25 at Texas

Best Case Scenario Record – 9 - 3 Worst Case Scenario Record – 8 - 4

Texas Christian

Preseason Ranking – 7

Outlook

The Frogs finally pushed their way into the BCS in 2009 and looking for a repeat performance in 2010. Although they lost a few key players, QB Andy Dalton returns and the boy just doesn’t lose. TCU will play anybody, anywhere and have a chance to make a splash the opening game of the season with Oregon State a favorite to win the PAC-10 this year.

Best Player

QB –Andy Dalton– He wins football games. Period

Offense Rating – A Defense Rating – A

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 11 Tennessee Tech, Sept. 18 Baylor, Sept. 24 at SMU, Oct. 2 at Colorado State, Oct. 9 Wyoming, Oct. 23 Air Force, Oct. 30 at UNLV, Nov. 13 San Diego State, Nov. 27 at New Mexico

Predicted Toss-ups: Sept. 4 Oregon State (Arlington, Texas), Oct. 16 BYU

Predicted Losses: Nov. 6 at Utah

Best Case Scenario Record – 12-0 Worst Case Scenario Record – 8 - 4

Texas Tech

Preseason Ranking – Not Ranked

Outlook

Who cares what happened in the 2009 Season. The Red Raiders fired the most successful coach in school history for locking a rich kid with a high profile daddy in a closet. What a mess. It looks to be a rebuilding year for the Raiders in 2010 with new coach Tommy Tuberville. He’s a good coach but it’s going to take some time getting his house in order in Lubbock.

Best Player

QB –Tyler Potts– Had an up and down year last year but should be improved.

Offense Rating – A Defense Rating – B

Schedule

Predicted Wins: Sept. 11 at New Mexico, Oct. 2 at Iowa State, Nov. 6 Missouri, Nov. 20 Weber State, Nov. 27 Houston

Predicted Toss-ups: Sept. 4 SMU, Sept. 18 Texas, Oct. 9 Baylor (in Dallas), Oct. 16 Oklahoma St, Oct. 23 at Colorado, Oct. 30 at Texas A&M

Predicted Losses: Nov. 13 at Oklahoma

Best Case Scenario Record – 9-3 Worst Case Scenario Record – 6 - 6

mover and a shaker

2010-08-16T15:22:00.005-05:00

link is starting to walk. he's been at it just over a week, and he could not be more proud of himself. we think it's pretty darn cute, too. his favorite way of walking is holding my hand. he walked halfway down the street with me this afternoon. precious.

this is one of his new favorite games, "link's room." he will crawl into his room, close the door, and then wait for me to knock. then he answers the door and comes to me. adorable.

"come and knock on our door, we've been waiting for you..." ;)

just funny. a kid walking with a sippy cup in only a diaper is just funny. and then i'll stop with the videos. promise.

apparently...

2010-08-08T15:09:00.003-05:00

that last post came out differently than i had intended (based on the emails i got back!) - i was really just trying to say i might be taking a little break and bringing jay's thoughts to add a little sumthin' to the blog. no biggie. and jay, where the heck is the post you promised?? ;)

i'm tired. i'm bored.

2010-08-05T23:10:00.011-05:00

of the blog. i'm the first to admit i need feedback to go on, and since comments don't exactly abound around here, the hubs has offered to help with the blog posts, too. we need to change it up around here! i have wanted to go private, but he somehow thinks we have more than 15 readers and should keep our lives public. :) so, in the spirit of love for my jay and his wishes, we shall remain public for now. after all, this is a family blog, or so it has transitioned into one...

anyway, look forward to some posts from the big guy.

want to feel old? here are the kids i hung out with all week (before their younger siblings were born) when i graduated from college, in 2000...

and here they are now, with my CHILD!

if you say it doesn't go too fast, ask my sisters in law. :( i miss those babies, but they are oh-so-fun now, too!! gosh, it's seriously unreal.

oh-happy-day with the hubs

2010-07-29T09:48:00.004-05:00

three years ago!

happy anniversary to my sweet husband. i cannot fathom that it's been three years.

and i couldn't agree more with his statement in the card he gave me this morning. "looking back now, i feel like the two people that got married on this beautiful day three years ago in breck were just kids."

so much has happened!! it's funny, when you look at kids over the course of three years you can actually see, with your eyes, the physical changes in them. you can even "see" the maturity in their little personalities. but once we grow into adulthood, sometimes it's harder to "see" those changes. it is nice for us to reflect on all the ways we have grown and grown together. jay, i hope this doesn't alarm you, but i think we became grownups!!!???! ahhh!!!!! our worst nightmare! haha...even if we did, i'm not worried. i think everyone that knows us knows we will both always be kids at heart. :)

happy anniversary to my wonderful husband. each day that goes by i realize more and more how lucky i am. and now, to see you as a father only adds MULTITUDES to how much i'm in awe of you. i love you, jay pritchard!!

