The world according to Kim

New Blog

2011-03-11T21:09:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Well, after some thought and discussion I'm switching my blog to wordpress. Primarily the reason for the switch is to have a new name for the blog that doesn't include my first and last name. I'm just starting to be more concerned about privacy issues. Also, I've heard great things about wordpress so I thought I'd give it a try!

Here's the new address: http://worldofkimcraft.wordpress.com/

I came up with the name while my husband was playing the video game World of Warcraft. Basically I wanted to express this is a blog about my world that I'm crafting...and maybe a post or two about the crafts I hope to do one day =) Please change your bookmarks and join me at the new site!

The joys of a stay at home mom

2011-03-08T20:04:00.000-08:00

One true joy (and honestly some occasional frustration) of being a stay at home mom is all the playing. I love my kids and seeing their creativity in their play. I do not enjoy going "vroom vroom" over and over again with the same car, but luckily playtime has been much more interesting lately. And a few times I've caught the fun on camera.

Here is Ryan leaping up the slide and catching hold at the top, then pulling himself up. He's seriously part monkey. Yes, he'll be in gymnastics this summer!

These boys are in heaven at their friend Luc's house. Poor Luc, his friends come over and only want to play with Buzz and Woody!

Rare peaceful moment when they were both sitting together. Very rare but very sweet.

She was determined on this day to #1, not take off her hat, and #2, to get all the rocks from inside the wall to outside of it on the sidewalk.

My little laundry helper...unfortunately I'd just put those wet clothes in to dry!

Ryan has begun rearranging the furniture...and what better accessory for the activity than rainboots?

Peek-a-boo!

Silliest girl ever!

And finally, this happened on the way home from Zilker park. Molly missed her morning nap that day. She almost never falls asleep in the car, but they both were worn out!

Random thoughts

2011-03-02T20:15:00.000-08:00

1. I am taking a Facebook break this week. I read in a NY Times article about how technology is affecting kids where one kid said he would check facebook instead of homework because it let him feel like he was accomplishing something when he was accomplishing nothing. I realized that's me. I would periodically check it and feel good when I got "caught up" on my news feed. Definitely a bit of a compulsive behavior rearing its head there. So...just thought I'd see how hard it would be to go a week without it. Honestly I haven't missed it too much. I'm sure I'll go back after this week, but hopefully not as compulsively.

2. I've started a few commitments to programs or events that have nothing to do with my kids. In fact, my kids would rather I wasn't committed to them. It feels good actually. As much as I love and adore my kids, I need to regain some parts of me that don't revolve around them. It's a bit of a challenge to figure out how to balance it all, but it's a good thing.

3. My son drives me crazy sometimes because he's a miniature me in personality. I'm a planner and I passed it on to him. I find ourselves arguing about what's going to happen in 5 minutes or when we get home. Crazy! I've started saying, let's just enjoy right now and we'll talk about what's next when it's time for that. My habit of preparing him for what's next by telling him in advance has created a bit of a planning monster. Good thing there's still time for his dad to fix him =)

4. My daughter is so unpredicatable on the other hand. At this age I knew what Ryan's favorite foods were that he would always eat. Molly on the other hand will LOVE eggs one day and spit them out and throw them on the floor the next. She's always looking around at meal times to see what else is on the table so she doesn't miss out. She's much more spontaneous like her dad and likes to "mix it up".

5. We are taking lots of family bike rides and we all LOVE it! I told Molly today we were going on a bike ride and she crawled to the bike and pointed at her helmet. She also signs, "Go, go, go" when we're getting ready to take off. Such great exercise that I truly enjoy, and out kids are a part of it too.

Random thoughts anyone?

Playtime at Miss Sarah's

2011-02-26T19:52:00.000-08:00

One fun thing we do is go play at our good friend Sarah's house. This day I actually had my camera. Sarah is awesome and keeps fun toys at her house just for the kids that visit to play with. Ryan loves the "chompster" that would get Buzz (a coin purse) and asks for it every time we go there, even though it has found a new home.

I can't resist posting these big blue eyes!

And that's my girl! If there's a Dr. Pepper around (even caffeine free) she knows one of us is supposed to be drinking it!

On rainy days or times we want to get out but not venture too far from home, Sarah's is the perfect place to go!

13 1/2 months- We have a walker!

2011-02-21T13:32:00.000-08:00

I missed the 13 month blog post for Molly, but that's ok. I was just waiting for the big news....she's walking now! Honestly she's so good at crawling she hasn't been interested much in walking, but we worked with her some this week and she's decided it's pretty fun. She loves to take a few steps then just dive the rest of the way into your arms. Pretty cute but you have to be on your toes and ready for it! She can stand unsupported and take 5-6 steps when she wants to. I'm ready for her to walk. Park visits will be much more fun and overall less dirty =)

Her hair is getting long...but still thin and straight with just a bit of curling at the nape of her neck. Joe decided to give her "sticky hair" one night after bathtime.

This girl is one to watch. She plays so well by herself, but she'll just quietly get into things like this...

I love my little girl! Not a baby anymore, though.

She's also talking alot and communicating very well. I don't know how many words she has but one of them is "buzz" for Buzz Lightyear...too funny! She'll say and sign please when she wants something instead of screaming and will point to things. She's such a sweet snuggler and overall happy girl. Ryan and Molly are starting to play more together which is really cute. Here's the star of the post taking some of her first steps!

Molly walking from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

And here comes the skiing!

2011-02-15T19:53:00.000-08:00

That picture pretty much sums up our last full day on our trip. We skied, and skied, and skied...and loved it! The weather was a balmy 15 degrees above zero, and sunny for most of the morning. The snow was groomed and the crowds were light. I loved it! And I was totally exhausted by the end of the day, just how it should be.

Ryan said he wanted to ski with us, so we decided to try with him first thing in the morning. He did great getting all the gear and boots on with us. Those were the cutest, tiniest boots and skis ever!

A nice guy in the ski shop found the special rope thing that you use to attach the skis together so he didn't do the splits. Ryan had great balance on the skis and did great while we pulled him along using the little rope thing. He got on the "magic carpet" with me and rode up the tiny bunny bunny hill. And then he realized he was at the top of the hill and his skis started to move on his own, and the poor kid lost it. I got the obligatory pics and we promptly returned his skis. He tried so hard to like skiing, but it was just too much for him.

