FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS

I think that Hanukkah song, "Hanukkah, Hanukkah festival of lights" (another song Boston is constantly singing these days) was forever playing in my head the whole time we went to explore these lights for FHE. We heard about this place from some random woman at the mall (who was also digging in her nose while talking to us). Its about a 45 minute drive from where we live and it was AMAZING! Even though we won't be here in Houston next year, I think we'll make the drive from Dallas to do this again!

The line of cars was pretty long so we sat for awhile waiting to pay & get in. We told Boston he could get out of his car seat and he was BEYOND thrilled.

Boston stayed in this position for quite awhile looking at the lights with the same look on his face! He was in awe!

I took so many pictures because it was just all so good! No worries though, I only posted a small portion of what I took.

A little over half way threw, Kent let Boston drive. He was in HEAVEN! Although at times he got a LITTLE distracted by the lights and had trouble keeping his eye on the road!

Kent was proud that this sign sported the word "STAMPEDE" (aka our company's name) so we couldn't resist a picture for keepsake.

One of Boston's favorite spottings was this train (of course).

The whole thing ended with a manager scene of baby Jesus...the TRUE meaning of the season (please excuse Kent's hand in the picture).

This was a WONDERFUL experience. We'll definitely go back again to experience "Santa's Town" where you can have hot chocolate, pet the animals, shop, eat, listen to music, sit on Santa's lap, etc. We didn't have a ton of time & it was already WAY late when we got done so maybe next year!

Also, my random pregnancy update. I went to the doctor today and my belly has grown alot since last visit a week ago! How its possible that this boy has ANY MORE room to grow, I have NO idea because I am MAXED to capacity people! I got a few "You poor thing" from the nurses so that says something right?!? I'm also not progressing...AT ALL. My doctor said he'd be being nice to say that I was even ALMOST at one then chuckled and said, "Your uterus just doesn't like to labor does it?" With as much PAIN as I'm feeling I had semi convinced myself this kid's head must be half way out by now but I knew in my heart that nothing is really happening! Since I don't seem to be progressing at all my doctor said there was no need to see me next week and that we'd just plan on seeing again when I come in for my c-section NEXT Thursday!!! Its all coming so SOON! I can NOT wait!

**By the way, apparently Kent is NOT ready for this baby & says he wishes he could have a few more months to "prepare!" Ummm HELLO we've had NINE months, I ain't making this a year long thing!!**

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

My boys were looking so handsome on Sunday, I couldn't resist a good picture!

We are VERY ready for Christmas this year and are excited to have my family come to US this Christmas since I'm pretty much stuck until this baby boy comes! Anytime I ask Boston what he wants for Christmas his response is for two things:

1. BIG bowling pins (this is apparently Boston's favorite "sport" lately).

2. Hungry, Hungry Hippos

Any thing that has made Christmas fun this year is having Boston sing Christmas songs. He doesn't have all of them down but his two favorite to sing are:

1. Jingle Bells

2. Feliz Navidad (this is a serious crack up)

We've still got a little holiday baking and Christmas present wrapping to do (although we are waiting on Mr. Fedex/UPS man to get those gifts to us so I can finish that) then all my focus goes on this baby! I feel so unprepared although after freaking about it yesterday Kent kept reassuring me we have everything we need. Why do I feel the opposite?

PREGNANCY UPDATE

I'm 35 weeks pregnant as of today (4 more weeks people) but I had my 34 week check up on Tuesday. The doctor wanted to do another ultrasound to see how big the little man was since he's been measuring pretty big the last few times. Another ultrasound? I'm perfectly okay with getting to see my little guy!

He is measuring in at 5 lbs 9 oz as of Tuesday. He's slowed down a little bit and I'm only measuring a week ahead now. Everything else with the appointment went well and I'm also VERY happy to report a 2 lbs weight gain after the holidays! I was worried I was going to end up plump and round with this baby since I had such rapid crazy weight gain in the beginning but luckily that has slowed down and I weigh less at this point than I did with Boston (not by much but hey, I'll take it)! HALLELUJAH (mainly because I know how much work it is to shed that baby weight)! I say that but I still have the Christmas holidays to go through and THAT is dangerous! My back pains are constant daily now. It doesn't matter if I'm sitting or standing they come on at about 10 am and last the rest of the day! I definitely feel more pains with this baby but that's been regular from the beginning. I'm so glad this baby is reporting healthy and strong! Names on our list currently that top are:

Hudson

Bennett

Sam

Nolan

Middle Name: Matthew (Kent's middle name)

We have about a list of 12 but those are the ones brought up most. We'll see what this little man looks like when he comes out!

On a random side note, Boston is officially the master of asking WHY! He wants to know WHY about EVERYTHING!!!! It seriously can get rather tiring and slightly annoying at times. I was hoping not to pass through this phase but apparently we weren't that lucky! His other thing is "WHAT?!?" Anytime you answer a question for him or say something to him, that is his response "WHAT?!?" or "What did you just say Mom?" He often complains about sounds hurting his ears so maybe my son really does have some kind of random thing going on with those ears of his....maybe I should get them checked out!