10 months of fun

2010-07-24T21:00:00.005-05:00

with link all recovered from a nasty 24 hour stomach bug and his parents recovered from a fun night out, we decided to go out on an adventure. it was a day early celebration of his ten months. we loaded up in the b.o.b. stroller* and headed to mockingbird station to ride the dart rail downtown.

he LOVED the train, the station, the whole experience. we got off downtown and headed to one arts plaza.

link took advantage of all the water features, soft grass, and many, many sights and new friends to take in.

after about an hour, he was soaking wet and oh-so-happy. we decided to take the uptown trolley, head out toward the AAC, grab some cold drinks, and then hit the katy trail to head home. anyone who says dallas is not pedestrian friendly is either a liar or lazy! we went to mockingbird station, AAC, one arts plaza, and everywhere in between withOUT a car. so much fun, and we will be doing this again...after all, if it is fun in 100 degree heat, it will be that much more fun in the fall and spring. link was enjoying himself so much he did something he has NEVER done. he totally skipped his afternoon nap and just relaxed a bit when we got home before we headed out for burgers. yes, tonight he had his first cheeseburger. he split one with me and ate every bite.

our sweet little boy is growing up so fast. i can't believe tomorrow morning he will be 10 months old. we will be sure to get some additional pics, especially since we are joining our new church tomorrow! after over a year long search from our former church, we have found a home and are so excited to make it official.

* i swear i could be a spokesperson for B.O.B., that stroller is the friggin' bomb! how did our parents do it w/o stroller SUV's?!? that is definitely the best baby purchase we made. perfect for our lifestyle and gets used every single day, no exceptions.

things you love at ten months, little link:

- sesame street and baby einstein. we only allow you one time a day, but you will sit, so sweet, quiet and still and absorb every moment. it's nice for your dad and me, too. ;)

- pedialite. while you were sick, you took in gallons of that stuff and went through a diaper an hour. crazy! but happy it got the sickness out of your system.

- crawling and cruising. you are a MACHINE of moment. still taking a few steps, but no walking yet.

we love you sweet buddy. can't even fathom how quickly this is going, but we take every day for what it is, a beautiful gift from God. time spent with you is our treasure and we love you with all our hearts!

thank god for two-a-days

2010-07-23T09:37:00.003-05:00

and weight watchers. they say it takes 9 months to put it on, and 9 to take it off. this was true for me. i want to preface this by saying yes, i am patting myself on the back, but more hoping to encourage someone that is in the middle of the postpartum weight loss battle by saying with work, it will come off.

as of today, i am officially BELOW my pre-pregnancy weight and wearing jeans i wore on my honeymoon! i took the cheese fry route to the 9th month of pregnancy and the day i went in to have link, i was 44 pounds heavier than i am now. lesson learned, don't use pregnancy as an excuse to slack off on normally good eating habits. ;)

it is an OVERWHELMINGLY WONDERFUL feeling. after months of weight watcher points and working out twice a day, i am there! in truth i didn't start WW until june, i just needed something regimented for that last 10 pounds. but i am there and so excited. i said early on here on my blog how much harder this was than i had expected...and i never dreamed it would take this long, but the battle is done. whew!

i am so excited about how well WW works and how easy it is, that i think i'm going to stick with it and see if i can't keep shedding a few more pounds.

all this and then i will probably have another baby and have to do it all over again. oh well, i'll just be happy for today! haha...

two weeks away from home...