After Joe dropped Ryan off with the grandparents and we skied all morning we stopped and had a great lunch at this amazing lodge near the top of the mountain. Those logs were so huge!

Look at that handsome, happy, relaxed Joe!

Our view out the window from where we sat at lunch. Beautiful!

And a few pictures of sking.

Sledding!

2011-02-13T20:54:00.000-08:00

Ryan LOVED sledding. I thought he might but wasn't sure after skiing the day before when he didn't enjoy it as much. Even though it was -22 we stayed out there sledding for almost an hour I think. I was proud of him going by himself. Always as soon as he stopped he say, "Let's do it again!" Joe, Bryan (Joe's dad), and I enjoyed sledding almost as much as Ryan and my mom got to come watch.

They had this great ice sculpture there too. This town park was so nice!

We took Molly sledding on our way out of town on Friday so she wouldn't miss out. She really enjoyed it until she got snow in her face. The second picture is blurry but you can make out her big smile as she was going down.

And now for the video montage....

Sledding in Winter Park February 2011 from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

The coldest day ever!

2011-02-13T20:27:00.000-08:00

My wonderful, sweet husband Joe took me to Colorado to go skiing the first week in February. I planned the trip, both sets of grandparents came to watch the kiddos, and guess what? The biggest arctic cold front came through right during our trip. The one that brought a hard freeze and snow to Austin!! Yes, this picture proves it. It was -31 at about 10 am in the car while we took a drive. The high for that day was -22. NEGATIVE 22. Needless to say we skied the day before and the day after, and spent most of this day in the car and our super nice, cozy townhouse.

Both kids ended up taking naps in the car, which is unusual for both. I love Molly's expression here. She's thinking...you have got to be kidding me! Why am I wearing 4 layers of clothes and sitting in this car? It's way to cold to be in here.

We drove from Winter Park to Grand Lake and saw some beautiful mountain scenery. Unfortunately it was too cold to get out and take pictures so I just took a few from the car.

Even though it was super cold, the trip overall turned out great. We flew in on Monday when it was snowing in Denver but had no trouble landing and Joe handled the snow and traffic so well in our rented car. We all made it safe and sound to the townhouse I rented online from Homeaway (first time), and it was a great place with tons of kid things to make our stay easier (toys, books, puzzles, pack & play, high chair, etc.) The house stayed nice and warm the whole time. Molly loved the place, especially her special Violet puppy dog toy she has become attached to and all the attention from the grandparents. This is the best picture we could get of the kids with my parents. Pretty funny actually.

Molly also loved that about every 10 minutes a train would go past outside, and you could see it from one of the windows. She would hear the train then insist on going to the window to watch. She can definitely let you know what she wants! It was really cute. I have to brag on my little girl. I was most worried that she would cry the whole time while Joe and I were trying to ski since she pretty much thinks I need to be around at all times. This girl did GREAT with her grandparents! Too bad they don't live in town =) She would cry at first when we left but settled right down, ate well, played, and even napped well. Good girl!

On Tuesday Joe and I skied while Ryan went to a special ski school for 3 year olds. He was pretty much the only kid in his class. He had some separation fears which made it hard for him, but he handled the cold and wearing all the gear so well. He did ski and had the balance part down great, but overall he just wasn't ready for it. Joe and I skied but it was soooo cold. I think in the afternoon on the mountain it was about -10, and the wind chill made it -20. They had fresh snow too which was nice until you got onto a flat area and then you had to pole. We had some great gear on though and were able to get some skiing in and had the BEST hot chocolate at the top of the mountain while warming up.

Wednesday is when it was "uber-cold", as Joe would say, and we took the day off and just tried to stay warm. The drive was perfect and then in the afternoon while Molly napped Joe, Ryan, Bryan (Joe's dad), my mom and I went sledding. More on that in the next post =)

Comparisons

2011-01-26T21:02:00.000-08:00

Molly at 1 month

Ryan at 1 month

Molly at 6 months

Ryan at 6 months

Molly at 1 year

Ryan at 1 year

Shout out to the Moms

2011-01-22T20:38:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking about this post for awhile. What I would love to do is take the time to write notes to all my mom friends telling them how cool they are, but in the past 3 months I've had this idea I have yet to do it. So, instead, I'm going to write on here about all the things I appreciate or admire about lots of the moms in my life, and you can guess which one or ones are about you =) If you're reading this and I know you, then I'm sure at least one is about you, so go pat yourself on the back.

So often we take the best things about all our mom friends and compare ourselves to only the things our friends do well. But you can't be good at everything all the time. Impossible. We make ourselves miserable with the comparisons. So how about we just enjoy all of our unique skills and ways of being moms? Sure, there's always room for improvement or ideas, but we're great moms!

So here goes...

1. I admire the mom is always willing to listen to her kids.

2. I admire the mom who calmly but firmly responds to her screaming child without yelling back or retaliating in embarassment, especially in public.

3. I appreciate the mom who is always willing to help others even when it's inconvenient for her or her kids.

4. I appreciate the mom who fills her home with songs and music about God and Jesus.

5. I appreciate the mom who makes sure her kids get to know people outside of their socioeconomic status.

6. I appreciate the mom who makes serving God by volunteering more important than her kids nap schedules that day. Her kids are so blessed by serving with her!

7. I appreciate the mom that goes to work every day blessing others at her job and then coming home to be mom to her kids.

8. I appreciate the mom who steps up to be both mom and dad when life demands it.

9. I appreciate the mom that realizes her children are perfect just as they are, even when the world may disagree.

10. I appreciate the mom who has an open home where anyone is welcome to stop by anytime.

11. I appreciate the mom who lives her life in such a way her kids are asking questions about God and Jesus and initiating prayer.

12. I appreciate the mom who is real. Some days are hard. And some days you just don't want to be a mom. And sometimes you just need to vent and know someone else understands.

13. I appreciate the mom that can juggle lots of kids and is happy to add another to the mix when needed.

14. I appreciate the mom who always has an encouraging word for me.

15. I appreciate the mom who never seems to complain about her kids, but instead finds a way to laugh at even the most stressful things.