Tis the Season!

I've been waiting for the month of December to come around for almost 9 months now and not just because I LOVE Christmas but because it means our little man will be here at the end of the month! I can NOT wait to NOT be pregnant anymore...my body is DONE! Anyway, we've had our Christmas decor up since right before Thanksgiving but waited until after Thanksgiving to put up our tree. Out of laziness, we decided to bring out our little ole fake tree instead of getting a real one this year again this year. Its all the same, right?? Well, that's how I'm feeling this year. Holidays keep getting more and more fun the older Boston gets. This year he was THRILLED to help decorate and did a great job at loading the bottom of our tree with MANY ornaments!

After checking out this picture, I went back to make sure those little stick things were tucked down further in my tree!

On December 1st, we of course had Santa deliver the "Elf on the Shelf" tradition we started last year with our little elf named Piccolo.

Boston actually gets it this year much better and is much more excited about searching for Piccolo's new spot every morning. Please excuse my son's shiny lips/nose...daddy must have vaselined him up that morning.

Not only am I thrilled to have our little guy join our family this month but I'm thrilled that Boston is really understanding the meaning of Christmas this year. Every day I try and review the Christmas story with him and ask him why we are celebrating Christmas. Its so cute to hear him try to tell the story. The wisemen are his favorite part but probably because he relates it to one of his favorite songs, "The Wiseman Built His House on a Rock" (or whatever the title of that song is). Whatever works right?

LET THE CHRISTMAS SEASON BEGIN!!!!

Now I just need to start my Christmas shopping....

LOOK AT THIS!

I don't know if this is something parents should be proud of or not but Kent and I were seriously AMAZED at Boston's Wii bowling skills the other night after seeing this score!! I also need to include, Boston ALWAYS beats Kent! To say Kent doesn't get a LITTLE frustrated about getting beat by his 3 year old son would be a lie!

#1 Bowling is Boston's latest obssession. His one request for Christmas are the MEGA bowling pins. #2 Wii is also Boston's latest obsession. This is something we've had to regulate and maintain a time limit on (although I remain amazed at how good he is at navigating his way around that thing)!

It's a BABY Shower!

Last Thursday I had a random knock on my door. I'm not one to answer to people I'm not expecting (yes, a little paranoid) but luckily I DID because at my door was my sister KRISTIN!!! She had totally caught me off guard and had flown in town to help my friend, Melessa (and her good friend) throw my BABY SHOWER! Later that evening while watching a scary movie at Melessa's house, there was another random knock on the door at 10:30 pm! ANOTHER surprise....MY MOMMA!!!! I was THRILLED to have them BOTH in town! I was VERY hesitant to have this shower thrown since this baby is #2 AND another boy but Melessa was persistent, so shower it was (I don't regret it now especially since BOTH my mom and sister came)! The shower was PERFECT! I just HAVE to brag on what a cute and GREAT job they did! Here are the cute little invitations (perfect for fall huh?):

The whole shower was owl themed and I must say I L.O.V.E.D. it! These girls are TOO creative! Those cupcakes are SPRINKLES pumpkin spice (did you know you can buy their mixes from William Sonoma?)

I have NO name for this little man yet (we have a list narrowed down but naming won't come until the day we officially meet the him) so I thought this banner was creative and appropriate!

Here are the sweet gift bags that had a few goodies inside INCLUDING the MOST DELICIOUS cake balls I've EVER tasted from Suzy Bee's!!

I'm just noticing this now but its like what our little family will be like soon enough....FOUR (wow)!

Do you see those little bowls to the left with the apples and butterscotch dip? Yes, even those are OWL bowls!

These things were DELICIOUS! I think I ate atleast 3-4 (ok, minus the candy corn, sorry not a fan)!

Our drinks...adorable right??

Now THESE were DE.LI.CIOUS. like REALLY DELICIOUS!!

The food and decor were FABULOUS and I couldn't complain ONE bit! I kept the guest list small since this is baby boy #2 but still came away with some great loot! Do I look a little excited to get some CUTE burp cloths? Well, I am! I'm also realizing that I am PALE and that scarf makes me look EXTRA chubby!

I must say my favorite gift was part of my mom's gift. She made this cute, soft little blanket for the little guy! I LOVE it!! Its JUST perfect (thanks again mom)!

As you can tell, the baby shower was SUPERB! I was spoiled in more ways than one!! I'm so glad to have GREAT FRIENDS (also quick shout out to Amanda for coming in town from Dallas) and FAMILY!!!!!

thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU!!!!!

A LITTLE READING

Boston wanted his grandparents to see how proud he is to be able to "read" one of his favorite books "But Not the Hippopotamus"

**sorry his voice his so soft**

BOY, OH, BOY!