2010-07-17T09:52:00.012-05:00

ahhh, we took a much, much needed vacay the last two weeks. first, to tulsa for the fourth (post below). then we were off to florida and enjoyed one of our favorite places on earth, seaside. my goodness, that place really is a little glimpse of heaven. jay and i had decided years ago on a trip there that once we had kids, we would do everything in our power to take them to seaside each summer.

so, family vacation number one, there we were...and we LOVED every second of it (sidenote - didn't see one tarball or glimpse of anything oil related, and didn't have one moment of rain, just beautiful sunshine every day we were there!!) we also spent time with my brother's family and some of their friends that came in the second week. so much fun!!!

get ready for picture overload!!

the fam on the beach

at barefoot bbq

riding his jet ski

the view from our porch, link loved the hammock

breakfast at the airport

with mom on the bike

with dad at movie night

my brother and sis-in-law renewed their vows on the beach

concert on the lawn, link loves the bubble guns

link and his cousins (jarrod's kids), kyle, nathan and carson

kissy time

all smiles!

beach bum

laughing baby loves the beach

a tulsa kinda fourth

2010-07-05T22:31:00.009-05:00

to say he loved the fireworks is an understatement - that is him giggling with glee...waaaaay past bedtime and still all smiles. BOOM!

we decided last minute to head to tulsa this weekend to celebrate the fourth with family. we had so much fun and are so happy that we did! cookouts, parades, fireworks, pool time, shopping, seeing old friends, homemade ice cream, catching up with family...it just doesn't get much better than this! and of course, it was link's first 4th, so we were all very excited to experience this time with him.

fireworks at the country club

with hunny and aunt joy

with his friends, addison and austin

(one of my oldest friends, wes taylor's kiddos, who live in tulsa)

with the neighborhood gals at the parade/brunch

patriotic pups and link

swimming with the big kids, carter and auds

wes, austin, link, and me. austin is just a few weeks older than link, and wes and i are the same age, it's so fun for us, as lifelong friends, to see our kiddos together. ;)

link, carter, audrey, and caroline

july 4th halo ;)

with hunny and mama - still transfixed by the fireworks ;)

9 months

2010-06-28T10:39:00.003-05:00

welp, link has gone and done it again. another month has flown by and here i sit, the mother of a nine month old. yes, he turned 9 months on friday, and to say this has been a very fun month would be an understatement. WHAT a fun age this is!!

he is becoming more independent by the day, and i'm not sure if i am happy or sad about that. ;) we sit and marvel at his growth (literally, his growth - he is 2.5 feet tall!). everyday with this sweet child just gets better and we fall further in love with this boy.

link, you are growing into the sweetest little boy. you love to play peek-a-boo, wave "hi" and smile at anyone who will look your way. you are full of personality and a joy to be around. we love you!!!

and we got the BEST gift for his 9 month birthday - his baby nephew was born! literally 9 months to the day. amazing. we are so excited to welcome jack hudson pritchard to the world. and congrats to his parents, judd and jacque! he is ADORABLE.

we stayed at hunny and papa's house this weekend so we would be close to fort worth and could go see baby jack a couple of times. link had so much fun at their house with all the toys (after 3 kids and now their 8th grandchild, there are a LOT of toys at that house), not to mention having his hunny and papa there to play with him non-stop!

oh how he loves his papa...and a ride around the cul-de-sac in his convertible!!

he is completely mobile, crawling, standing, even taking a few steps (not walking, just letting go and taking a few here and there). link, you are TOUGH to keep up with, but it is SO much fun for me to watch you explore your world.

happy 9 months, little man. we are so proud of you and can't soak this in fast enough. we love you!

2010-06-22T14:45:00.010-05:00

we are having a busy and fun summer...

at the zoo, where dad wanted to go with link for father's day...

we pet a giraffe! the new exhibit at the dallas zoo is awesome!

we saw elephants...

look closely (below) and you can see link's and my head. the new movie theater at jay's office is soooooooo very cool!

he loves, loves the sprinklers

crawls straight through them!

drenched. hilarious.

random pic, but the only one i have of the two of us that is from our nights out. it's jay and i on one of our many date nights lately (woohoo!). in the last couple of weeks we've had a lot of fun - granada for josh ritter one night, hibiscus for dinner last week, neighborhood services tavern for drinks, and even a movie one weekend (we saw "babies" - ha!)...looking forward to many more date nights to come. so sad our babysitter is leaving for college in a couple of months! :( at least we still have the grandparents!! thanks, guys!

summertime is so much fun. i don't know if i still get excited just because i did so much when i was in school or what, but i still love, love it! :)

(won't lie that i'm excited for college football in two short months, either!)