16. I appreciate the mom who puts the marriage before the kids.

17. I appreciate the mom who trusts God in the scary times and the good times.

18. I appreciate the mom who dives into the Word and encourages those around her to do so as well.

19. I appreciate the mom who lives by prayer and intercedes often for others.

20. I appreciate the mom who cooks for her family.

21. I appreciate the mom who is creative and fills her home and life with beauty and fun.

22. I appreciate the mom who always knows the right gift for people and teaches her children generosity.

23. I appreciate the mom who uses her stage in life with young children to broaden her circle of people she and her family know, not tighten it.

Ok, I know there's lots more, but you get the drift. Anyone want to add to my list? I love all of you moms in my life...unique and imperfect!!

The super cute annoying little sister

2011-01-14T20:33:00.000-08:00

Molly being a cute, annoying little sister from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

More Birthday Fun

2011-01-13T20:24:00.000-08:00

Having 2 birthdays right after Christmas was a little crazy, but we had fun. My parents had planned on coming for Ryan's actual birthday but my brother had some extra tickets for the Alamo Bowl so they came to town early for that and we celebrated their birthdays early. Ryan didn't mind having cookies and getting presents from Grandma and PawPaw early, and neither did Molly for that matter!

Grandma always makes sure Ryan is stocked up on his m&m's, and he loves her for it!

He loved his new hockey stick and puck since he's been going to hockey games with Dad lately.

And thanks to Aunt Janet for finding this awesome magnetic train book.

This year I planned Ryan's first big friend party at a location other than our house. We limited the list to 3 friends since he was turning 3 plus his cousins. It was supposed to be at Kiddie Acres, one of his favorite places. But then it was supposed to rain on Saturday, so we moved it to Sunday, and wouldn't you know it, Saturday was gorgeous and Sunday was rainy and cold. Joe suggested we have the party at our house. I wasn't sure this was a great idea since this summer when I would to go playgroups or have them at our house he would be glued to my leg and very shy/frustrated. We went ahead though and had it our house, and Ryan LOVED it! I hardly saw the kid all night because he was too busy playing with all his friends. It turned out to probably be more fun than going to Kiddie Acres after all. So what are the ingredients for a great party for Ryan's 3rd birthday?

A cookie cake with a Buzz Lightyear candle he helped pick out (remember the kid doesn't like regular cake..or icecream)

Fun decorations

Juice boxes and friends

A silly best friend (notice he's actually smiling in this picture...usually when Luc invades his space he gets frustrated)

A fun baby sister

Some family time with a cool new toy

Two cute babies to distract all the adults

And a Buzz Lightyear candle with a rocket ship to play with all night! His favorite new toy wasn't a toy at all, but what are you gonna do? I'm just glad this boy had a fun birthday!

Happy 1st Birthday Molly!

2011-01-12T13:58:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby girl! She's not a baby anymore I guess. Well, she's not walking yet, so she's still a little bit baby =) She's working on it though, and in the meantime she's a super fast crawler and climber. Look out when she does start walking...it'll probably be a run!

Here's my list of things about Molly right now:

She is my snuggler, especially when it's time for her afternoon nap. She doesn't get fussy but will come lay on my lap or on my shoulder.
She's not walking but is pulling up on everything and climbing on and over everything.
She babbles alot now and is really communicating well for the most part. She has "words" for mama, dada, Ryan, kitty, moon, raisin, duck, book, and ball and signs for all done, more, eat, and drink. She usually gets her point across pretty well.
She loves to put things inside of bags or boxes and take them out again, including having a bowl at mealtimes and taking the food in and out of the bowl.
She also loves to dip foods in things. I've gotten her to eat toast dipped in her baby oatmeal, two things she's not thrilled about but hey, if she can dip it, she'll eat it!
She has a serious sweet tooth and if she's sees a cookie demands to have a bite. Also, she recognizes m&m's and loves them too.
For the most part Molly will try just about any food as long as Mom, Dad, or ryan are eating them. She even tried super hard to eat my spinach salad yesterday.
She is pretty independent during playtime but loves having activity around her from her brother or me. She also LOVES to read and will grab a book and bring it to me to read to her.
She has 8 teeth, and is now sleeping through the night again at least until the next teething round begins. I love it!!
She's a tough girl and hardly ever cries when she gets bumped into. She's also pretty assertive with her big brother and likes to "get him" or grab toys from his hand. We're working on that =)
She loves to throw balls and play with Ryan's cars. She even says "vroom" when she plays with the cars right now. So far the babies are much less interesting than her big brother's toys. Joe thinks she might be a softball player when she grows up because she's tough and loves to play ball!
She's still pretty attached to mom but stayed for a whole hour in the nursery on Wednesday.

I have to be honest, Molly's birthday was a little hard this year. Ryan's birthday party ended up being the night before Molly's birthday, and I have been sick with cedar fever for over a week. I woke up feeling terrible so my friend Noelle came over to watch kids while I went to the doctor. Molly ended up going with me to the doctor because she didn't take a morning nap for the first time ever, but she did enjoy some time with super cute Evan after we got back.

"Mom, do you have to take a picture right now???"

Here's Molly's "purple cat" cupcakes. They don't look purple in the picture but they were. I made them like the purple cat from the "Brown Bear" book which is her favorite.

This girl seriously needed a walker for her birthday, although she's still learning how to use it without it taking off too fast for her.

And finally, those silly 1st birthday cake eating pictures you've all been waiting for!

Happy 3rd Birthday Ryan!

2011-01-07T21:37:00.000-08:00

Dear Ryan,

Happy Birthday to my favorite little guy! I'm so lucky to be your mom. I can't get over how much you've grown up in the past few weeks. You are now fully potty-trained, sleeping in a big guy bed without a gate, and almost old enough to not need a paci =) I love seeing your imagination take off and how you'll play so well now with your little Buzz and Woody (and Rex, Zurg, etc.) and even make up voices for your little friends. Playtime is definitely an adventure and I love it!

One of my favorite things about you is your kind heart. You are so sensitive to our feelings and your own. You already bring Molly toys and give her food at the table. You often "interpret" what Molly is saying or even thinking and are always quick to say you're sorry and give her a kiss when you accidentally hurt her. You never intentionally hurt her or us, and even your teachers at school talk about how kind and polite you are.

