From Sandals to Snowboots

This is what we went to see.

This is what we ended up with.

After a birthday party today, Tommy and I took advantage of the kids being asleep in the car and headed out 70 west to see the mountains. We haven't driven that way since moving here, and had heard from several people that it is really beautiful in the fall. We were driving along and enjoying the gold Aspen trees everywhere, when it started to rain. That was fine, but withing a few miles, it was snowing.

This Texas Mommy PANICKED! We went through some long tunnel, which had huge "Icy Condition" signs everywhere. On the other side of the tunnel was a car wreck involving several cars and we were 7 miles from the next turnaround to take us back home. I was wondering what in the world we were doing there and warned Tommy that I probably wouldn't come back unless it was July.

Reagan slept through everything, Tommy and Addison loved every second of it, and I just prayed the whole way that we would make it home safely. Thankfully we went down a few thousand feet pretty quickly and were back to just rain. Addison was begging to ski and sled and wanted out to play! Weather Central has the possibility of snow listed for 3 out of 7 days next week, so she just might get her chance.

My Near Call to 911

First, let me preface this story by saying that I DO NOT get up a single second before my kids do in the mornings. After 14 months of getting up every 3 to 4 hours with Reagan, followed almost immediately by the first trimester of this pregnancy, I need my sleep. My girls are early risers anyway....they are up by 6:30 or 7:00, so I stay put every last minute of that.

Well, last Wednesday I was sound asleep at 6:00am. I had been vaguely aware of Tommy leaving earlier that morning, but was back to a deep sleep. That sleep came to a sudden end, when a shrill, loud alarm sounded throughout my house. I jumped out of bed, sure the house was on fire! The alarm is continuing to sound as I think two things 1.) I need pants and 2.) I have to get my kids out of the house (not particularly in that order). I was in shock and trying to think. I ran to the landing of my staircase to see if I could see smoke and thankfully caught a glimpse of the security alarm on the wall at the bottom of the stairs. It was flashing all red lights and was the definite source of the siren! Thankful that the house wasn't on fire and pretty sure that we weren't being robbed at 6:00am, I turned it off and went back to bed, while I waited for my heart to stop pounding!

Tommy is just sure that he turned the alarm off on his way out to work, but I think he may have pushed the wrong buttons. He would have had 45 seconds to get out of the house before the alarm sounded, so he was well on his way down the block!

I am just thankful I didn't end up on the curb in my t-shirt, with my two startled babies calling 911. The fire department probably wouldn't have appreciated being called out for a false alarm....that wasn't even a false smoke alarm!

Baby Ashton Update

If you are one of my bible study girls in Texas, I thought I would give you a praise report! You can see an update on Baby Ashton. We prayed last year that he would be cured from cancer, and adjust to the amputation of his leg. Praise God!!! It looks like he is doing great. You can see a few pictures at http://jarvisfunhouse.blogspot.com just scroll down to Ashton update.

How to Cure the Hiccups....

A few weeks ago, Addison and I were watching "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse". On the episode, Donald Duck had the hiccups and they told him that the cure for hiccups was to hang upside down and lick a lollipop.

After seeing it, I always teased Addison each time I heard her with the hiccups that she was going to have to do that. Well, at Pappy's house, she had the hiccups and we had all the supplies.....a Tootsie Pop and Pappy to hold her upside down.

I thought we were just having fun, but what do you know? It worked!!! We didn't hear another hiccup out of her the whole night. So, if you have the hiccups and need a cure, give it a try.

Reagan

Doesn't she look so grown-up in this picture? It is from Pappy's house and she is "driving" his riding lawn mower, which was one of her favorite things to do there. She could climb up all by herself to pretend to drive. I look at this picture and wonder where my baby went.

"Ketchup", She Says

Last night, as I was getting ready for dinner, Addison asked me is she could have ketchup on her plate. Her request stopped me in my tracks and almost brought me instantly to tears. You see, I don't know when it happened, but she pronounced the word correctly, like there was nothing to it. For the past two years she has asked for "Chep-up" at almost every dinner. It was just a sudden reminder of how quickly she is growing up and what a big girl she is becoming. I am so proud of her! She is learning everyday. She has a huge interest in learning more about God and her bible, and she does most anything I ask her to without a fight.