summ-a-time

2010-06-14T11:16:00.003-05:00

this week and weekend were great. we had link's future cousin, jack hudson pritchard's, baby shower saturday at joe t's. fun. i love that place. it's worth the drive to the fort. then sunday, we had a sip and see at the hamilton's for brittany's baby jack, who is adorable. link especially had a good time with his friend, sutton. (pics below) we even got to see mollie, lily and eve on monday at murff's swim party. and jay's favorite moment was during the shower on saturday. he took link to the fort worth zoo and three generations of pritchards rode the train (jay's dad, jay, and link!). they all loved it and had so much fun. so cute.

my boys on the train

weeeeeeeeeee!!

sutton: nice ride, link, is there room for two?

when babies attack. haha!!! poor sutton. she's a good sport. :)

playtime in the pool with my handsome boy :)

i'm a rollercoaster kinda gal

2010-06-13T21:30:00.009-05:00

i have an old mac book and she is on the fritz. tonight i'm on jay's computer, and yes, i am going to get a new one of my own shortly (when i can get myself organized and to the mac store for the transfer!). needless to say, that's for the slacker-ness on the blog. more to come...and some fun and funny pics when i can download them of a fun night with college friends and their kiddos (from tonight) to celebrate brittany's baby jack, shower celebrating link's future cousin, and a mess of others from the week.

for now, my thoughts on a sunday:

i've had several conversations with jay, my family, my friends, lately regarding life - and how crazy it gets the older we get. :) i won't babble it all here, but i think with all the goings-on we sometimes just get so caught up we miss all the fun little details. i tell myself each night as i rock link in his room and quietly say prayers with him before bed how special this time is - after the chaos of a day of chasing him as he races around the house on all fours, pulling up on everything and then crashing down, laughing, screaming, crying, eating, smashing, rolling, just constant movement...just TOTALLY ABSORBING LIFE and everything around him (good lesson to all of us from an 8 month old!). and sometimes i just stop and remind myself that this will all too soon be a distant memory loooong before i want it to be. i'm cherishing every moment. carpe diem-ing. because i don't want to miss a thing. all of it, the ups and the downs. it's all glorious. truly amazing.

to quote my favorite philosopher, "life moves pretty fast. if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." - ferris bueller

from one of my old favorites, "parenthood"

first trip to the waterpark

2010-06-03T21:18:00.003-05:00

this week is "cousins camp" around these parts - the time of year that my nephews and nieces come in town for lots of fun with their grandparents and aunt katy and uncle jay. today started out as a day that my dad and i were taking the whole crew plus link to the water park. luckily because of late timing, jay and my mom also were able to come and help us reign in the troops. we had a great time sliding, floating, and wave-pooling. it was link's first trip to a water park, and he LOVED it. not one fussy moment, and no fear. he went down a few slides on our laps and really liked the lazy river (pic above). it was so much fun to see him with his cousins and watch these kids i still think of as babies (but that definitely are not!) being so sweet to their baby cousin. (sorry for the iphone pics - it's all i've got).

caroline loves link :)

with his papa

one pic with the whole fam

summer is here - memorial day weekend!

2010-05-31T21:33:00.005-05:00

we decided link needed a pool. he loves it. LOVES it. and i do, too. dang, it's already soooo hot. my car registered 107 at one point today. wow!

so the pool was a hit. now...for food. my gosh, this kid can eat! most days he takes about 34 oz in a bottle, juice/water in a sippy cup, plus cereal or oatmeal, three jars of baby food, a whole lotta "puffs" and anything else he can get his hands on. he loves veggies, fruit, any type of bean, rice, tortillas, whole wheat pancakes...you name it, he likes it. let's just say that he is serious about his food. evidence - below. not an uncommon site around our place. ;)

and in other fun news, another friend was born this week! this is seriously the year o' the boy around these parts. so fun, our friends, chris and courtney had their baby boy, wade this week. so, sweet. and we are so excited! that makes two more boys born in our neighborhood this month!! link has a lot on his plate teaching these boys the ropes. :)

the great 8

2010-05-25T20:05:00.000-05:00

today our boy is eight months old. curly blonde hair, big blue eyes, and an AMAZING amount of energy, laughter, and smiles.

link-ers, i can't believe you are transforming so quickly right in front of our eyes. you are growing like a weed, and suddenly this tiny, quiet, little bundle has started to become this crazy-fun little boy. you are loud, all over the place, eating more than any child i know, and cracking us up with your endless love of movement and being in motion. you are definitely our child. :)

you make your dad and i so incredibly happy and we are the best versions of ourselves because of you. we love our family and are so blessed to be your parents.

rockin' the pop colla' and visor

he likes to call this his "blue steel"

meeting his new friend, jules cashion fine

LOVES this truck. pushes it all over the house :)

so happy!

baseball, and ohmygoodness where'd my baby go??