I also love how you listen to EVERYTHING and love music. You can carry a tune pretty well, but I just laugh and laugh at the songs you make up like "Jingle Buzz" instead of "Jingle Bells" or the wait song.

You are a special boy loved by many, especially your mom, dad, and sister. I can't wait to see what the next year brings my sweet boy! Happy Birthday!!

Love,

Mommy

Christmas Day 2010

2011-01-07T21:02:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day this year was alot of fun! Ryan really got excited about Christmas for the first time this year and was really happy about the Bullseye Santa left under his pillow. The kids got to open their stockings and see the presents from Santa plus open our family gifts before all the cousins, aunts, uncles, and extended family came over. Ryan was still at the stage where he would open one present and just want to play with it before opening more, which is what Joe always did when he was a kid. And Molly loved just trying to crawl over everything and play with all of Ryan's little toys that could be swallowed.

Overall Christmas Day was a fun day filled with lots of family, gifts, delicious food, and crazy toys like a remote controlled helicopter flying around inside. Ryan stayed in his pj's all day, another tradition he took from his dad. Molly would have stayed in hers if she hadn't decided to have the biggest blowout diaper of the last 6 months. I missed my family and all the games we play but enjoyed being with all of Joe's family for the holidays. We're truly very blessed!

Christmas Vacation

2011-01-07T20:27:00.000-08:00

This year Joe took several days off before Christmas so we could see all his family this year in Tulsa. We drove, yes DROVE, to Tulsa with 2 kids under the age of 3. And it took 2 days both ways. But we survived, and it could've been much worse. Ryan was a super traveler, but Molly doesn't like being in the car for more than 5 minutes, so poor thing wasn't exactly enjoying a long car trip. One of the best things we did was on the way up there we stopped at my Grandma's for the night and then Joe woke me up at 4 and we transferred the kids to the car and then he drove while the 3 of us slept. We made awesome time! I kind of wish we'd done that on the way back.

We got to do lots of relaxing in the days leading up to the holidays. All our shopping was done and Joe's dad had found his box of old cars and Micro Machines, so once Ryan opened the "Awesome Box" he was a happy camper. I think he played for about 2 hours straight with those Micro Machines.

Molly enjoyed playing ball with her dad, and being held by me, ALOT. She's not usually clingy and I'm not used to holding her all the time, so it took some getting used to. Her older cousins and the rest of the family doted on her as much as she allowed.

One fun thing we did was go to this amazing light display on the 23rd. It was the one thing my mother-in-law requested on her birthday. Tulsa was very cold that night and poor Molly wanted to be held the entire time, but the lights were amazing. I'm so glad we got to go this year. It's a tradition that all the Tulsa grandkids participate in and I'm thankful my kids were able to go this year.

Did I mention it was COLD in Tulsa? I've been living in Austin too long. I can't take the cold. We spent almost all our time indoors. But here's proof I ventured out for a few minutes one day with the kids.

Isn't that hat awesome? Thanks Noelle!

One new tradition this year I started was decorating a gingerbread house with Ryan. Being an independent little guy, he didn't want to participate at first, but once we got going he really liked it. I did too! I'm excited for Molly to be able to help in a few years too. Oh, and Joe had the wonderful idea of letting him eat a candy cane while decorating so some of the candy actually made it onto the house. I married a smart man =)

We went to Joe's sister's house for Christmas Eve with Joe's parents, siblings, nieces and nephews plus one of his aunts. We had a great time then of course we left some cookies for Santa Joe and Ryan had made earlier that day. Ryan really, really wanted one of those cookies. Lucky for him Santa left him a few after all the next morning. Oh, and we didn't forget the reindeer with green beans, celery, and chili cheese fritos. This little guy looks ready for bed!

More Pre-Christmas Festivities

2011-01-04T21:06:00.000-08:00

Don't worry, I didn't take many pictures actually at Christmas so I'm almost caught up on the ol' blog. Looking back I enjoyed the holidays but not the rushing around ahead of time. I felt like every time I went anywhere in the month of December everyone was stressed out. Maybe it was just that I was stressed out having 2 kids to tote around this year or maybe I was a grinch, but I opted to spend more time at home leading up to the holidays and just try to relax and enjoy the kids.

One thing we did the night after Ryan's Christmas program was go to our neighborhood luminary festival. I love seeing the trails lit up by the luminaries. We went last year and had a great time. This is exactly what Ryan did both years...walk down the path and look inside every bag to see the candle. Love it!

This year they had a bonfire put on by the Boy Scouts and Joe bought a glowstick for Ryan from them, which was probably the highlight of the evening for him. We also stood in the really long line for the kiddie train and got to ride it, but just barely. It was very cold so we skipped the caroling hayride and went in to watch the Christmas kid karaoke until Molly leaked through her diaper sending us home!

If I'd actually followed through with Christmas cards, here's the best pictures I'd gotten of the kids.

My mom found this adorable dress for Molly and decided our little girl needed a beautiful Christmas dress. Thanks Grandma! She's adorable =)

Bring it!

2010-12-31T21:20:00.000-08:00

In just a few minutes it will be a fresh year. A new start. Turns out the past year was pretty awesome for this family, so while I'm excited about a new year I'm also somewhat sad about the coming year. Molly is no longer a little baby snuggling in my arms but instead a busy girl who wants to grow up fast so she can do everything her big brother does. While I love seeing her grow and change, it seems like the cute chubby 6 month old disappeared overnight. It's been a busy, exhausting year with a 2 year old and a baby, and Joe and I are ready for some rest and time to reconnect as adults. But I'm so thankful for this special time in our lives.

So while I'm somewhat sad for this past year to be over, for the most part I'll use Joe and Ryan's term from wrestling to sum up my feelings for this coming year...."Bring it!"