Last weekend we went home to Baton Rouge for the LSU vs. Bama game! We'd called those tickets to that game from my dad ages ago. Unfortunately, Boston had to miss his last soccer game for us to go BUT he turned out sick & wouldn't have been playing anyway! It was a GREAT game (especially watching 4 fans in our section get KICKED out). What's more fun than watching LSU BEAT Bama 24-21???? We LOVED every minute of it!

As for Boston, well like I said he got sick and only got sicker by the time we got back home on Sunday evening. This is what he did all week at our house....

Literally, he was the sickest and sadest I'd ever seen him (what kid ASKS to go to bed every night between 5-6:30...that was Boston)! It was just a bad virus that then turned into a double ear infection! Today is the FIRST normal day in about a week for him so I'm praying he's getting back to 100%!

As far as an update on this pregnancy goes, well I went last Tuesday and I'm still measuring 2 1/2 weeks BIG! My doctor has scheduled another ultrasound for the end of this month to see how big this little man is. Kent's response, "Maybe I'll get a son who's as tall and big as me!" Sorry Kent but right now that's NOT what I'm hoping for! Since I'm having a c-section it won't change the date we have that scheduled. As my doctor put it, big babies tend to sit and get fat instead of focusing on getting their lungs developed so we'll leave him in there to make sure he comes out healthy and strong! I'll be looking forward to my ultrasound at the end of the month & I'm hoping this time he won't be so shy and the ultrasound tech can get a 4D shot of him that she was unable to do last time!

HALLOWEEN WEEKEND

I can definitely say that we have been prepping for Halloween for a LONG time! Boston has been VERY ready to wear his costume that we've had for over a month and a half now! So it was FINALLY the time! He had his Halloween party at school on Thursday and Boston was THRILLED to finally wear his costume! Friday, we went with some friends to "Boo Zoo!" There Boston got his FIRST tattoo....

He got to hang with his best friend Kyler (any and everything Kyler does, Boston wants to do)!

He got to color on the GIANT coloring page.

We even managed to see a few animals (do you see that newborn little elephant that was JUST born).

They had a cute pumpkin patch where the kids got to pick a pumpkin and color it however they wanted.

And of course Boston's favorite part, he got to brush the goats. We also did a little trick or treating there and got a little bit of candy to top it all off!

Friday evening my parents came into town to see Boston's soccer game and for Halloween! Unfortunately, Boston has developed this "fear" of falling on the field when he kicks the ball and doesn't want kids trampling over him. So as a result, he'd rather run around the field chasing everyone or wanting to just watch Kyler play! WONDERFUL! Is is too soon to be concerned about this? I know, I know, I have to remember he's JUST three....

Saturday night was our ward trunk or treat. Boston didn't like when we called it that and would quickly correct us and say, "It's not TRUNK or treat is TRICK or treat!" Thank you Boston! Boston has been wanting to be a spider forever now! Well, I guess I should say he originally stated he wanted to be a "buggy" (thanks to his father's love/profession). When I asked him what bug he wanted to be, he responded with a BUTTERFLY....ummm...I quickly corrected that and his next response was a SPIDER! THAT I can go with, so spider it was! Also, here's Kent in his yearly Halloween attire. Boston was originally afraid of those teeth (who wouldn't be) but by Sunday he LOVED them & thought they were hilarious!

The ward trunk or treat had great food, games, and of course trunk or treat! Boston got loaded up on plenty of candy! Sadly, once we got there Boston REFUSED to wear his "spider eyes" part of the costume. I was totally surprised by this since at Boo Zoo when he was sweating like crazy under it he didn't want me to take it off him! Saturday was a different story. I tried & I tried but Boston is a persistent AND stubborn boy so no spider eyes it was all night!

Sunday after a busy day at church, we rushed home to throw together our SPOOKY Halloween dinner before Mimi & Papa left to go back to Baton Rouge. My cousin Jamie inspired me to do this and I loved it SO much, I think we'll make this a yearly tradition! Here's our menu:

Witch's Fingers--string cheese with green peppers (this was the last minute whip up, please ignore the sloppiness)

Bones--bread shaped into bones

Blood with worms--red kool-aid with gummy worms frozen in ice

Brains and eyeballs--spaghetti and meatballs with green olives with pimentos

And for dessert, GHOSTS (oreo, chocolate pudding with whip cream & choc. chips)! It was the quickest thing I could make up before my parents had to bail!

After Boston had a teary goodbye when my parents left, we FINALLY got a chance to carve our pumpkins!!

Don't you love my boys Sunday attire....??

A little SCCCAAARRRY faces!

Our finished Jack-0-lanterns

We completed our night watching "How to Train a Dragon." No, not very Halloweenie but Kent wanted to watch it and Boston was down so there you go. Boston LOVED passing out candy to all the trick or treaters and was even upset the next morning when he saw the candy bowl empty and I had to explain that Halloween was over! We had a GREAT Halloween weekend with LOTS that we did AND TONS of candy to eat! I mean really, look how happy that little boy is??

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Now, just TWO months and this little baby boy will be here!