2010-05-14T08:41:00.007-05:00

bless his heart. he made it all 12 innings, but in the ninth he had to take a little break. and in the end, yet another win for link. he is 3-0 in the win column for sporting events. all fun games and big wins!

ALSO - no one warned me how quickly he would go from a scooting, little innocent crawler to becoming speed racer himself (one week?!). and the pulling up is out of control. i can't leave him alone for one second because he is pulling himself up on everything! and here i thought he would be happy with his new found sense of freedom. no. now he just crawls to the nearest object and pulls himself up. and the problem is, he can actually do it. most of the time he just cruises along the edges of the couch or chair he's attached himself to, which is fine. but sometimes he goes up to flat cabinets or dressers and with no edges to hang on, then he lets go, turns around and tries to walk. and WHAMMO, he hits the floor. every once in a while he gets an actual step or two in, but he's kind of freaking me out. it seems like this is all happening to soon...any way to slow them down, or do i just need to buy him a football helmet to protect his head?!

the approach

the lift

puuuuulllll...

up!

cruisin' the world

whew! i'm exhausted. clearly he is not. ;)

impromptu photo shoot

2010-05-04T10:26:00.004-05:00

he woke up with the curls OUT OF CONTROL cute today, couldn't resist. (this is for you, grandparents...to the rest of ya, sorry!)

our big boy

2010-05-03T22:26:00.007-05:00

so we got link his first big-boy car seat last week. his head was about to fall over the top edge of the newborn car seat and his feet were squished into the seat as well, so we finally gave in. :) he LOVES it. he loves being up high and able to see out all the windows. this was after an afternoon of running errands, and he was still all smiles!

one of his fave spots, my little corner in our living room, on the couch, right by the window. he loves, loves to watch the pups play in the afternoon. this is also the spot i make most of my blog posts, from my laptop, looking out at my garden and roses. i guess he has taken notice, because he loves it and loves to hit the buttons on my laptop, too!

an afternoon at the arboretum with dad. we had so much fun. picnic, stroller time, and link got to play with his dad...he was thrilled!! he loooooooves time with daddy.

and this weekend, we had a b-day party for our friend, tommy in arlington. we decided to make a night of it and stay with hunny and papa, too. papa and link at dinner, pre-b-day party....adorable. i think papa is thinking he might want to try one of link's puffs. and all the while with a steak in front of him...how mean. haha. :)

and on a slightly different level, linkers with michael irvin. the guy has his past, and link seems to be showing judgement here, but i have to say he was a true gentleman. he even said, "god bless you," as we walked away. sweet. :)

all in all, it was a great weekend. oh, and i knew we had this crawling thing started, but was nearly in tears when link, while standing at his little gym, decided to take his hands off and TAKE TWO STEPS toward me before crashing into my arms - and then attempting the same motion for the next thirty minutes. suffice it to say i am happy this was a one-off deal for now. i'm not ready for walking!!! :)

opinions

2010-04-27T09:16:00.009-05:00

i'm the first one to admit that i am opinionated. and i should say before anyone reads this, i promise i'm not directing it at any one person in particular. i just need to get this off my chest.

in my adult life, i have had eras of presidents i voted for and did not vote for in office. i've even shared my own thoughts both aloud and sometimes here on my blog. BUT...

that said, i can't believe, can't even FATHOM some of the things i have heard come out of my friends mouths lately and opinions i see represented on some of my actual friends facebook pages, status updates and blogs (for one example, click here). at times it has been so mean, so hateful, so incredibly disrespectful, i just can hardly stand it to keep my mouth shut (but i do...at least until now!). i think it is great to share our opinions on whatever it is we are passionate about. it's a part of what makes us americans and makes our country great. but my goodness, there is no reason to share hate with the world. didn't our mamas teach us - "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all?!"

i definitely want to do my best to present a world for my son in which he is able to explore different ideas, views of politics, religion and other issues. having been on both sides of the coin (agreeing and disagreeing with issues, ideas, philosophy, politicians), i want to instill an old-school, patriotic sense of pride in our country for our son. put your hand over your heart when saying the pledge. tear up when you see the flag being raised, take a moment to be thankful for our military...

and respect and pray for your president.

even if you didn't vote for him.

lucky number seven

2010-04-25T13:41:00.005-05:00

i feel like every time i turn around i am making another +1 month post. today lands us on lucky number seven!!!!!! beautiful weather, a happy baby and a VERY busy spring and summer ahead. it's literally "good day, sunshine" around here.