Some things I hope for and are excited about this year:

More flexibility to have adult time with my husband and friends since I won't have a nursing baby to consider at all times.
Watching Ryan and Molly play more together, even though I know it will mean being a referee alot of times.
My first ski trip in several years!! I love snow skiing!!
My 10 year anniversary with Joe in August. I'm the luckiest girl in the world, and I know it.
Communicating with Molly more with words and signs, and watching her go from a crazy crawling girl to a crazy running girl. I'm sure I'll shed a few pounds in the process trying to keep up with her.
Playing with Ryan in new ways, especially creative role-play and board games. I'm also excited about cooking more with him and doing more art projects.
Having time to sit and read..and read...and read.
Spending more time focused on God and less on the mundane physical daily activities and stresses that drown out the joy of this time of my life
Watching prayers be answered for some of my best friends. I truly believe this will be the year and I pray that it is so.
Did I mention that I'm getting to go skiing in about a month? And that I'll spend ALL day on the slopes not taking care of kids?? I don't think I can really express how excited I am about this one. I used to go skiing every year with my dad and my siblings when they were still home and it was a highlight of season. I think I love skiing as much as Christmas =)

Well, that's enough for now. I'm not really into "resolutions" but it's kinda fun to reflect about the past year and be excited for the new one. I'm incredibly blessed and at such a great time in my life. Even if I am tired and just might lose it the next time I step on a raisin and smoosh it into my sock. Cause the kids are so worth it, and God truly answered my prayers. May you see God's blessings in your life both this past year and the one coming.

My "star" performer!

2010-12-30T21:01:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm way behind, but now that the holidays are over I thought I'd "wrap" things up by trying to catch up on my Christmas blogging. We went to Ryan's preschool Christmas program again this year. They have a fundraiser pancake supper before the program and pictures with Santa. Ryan did take a pretty good picture with Santa this year, but I only have a print copy. I had great plans to get both kids in a picture in front of this beautiful tree so I could send out Christmas cards, but this is the best I got. Hence no Christmas cards this year =) Maybe I'll sent out New Years cards if you guys are lucky!

While we were waiting for the program to start Joe and Molly were playing alot. He kept blowing into her face and she loved it. I really enjoy catching moments like this on camera. Joe is such a good Dad and has so much fun playing with his kids. I love just watching it!

We mostly took video of the program. Ryan knew all the songs at home but once he got up there he didn't sing much. He LOVED all the attention though and was just grinning the whole time, and he was doing the motions in one of the songs so it looked like he was the only once dancing. Pretty cute. I have so much admiration for the work these teachers put into this program. It sure is fun for everyone! I've already shown the video to the grandparents so I'll spare everyone else and just leave you with a very fuzzy picture. Right after this Molly insisted LOUDLY that she needed the camera so she got to play with it in order to keep her from disrupting the whole program. Crazy girl knows how to get what she wants!

My boy

2010-12-28T20:51:00.000-08:00

I sure do love my boy. He is definitely full of life and keeps me on my toes! Some days I feel like all we do is argue, so these pictures are a nice reminder of the fun times we have. He sure is a cutie!

Joe has been really teaching Ryan to wrestle lately. So one night when Joe was looking for a lost toy under the fridge, Ryan took advantage of his opponents weakness and hopped on his back. Two points for Ryan!

When the weather is nice we've been going for walks whenever we can. When Ryan is pulling this wagon he is so focused and walks and walks. I love these beautiful winter days and watching my cute boy pulling his wagon, often with a Woody or Buzz inside along for the ride.

11 Months

2010-12-19T14:17:00.000-08:00

My baby girl is almost not a baby anymore. This post is a bit late, but she's already 11 months and well on her way to being a toddler. She's really changed physically in the past month and looks like such a big girl. I already miss the cute chubby 6 month old, but love how my girl is still so much fun and works hard to figure out new things every day!

Yes, her hair still sticks up but it's already getting longer and thicker so that it lays down more. Thankfully the trampoline still gives it lots of static. She won't wear bows anymore but just immediately pulls it out and tries to chew on it, so I gave up with the bows for now.

Molly is a really, really fast crawler. She spends most of her day crawling this way and then turns around and crawls somewhere else. She loves "chasing" me and Ryan. If I left the room at this stage Ryan would get upset and cry but she just puts her head down and crawls as fast as she can to me (or Daddy when he gets home) then will sit up on her knees and reach up so you'll pick her up.

I think she's going to be more of an independent girl. She already wants to use the spoon to feed herself. Of course I don't have the patience to really let her, but occasionally I let her play around. She also loves to take off hats and try to put them back on her head again.
She loves yogurt, eggs, raisins, grapes, cheddar bunnies, rice, peas, green beans, black beans, cheese, and oranges. She doesn't enjoy her baby cereal very much anymore, and hasn't been thrilled about whole milk.

Her favorite game is to play ball with you. She'll hand you the ball to roll to her, catch it, and hand it back. She also loves all of Ryan's favorite toys, including cars and little Toy Story 3 characters. She does have a baby she just got for Christmas that she likes, and still loves to snuggle soft blankets, plush stuffed animals, and Mom and Dad.
She spends the rest of the time she's not crawling pulling up on things on her knees, sometimes with one foot extended. She is only just now wanting to pull up to standing and would always insist on sitting before now when we tried to get her to stand, so she needs to build up some leg muscle strength before she starts trying to walk. This is a pretty typical picture of life right now for us =)

Happy 11 months Molly! Let's just push pause and not ever make it to a year old, ok? Love you sweet girl and how you always make me laugh!

Leaves, Leaves, and More Leaves!

2010-12-09T22:14:00.001-08:00

What's the advantage of having 3 huge trees in the yard? TONS of leaves to play in if you're a kid. Not so fun to rake up as an adult, but hey, it's worth it right? I know none of the other houses on our street even come close to the crazy amount of leaves we have. All the neighborhood kids are jealous, and their parents are happy it's not their yard!

Great day

2010-11-29T21:23:00.000-08:00

Do you ever have one of those days where at the end you think, "Wow, that was a fun day!" I had one of those today. I've had lots of those lately actually. My kids are both just in a happy place. Ryan has started really using his imagination during playtime and I've loved hearing the things he comes up with using his Toy Story figurines. Today they were all going into the toy rocket ship we made from a Kleenex box to get away from a giant frog. All his idea. I've never mentioned a giant frog...and I don't remember one in any movies he's seen lately. He also asked me to come over to his little table and said..."Mom, come her just a second. I have something I want to show you. Look right here (pointing at the hockey schedule). I went to this hockey game right here with Daddy last year." Then he started running around showing me how they skated and hit the hockey puck and it got very loud and there were whistles blowing "like this". And 5 minutes later we were jumping on the trampoline in our backyard in perfect 75 degree weather. Awesome. And Molly just lights up a room with her smile and happy disposition, and always makes me laugh with her snuggles and dives. I also watched Ryan play with his friends today and other kids at the playground, and be assertive in a nice way with other kids instead of running crying to me. He's growing up in a great way.