Reagan is growing like crazy too. Just in the last few weeks her vocabulary has exploded. When we step outside, she immediately starts asking for Brenna, Ava, Clara and Nora (her friends on the street). She is playing with the big girls more and more! This morning she said the word "Yes" for the first time and Addison and I had to dance around and give her big cheers! She is a big fan of the word "No", but we had yet to hear her say yes! One of her favorite things right now is to name the family members. She points to each of us and says, "Mommy, Daddy, Sissy and Maggie". She loves to draw and can stay busy for long stretches of time with crayons and a notebook. She is still strong-willed and probably always will be, but she is learning to be obedient and to listen to what we tell her. Finally she is starting to love her baby-dolls....good thing, hopefully she will be practiced up for March.

Finally, I had a 12 week doctors appointment for our growing little one last week, and all is well. The dr wanted to do an ultrasound, just for fun and it was so exciting. He/She grew in 4 short weeks from a little bean to a full-blown baby. The dr's response was, "This baby is huge!". Baby was busy inside waving arms around and flipping in circles! I have another ultrasound Monday, Oct. 6th and am crossing my fingers they can tell me what I am having!

Going Bonkers

One day, during our trip, my mom, dad, step-mom and sister took 1/2 days at work, and we spent the afternoon at Going Bonkers. Erica picked Austin up from school early and they spent hours climbing in the jungle-gyms, going down slides and playing video games. We had so much fun!

Still A Blossoming Cowgirl

Addison hadn't lost any love for the horses, since we moved away from Texas. We pulled into Pappy's drive-way Monday evening and she was headed to the barn, as soon as she could talk my dad into taking her. He woke up a few hours after us Tuesday morning and came down the hall wearing jeans. Her morning greeting to him was, " You can put your shirt on and we can go see the horses!".



We played in the barns and pastures every morning, while Miss Debra worked and Pappy tried to get a little sleep (he works nights). They have the friendliest horses I have ever been around. The yearlings are loose in the front pasture and they would follow us all over the place. The girls run right up to them and they just stand their waiting to be petted. The stallion Hank, was confined to his stall this trip, because he has been sick. He loved his morning visits from the girls and I know he will be sad this week. Each day as soon as he heard us outside, he began pacing in his stall and neighing loudly until they came to say hello.



Addison's favorite horse is Kris. She feed her carrots everyday. Kris is in the large back pasture, but would come as soon as she saw us heading out with her snack. Saturday we had time for her to ride Kris. Dad let her lead her in from the pasture by herself, then she brushed her and got her ready for Miss Debra to put the saddle on. She had the best time riding. She really loves it!

We are so thankful for the adventures with horses we get to have out there. Hopefully in the next few years, we will be in the right place at the right time for her to get to ride in the World Show!

Reagan Loves Them Too

Reagan wasn't ready to ride a horse on this trip, but keep in mind, that would require leaving my arms, which she tried her best not to do! However, she definitely warmed-up to being around them. She liked exploring the barn and petting the horses. She feed them carrots and neighed back to them when they talked. I actually don't think Addison really wanted to sit on them at this age either. Time will tell. I have to wonder on our next trip, will she be begging to saddle up and go for a ride?

Two Quick Pics

I copied these pictures from my cousin Jennifer's blog. She took them Tuesday night when most of the Jarvis Family got together for dinner. We ate at Babe's, which is a Texas favorite. They serve everything family style....home-made chicken-fried-steak, mashed potatoes, biscuits, green beans and creamed corn! I made arrangements to eat there, shortly after I booked the plane reservations! It is my kind of pregnant food at it's best!!!

Anyway, I never got my camera out, because Reagan was plastered to the front of me all night. She still wasn't feeling well, and the restaurant was loud and crowded. Unfortunately since we moved when she was only 8 months old, she really isn't very familiar with all her aunts, uncles and cousins. So, she was good, but she was NOT leaving my lap! If you look closely at the top picture (it might expand if you click on it). You can see her "security blanket" for the night. She insisted on keeping her hand down my shirt and in my arm pit! Doesn't make for the best picture of me....worrying if your child is pulling your cloths of. As many times as I removed her arm, she shoved it back in there!!!