2031 NFL draft

2010-04-22T20:56:00.003-05:00

practice....

then hydrate...

study your plays...

and with the first pic in the 2031 NFL draft, the dallas cowboys select...LINK PRITCHARD!!!!!!

WEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!

2010-04-20T09:41:00.004-05:00

here is photo documentation of link's first ride in a swing yesterday afternoon. :) ah, the joy. the squeals, shrieks and giggles all made me remember the happiness that is a swing set to a child. heck, i still LOVE to swing. i remember my dad used to push me so high that he could run under the swing. wow, i thought that was cool. anyway, we had a lot of fun yesterday at the park. swinging, going down the slides (yes, i went with him!) and then watching owen climb the stairs and go down the slide. yes, our golden retriever. what can i say, he wanted in on all the fun!!! hilarious. i give you photos of a fantastic first trip to the park (well, first trip to the playground at the park, at least!).

did i mention i love spring?

2010-04-15T22:20:00.005-05:00

this spring and summer link is going to have a LOT of new friends joining us (congrats to brittany and lindsey for bringing jack and lauren home! they were the first of MANY between now and july)...and i can't wait! talking with some of the girls that are about to have their first babies is already so sweet for me. it's completely impossible to explain, but i just tell them the truth. i have had a very, very blessed and happy life thus far. but the last six months have been the best. the best ever.

some pics of life lately...

every night before bath (bed) time, we have play time in the front yard with dad and pups

decided to stop and see the bears at lakeside park on the way home from mi cocina the other night

lowered the crib last weekend. from this pic, you can see why it was definitely time!

bought this for him today. can you believe he's already driving??!! haha - he stayed up an hour late tonight playing. "walking" and letting neighborhood kids take him up and down the sidewalk. adorable. lots of giggles. he fell asleep in about six seconds. he LOVES his car. VROOOOOM!

2010-04-09T08:03:00.002-05:00

i can't believe all the changes that have taken place in the last month. our little guy went from a little-ball-of-a-baby to a mover-and-a-shaker. first he started sitting up, then he started crawling, and he constantly wants to "stand" and when we hold him up, all he wants to do is move his little feet to walk! he is suddenly into everything. he tries to grab our food, drink, hair, glasses, everything in his reach...so i guess the days of taking a shower while he plays quietly on his little mat are over. this boy is on the move!! and he "talks" constantly. once these become actual words, i have a feeling he is never going to stop talking. :)

it's so bittersweet. i just can't fathom that six months ago he was this quiet little newborn bundle and that six months from now - he will be even bigger and MORE into everything. unreal.

**(oh and the above pic seriously captures the truth. linkers is in LOVE with owen. everything big O does makes him smile and laugh. such joy!!)**

opening day - way to go rangers!!!!!

2010-04-06T08:03:00.008-05:00

OPENING DAY! i heart you oh-so-much. i love it all, the anticipation, the first time out to the ballpark for the new season, the crowd, the opening ceremony, the game, it's so much fun!

link's first opening day was an extra-special day for me. i do everything within my power never to miss an opening day and have missed zero in my adult life, so it was very important to start that tradition with my boy. i was a little concerned that some of the overwhelming-ness of it all would be too much for him, but boy was i wrong. he soaked in every moment of the opening events with a BIG smile on his face, even the loud planes flying overhead. he couldn't take his eyes off that field during the game, either. and every time the crowd cheered, his eyes got huge and he looked all around him, then back at me, as if to say, "do you hear that?!?" hilarious.

the game was a little slow for the first seven innings, but it was all worth it in the last few. the rangers pulled off a bottom-of-the-ninth win in the end and it was oh-so-exciting!!!!! go rangers!!!

just after seeing his first home run

he is reaching for his bottle. we interrupted a feeding for a photo op. whoops!

celebrating the big win

very, very tired boy post-game