Then I saw one of my best friend's sons in the hospital. My great day was a really bad day for them. He's going to be ok but what mom wants to see her son hooked up to machines in a hospital bed? Also, Joe's grandma is in the hospital too. Someone's great day is someone else's bad day. Life is strange that way.

I'm trying to be thankful for the blessings of my life today without ignoring the bad day of those around me. I'm hoping tomorrow is a better day for my friends and extended family.

Dad's blocks- finally with pictures!

2010-11-29T21:14:00.000-08:00

Joe made Ryan a set of building blocks before he was even born! Well, the other day Molly crawled into the block box all by herself and just had a great time. For once I had the camera nearby in time to catch the cuteness in action.

So proud!

Check out those chubby cheeks!

Fall has arrived!

2010-11-28T14:29:00.000-08:00

Fall arrived in Austin a few weeks ago, and we got to enjoy the kids new coats this season...and then hang them right back up the next day. Gotta love Austin in the "fall/winter"!

Kids

2010-11-22T21:00:00.001-08:00

Most of you reading this blog know about our story, but I like to remind myself sometimes of where I've come from and reflect on what I've learned (or should have!) along the way. It's easy for me to forget during the chaos of two kids how long I ached to just have one. I had two miscarriages before we had Ryan, and those were some really challenging years. Lots of questions- why? how long? am I doing something wrong? will we ever have kids?

I don't have any answers really to the "why". My best answer is we live in a fallen world, and bad things happen here. I don't think God usually causes infertility. But I do know that He uses that struggle to mold us and strengthen us.

God wants to hear from us. He wants to hear our thoughts and emotions, even if they're not what they are "supposed" to be. How can we have a real and authentic relationship with Him if we censor our emotions with him? And how can you be hopeful and excited about something and then not be disappointed when the answer is "no" or "not yet"? God wants to hear from you during the struggle. Jesus came so we don't have to try and be perfect. He accepts us as we are but helps create us anew. That doesn't mean you should let bitterness take over or try to be joyful in the moment. Just know God loves you and doesn't want you to shut him out because you don't feel the way you think you should. So go ahead and cry, be angry, be sad...just don't think He doesn't care or doesn't want to hear it. He does. And He'll take it all. And He'll take something bad and create something good. So let Him have it =)

Randomness

2010-11-22T20:56:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I just have some random pictures that are fun and remind me of good times. Ryan has some comfy pants this winter that have pockets, and this winter he's really started to use them. I love my little old man in this picture! He did this all on his own.

Later that day Joe decided on a whim to take Ryan to see a hockey game. We now have a minor league team near us. Ryan LOVED it! Joe took the camera and this is the best picture he got. The games are too late in the evening for Molly and I to go, but I'm so glad the boys had fun.

And finally, Joe was trying to take pictures of Molly one morning, and this is the look she kept giving him. I think we have at least 10 of these. Funny girl. This is exactly how I feel every morning before my coffee!

The Great Rosebush Battle of 2010

2010-11-19T21:29:00.000-08:00

Our previous owners left us with this fabulous rosebush in our yard when we bought the house. It's a thriving rosebush that has been trimmed by not only Joe and I but also both my dad and Joe's dad, and it just keeps on coming back...and back...and back...with 2 INCH thorns! Seriously, I've never seen a healthier rosebush with bigger, meaner thorns in my life. It does make me appreciate all those fantasy books that talk about long walks through thornbushes much more, though.

Well, here's the rosebush before Joe's most recent battle with it. Nice and healthy...and very sharp!

All boys must make time to do swordfights in the middle of battling a rosebush of course!

On a side note, I'm very sad that my little boy wants to fight with swords now. I knew the day was coming, but seriously? He's not even three! Ah, well, what're you gonna do?

And finally...Joe for the win!! That is one SERIOUS stump!

Our nice bare corner that will allow for playing and toy storage without cries of "Waaaahhh. I got a thorn in my shoe" (by Joe, of course)

I dreamed that night that we left the stump and limbs on the ground and the thing sent roots back down and started growing again. I'm so glad it's finally gone!

Molly at 10 months

2010-11-13T19:18:00.001-08:00

Molly is 10 months old (plus a few days) and she's going strong. She is crawling all over the place, and fast. I really thought things would be crazier for us once she got mobile but honestly it's just been pretty cute and fun. Since we already had babyproofed for Ryan it hasn't been as life-changing this time around. Here's a few things about her right now:

She is starting to really try and talk to us. At the park she kept repeating "Da.....Da.....Da" for the ducks, which she LOVES! She also says "at" for Lucy our cat. And of course she says Mama and Dada for us. I think I have another talker on my hands!
She is a snuggler and when she's sleepy she'll just dive into your shoulder or sideways when she's on your lap. She'll also "get" us and Ryan by nuzzling her head into our heads or sides and just laughs and laughs. Here she is getting Ryan on the trampoline.

Molly is getting 2 more teeth for a total of 8 teeth. Whew!
She is pulling up alot, but just onto her knees. She'll stand for a minute if I set her up on her feet but then just sits down because she prefers that over standing (which is so different than Ryan at this age!)

She loves stuffed animals and will just dive snuggle into them.
Her hair still sticks up, and she still has beautiful blue eyes and the best little girl smile!

She's a good sleeper and really only wakes up at night now when she's teething or sick)
Molly still doesn't like to be in the nursery too long but now is happy to stay with Dad or Miss Sarah for long periods of time.
I continue to be amazed at her happy disposition. About the only times she gets fussy are when she's hungry, when we aren't feeding her what she wants, when we try to put anything in her mouth, or when she's in the car and its dark outside.

She's still a chubby girl, but now that she's crawling she'll start losing some of it *sniff, sniff* Here's a picture of the chubby, chubby thighs.

She loves music and will "dance" when she hears it. She'll also clap for you after you finish singing her a song she likes if you're lucky.

Ok, I think that's enough for now. Here's a video of her favorite trick right now. I love it!