Now, for the picture of Addison. She does know her extended family and was thrilled to see them. She wasn't the least bit shy the entire night. She even went to the center of the restaurant and did the hokey-pokey with our waitress, Aunt Amy, and cousin Stacie. At some point in the night she posed for Jennifer and the above picture was snapped. Jennifer told her it was a good picture to which Addison replied, "You can put it on your blog!" She certainly is sure of herself!!!

The ER, Texas and Back Home

That is where we have been since my last post. I am WAY behind, since we spent last week running around Texas visiting family and friends. We flew in this morning. Both girls are napping happily in their own beds....catching up from lots of late nights, and I am enjoying some quiet time in my own house.

We had plane tickets for the girls and I to leave Monday morning. Tommy was following later in the week, with a trip to Dallas for business. Of course, no trip is complete without a sick child. Reagan started running a high fever on the Saturday before we left. During the night it went as high as 105. She also started complaining when she went potty and was just trembling from the fever. I called the Dr. Sunday to check in and they told me that she had signs of a Urinary Tract Infection and that she needed to be seen at the ER immediately. Perfect!!! Tommy had just left to take customers to the Broncos game. He was the only Coke employee in the suite to host the customers and sign the bill, so there was NO WAY he could leave. I called every neighbor I know, hoping they could tell me where the children's ER was and maybe watch Addison. I had no luck finding anyone at home, so I packed up both girls and off we went.

Thank goodness for a children's ER, as they were so sweet to the girls and they had things to entertain Addison while we waited. I had also already packed their airplane backpacks, so I took those along and they had lots of new and interesting things to do.

Several hours later (after having to catheter her) we left with antibiotics (which she wont' take) for a double ear infection and some sort of bladder infection. Poor Reagan felt horrible and was pretty traumatized by the whole experience, but they did great. God was listening to my prayers when I asked that if we had to go to the ER, please make it go as quickly and smoothly as possible.

Funny, as much of a climber and dare-devil as she is, we were sure our first ER visit as parents would be for Reagan having some major accident or breaking a bone!

Though Reagan still felt pretty bad, we had numbing drops for her ears and the okay to fly on Monday. I hated to drag her on an airplane, but it would have cost several hundred dollars to change our tickets. We arrived in Texas safely and easily, and my mom met me at the airport to help me get all our luggage and carseats to the rental car facility.

We spent most of the week at Pappy and Miss Debra's house. We have seen tons of family, made a trip to Going Bonkers, chased fireflies, riden/feed/groomed the horses, riden in Pappy's convertible, visited my nephews school, and eaten at our list of "must-have" restaurants in Texas. I even got to have a MUCH needed night out with my closest Dallas friends.

When we arrived at the airport today, we had a small crisis when the reservation's clerk checking us in, told us that Tommy had cancelled his flight and that they were completely sold out for the day. He did have to CHANGE his time coming in and it seems that the reservation's clerk who did that, accidentally cancelled his trip home. After a few minutes of panic and wondering what in the world we were going to do, she found him a seat and issued him a new ticket. Thank goodness.

Be back later with lots of pictures!

Adventures in Rip-Sticking

This is Tommy's current obsession. Matt and Mary's son, Aaron, has a rip-stick, which Tommy borrows as often as possible. He learned how to ride it quickly and is actually really good at it, but I knew the fall was inevitable.

The girls and I were inside today when he limped in asking for the girl's "boo-boo spray". He had a bit of a crash down the hill on our street. In true man fashion, he got up quickly, looked around to make sure no one had seen him and then rode it home.

After he hobbled into the house, he popped some Motrin, doctored his wounds and sat down with an ice-pack (Sleeping Beauty of course) for awhile. Much to my dismay he was back outside rip-sticking a few hours later. I warned him that he should stop and told him that he wasn't relieved of ANY duties around here if he broke a bone.

The pictures don't really do him justice. He is pretty beat-up, all the way down his left side. But, even though he was hurt, Reagan's sweetness melted his heart and made it worth it. She was really worried for him and very distraught about his boo-boos. She looked at him questioningly several times and said, "Cry?". She even brought him a few Dora band-aids.