Molly's trick from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-01T18:46:00.000-07:00

I think we have a bit of a Halloween curse in our house. Last year Ryan had the flu on Halloween so we didn't really do anything but hand out candy, and this year Molly had a cold. But who would've guessed this cute girl was sick? She was a trooper and rallied for the fun!

We kept things low key this year. Joe grilled some dinner and I got some fun pictures in the backyard before we went trick or treating at our friend's Sam and Sarah's house and in their neighborhood.

Molly was "getting" Ryan and they both were loving it. This was spontaneous fun between the two of them that I actually caught on camera!

Ryan really enjoyed going up to the houses this year and said loudly and clearly "trick or treat" and roared for some of the people. We also enjoyed the "kiddie korner" our neighborhood did too. Happy Halloween! Hopefully next year no one will be sick!

What are you afraid of?

2010-10-31T20:24:00.000-07:00

Today's lesson at church was a great one. Honestly I almost didn't make it to even hear it. Joe has been working all weekend and I was up too many times to count with Molly last night because of her cold, and we were both worn out this morning. We were so late getting going we almost just skipped but decided it would be better to go late than not at all. And in all honesty, Ryan LOVES Bible class so much its a good motivator for us to go to early service. I'm so glad we went.

Scott's lesson was about fear and all the things we are afraid of. I realized how blessed I am to not be afraid of much. I live in a safe neighborhood in a nice house and am surrounded by safe people. The water I drink from my faucet is clean and I have no fear of cholera or many other diseases from it. The overabundance of food in my house is safe. My family is all healthy. I do not fear someone stealing my child to be a soldier or fear for myself being kidnapped or killed. I accidentally leave my doors unlocked sometimes and always come back to my house full of things. I do not fear that my baby will die of malnutrition tomorrow. Seriously, what do I have to be afraid of in this country of blessing and as a Christian?

I am at a blessed time in my life and do not spend alot of time "in fear". Yet we all struggle with fear I believe. I think my biggest fear would be that something would happen to Joe and I would be left to do it all on my own. I depend on him so much that I can't even fathom what that would be like. I probably lean more on him and less on God than I should. I do let fear work on my in little things like worrying about not teaching the kids enough or how to work on this certain discipline issue. I have worry and concern for friends and family who are suffering. Joe brought up how sometimes we don't let our kids make mistakes because we worry about the consequences.

This morning was a great reminder that fear isn't from God. So what are you afraid of? Oh, and yesterday Ryan was fascinated at the pet store by the mice and snakes, the two things I'm most fearful of in nature. Boys sure do teach you how to not be afraid!

Introducing "Lion Ryan"

2010-10-30T20:13:00.000-07:00

Lion Ryan from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

As many of you know, last year I worked hard (small amount of effort anyway) to make Ryan a homemade lion costume. And he refused to wear it. Like, he cried horribly anytime I tried to put it on him. Luckily the sweatshirt I'd borrowed to make it from was too big to begin with, because I was able to save it for this year! And what a handsome lion he makes =) I pulled it out a few weeks ago and he's been enjoying running around the house roaring in it. What a difference a year makes!

Thursday was the Halloween carnival at school. Ryan was pretty excited and I was too since I was able to leave Molly at home with Sarah and go with Ryan to enjoy the festivities.

First they trick-or-treated in the church office. Ryan knows most of the staff there so it was fun to see them and show off my cute boy. He was so scared by it last year but this year got into it more.

And then it was carnival time! He was very proud of the pumpkin tattoo. He'd been asking for a pumpkin sticker all week long to put on his had so it was perfect.

This roller coaster was his favorite last year!

I think he spent the most time here...throwing a ball. Typical boy =)

This train actually moved when you held down the button and went around on a track! Super fun, and definitely the favorite activity of all the kids along with the bounce house.

This was my first event we were able to attend with Ryan's whole class. I know a few of the kids but was glad to meet a few more. We had lots of fun!

Persistence

2010-10-28T21:24:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we were invited to a pumpkin patch for a friend's birthday party. Well...we were all in a super grumpy mood that morning, except the incredible happy baby Molly. I finally joked about how everyone probably would enjoy the party more without us! But we were persistent in going and trying to have fun in spite of our grumpy selves. Once we got there we really did have a great time. Some days are just like that though. They require lots of patience, some sarcasm the kids don't get, and loads of caffeine! Here's some of the fun times though.

Birthday festivities!

Ryan almost never eats cupcakes, or cake for that matter. He ate one at his first birthday party, but after that he started getting picky about food and usually refuses to try it. I guess peer pressure won out this year, but he started out only licking it about 3 or 4 times like this before he finally bit down. Joe and I are such great parents that we sat back and just laughed at him, waiting to see if he'd overcome his pickiness or not. He did and really liked the cupcake.

His favorite activities were the hayride and this water duck race. Genius idea!! My favorite was the delicious food and getting to visit with other adults.

Molly was sad she wasn't the center of attention...or she just didn't want to wear the hat.

And these are my fabulous pumpkin patch photos this year...haha! There was no use trying too hard. I think the first one sums up our life right now pretty well!

Molly looks pretty stinkin cute in Ryan's hat and Maizie's hand me downs!

And how do you end a fun trip? By letting your son leap off a haybale that was 3 times his height. You do it exactly ONE time too many and leave crying, but later only remember the fun parts!

Playtime with the grandparents

2010-10-28T21:09:00.000-07:00

One thing I really appreciate about my parents is how they make such an effort to really play with my kids. It's so easy to get distracted by things, but they both really focus on my kids and play with them when they're here. Ryan and Molly definitely love it. This time when they arrived Ryan literally was jumping for joy for about an hour because he was so excited! This time the "toy" of choice was this big play-doh canister that I'd emptied out and was going to throw away. How could I??

Molly used it as a drum.

And Ryan used it as a hat!

I think this is a ball that Grandma encouraged Ryan to hide under his shirt. I just love that look of pure joy! We all can't wait to see them again after their big European cruise!

Granny's house

2010-10-28T20:56:00.001-07:00

Joe took some vacation days a few weeks ago, but instead of taking a big trip and filling our time we decided to mostly stay around home and just relax as much as we could. It was definitely the right choice! We had lots of down time as a family, and we also went on a short overnight trip to see my Grandma near Hillsboro. We all love going to the farm, and Ryan was super excited to go out there. On Saturday morning we decided to carve a pumpkin as a family. Joe ended up doing most of the work, and he did a great job. We had both forgotten how much work it is. We both said a long-distance thank you to our parents for all the years of cleaning out our pumpkins for us.