Ike Update...

Thanks for praying for our Houston friends. Though their home phones are out and their cell phones are spotty, I talked to a few friends today. It appears that everyone is safe. Praise God for that. Now, if you would just continue to keep them in your prayers, they aren't very comfortable.

Most were up all night last night waiting for the storm to hit, and they lost power in the very early hours this morning. They have lots of fallen trees and one friend has their entire attic full of water. They had to make a hole in their 2nd story ceiling to allow it to drain.

They all have lots of clean-up work ahead, but for now, I know they are just waiting to make decisions. They don't expect the power to return soon, and for now, the roads aren't clear enough to travel. Please pray for them as they wait things out over the next few days.

Happy Fall

We are enjoying the crisp, cool days.....while trying not to think about what comes next!!!

Reagan's New Favorite Thing

Reagan loves to play starfall.com on the computer. It is an alphabet learning game that Addison has been playing for a long time. Reagan saw it a few days ago and is obsessed. She gets so excited when she sees the letters and pictures on the screen. Too cute!!!

IKE?

Hi my Houston friends! Are you heading out of town today? We are worried with you and thinking of you all. Our prayers are that you will make good decisions about evacuating or staying, that your families will be safe, and that the storm weakens before it arrives at land. I have been thinking so much about when we went through this 2 years ago with Rita. It was so hard to decide what to do, and for us by the time we made the decision to evacuate, it was impossible to leave. With parking lots on the freeways and no gas, we decided we were safer at home. However, at that point the grocery stores were empty and their were no supplies available in town. Thankfully Matt and Mary had prepared to stay all along and took us in to their well-supplied, boarded-up house. We were so thankful that it turned out to be such a minor deal, but then so frustrated at the week of rolling power outages that followed. Again, we are praying for you!

If you aren't from Houston, here is some insight. The Woodlands is about 1 1/2 north of the coast, so out of immediate danger and probably out of most mandatory evacuation zones. But, still close enough to experience heavy rain and flooding and high winds. The winds become especially concerning when your house is surrounded by enormous trees....hence the name The Woodlands. However, evacuation can be tricky and your timing can decide if you can actually get out or not. Hopefully after the evacuation disasters following Katrina and Rita, they have better systems in place. Please be in prayer for our friends there.

Fall and Football Games!

Austin had his first tackle football game on Saturday morning! It is so hard to believe that he is old enough to be doing this! He looks like such a big guy with all that gear on!

Football season always makes me think of fall. Which, leads me to tell you, that I am sitting by a cozy fireplace fire as I type this. As a Texas girl, I haven't ever really experienced a true fall before, but it is definitely here. We still have nice 70 degree days, but they are scattered among 50 degree days. Today is a cold one. The girls are in sweaters and jeans and we won't be playing outside. I love the 70 degree days, but I am REALLY not ready for the winter I know is just around the corner!

Reagan and Grandma

Grandma's picture scanned in pretty blurry, but not too blurry to tell who Reagan looks like! They have lots of similarities. I have always thought Reagan favored Tommy's mom, but Shirley's big sister's really confirm it. Aunt Beverley was here this summer and got a little nostalgic looking at sweet Reagan. Shirley is sporting the "serious face" in her picture! It's a face I OFTEN get from Reagan!

Groceries....

Yesterday, I ran out to run a few errands and ate a Subway sandwich and chips on my way home. When I got back to the house Addison crawled up in my lap to snuggle me. We talked for a minute and then she said, "Mommy, you smell like.....groceries!".

Happy Birthday....

Last night, we were having a little "birthday party" for two of the girls baby dolls. Tommy, Addison and I sang Happy Birthday to them, and then clapped at the end. A few minutes later, you could just see Reagan's concentration. The little wheels were turning in her head. She looked at us and said, "Hap Birf Day!". They she clapped her hands and said, "Yeah!". Yeah indeed, she is getting really good at talking! That was her first time to string so many words together!

Another cute thing.....we met Uncle Mike at Chick fil' A for a quick lunch today, while he was on his break from work. Mike carried her to the car and then said good-bye. Reagan was so sad all the way home. She pointed out the windows and called for Mike the whole way!