They sure do love each other!

Ryan's favorite part was pushing the eyes and nose into the pumpkin.

Molly just loved getting to be near dad and get messy!

Bubble break!

Pumpkin Painting Time!

2010-10-25T20:37:00.000-07:00

Happy family!

2010-10-25T13:41:00.001-07:00

Not every day is a happy family day, but yesterday definitely was. Everyone was in a great mood, whining was minimal, and Joe and even cleaned out the garage. We do fall cleaning around here instead of spring cleaning...or actually both. Anyway, I glanced through some pictures and found some of my happy kiddos. So often lately I feel like I just vent negativity to my friends in person, but really, lots of our family times are happy. Life may be very busy right now, but I'm trying to relish the happy times and let go of the stressful ones!

Austin Zoo

2010-10-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

Well, we finally made it to the Austin Zoo! I had tried to go a few times before but I never made it because it's a bit of a drive. Of course the morning we planned to go Molly decided to nap until almost noon! That didn't leave much time before Ryan's nap but we decided to go ahead anyway. We had a great time even if it was a short visit.

What's a zoo visit without some silly pictures?

This tortoise was very memorable. Ryan still talks about him eating his food.

Molly was a in a great mood after her Super nap!

Ryan really liked feeding the deer and goats, which was surprising since he's usually afraid of animals. Our little guy is growing up!

"Ahhhh...."

Everyone should be proud of me. I did not act scared at all of this snake, even though it was HUGE! Ryan loved it though. They had little kid stools everyone so the kids could move them around and see into the displays. Perfect!

This is how Molly felt about the snake...and me too, on the inside.

I recommend going if you have some time. The stroller was a bit cumbersome at times, but Molly is huge enough I didn't want to carry her the entire time. We missed the train but hopefully will get to ride it the next time we go!

Family Hike

2010-10-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

We LOVE Austin this time of year. We actually have a picture of hiking at this city park last September with Ryan. This beautiful weather just begs for us to go out and enjoy the wonderful surroundings we have here.

Joe called one Friday a couple weeks ago and invited us to go on a family hike after work. Of course we were all ready to go. Here's our best attempt at a family picture. Molly kept looking off to one side or Joe was cut out of the picture.

Ryan got to be the "leader" and show us which way to go. What 2 year old wouldn't love that?

Joe is such a great dad. He loves teaching his kids new things. I remember him showing Ryan bark on a tree at about the same age as Molly in this picture. I'm so glad our kids have him. Things would be pretty boring with just the 3 of us.

And of course, what's a hike without throwing rocks in the water??

We just walked around and had a picnic dinner of sandwiches, the walked back when we thought it was getting late. Ryan was very brave and climbed up and down all by himself most of the time. I think the highlight though might just have been that lollipop...that got dropped in the dirt a few times. Don't worry, we finally made him throw it away!

Molly at 9 Months

2010-10-12T20:38:00.000-07:00

Molly is officially 9 months old! Now she can do all sorts of crazy things like...

Make a "sun" during the "God makes the big round sun" song, or play peek-a-boo with the same cute move

Sit up and look just adorable..

Turn on the charm with those beautiful blue eyes...

And catch everyone's attention with that super cute smile, which she gives out frequently!

Molly did great at her well check. This chubby girl weighs over 20 pounds! One thing I didn't get a good picture of is her adorable thighs. Love them! So far she isn't crawling but she has started going down more from sitting up to being on her tummy and reaching for things. She still doesn't put her knees under her though and just goes back and forth from sitting up to belly. Usually she has one foot in front and one behind. Given some time though she's pretty mobile and finds a way to reach those beloved trains her brother is playing with and doesn't want her to reach!

What else is fun about right now?

She has 6 teeth now, 4 on top and 2 on bottom. The ones on top came in out of order. She's drooling like crazy again so more might be on the way!
We've discovered she LOVES green beans. Not the baby food, the real kind seasoned with dill and onions. For two meals in a row she's eaten probably half a can of green beans. Poor Joe hasn't gotten any.
She waves and does her sun/peek-a-boo pose all the time.
She babbles mamama, dadada, and bababa often. She definitely has a "mama" that she uses when she wants me in particular. I think she's started to say "nono" or "nana" for no, too.
She has been shaking her head no when offered food she doesn't want for over a month now, and she really means it!
She's sleeping well through the night again, but we had to do another round of sleep training a week or so ago to get her back on track. Sleep training means just letting her cry it out because our comforting methods are limited. She does let Joe comfort her better than me now.
We're really settled in to two naps a day now and she'll nap for 2 hour stretches sometimes. It sure is making our schedule alot easier overall!
She loves music and dances when she hears a favorite song.
Her favorite book is Global Babies because it has pictures of real babies and she's such a social girl. She also really likes the singing books like "I'm a little teapot" and "Snuggle Bunny".
She is my snuggle bunny, especially before her afternoon nap when she's getting tired. She'll lay her head down on my shoulder and snuggle in.
Molly is starting to really be attached and hasn't been letting me leave her in the nursery or leave her in a room by herself. Thank goodness her brother keeps her entertained.
She has gone from tolerating bike rides to LOVING them. She rides on my bike now and is very happy on our rides. She likes being outside like her brother.
And finally, she has fuzzy hair that sticks up, and I refuse to try and make it lay down. I think it's adorable and fits her personality. She has the rest of her life to do her hair....better live it up now!

I'm literally falling asleep typing this, so that's all for now. Good night!

Am I Crazy?

2010-10-02T20:00:00.000-07:00

Just a little bit. I finally decided to brave flying with both kids by myself up to Amarillo to see my parents and family. Guess what? It wasn't bad at all! Both kids did GREAT! The only tricky part was getting on and off the plane. Have you ever noticed how impatient people are to get off a plane? Try putting them behind a 2 year old that refuses to wear his backpack. Seriously, everyone needs to be a parent of a preschooler at some point to teach you the value of patience. After a 30 second negotiation over the backpack with Ryan where he finally wore it (a very short negotation compared to most), several people literally clapped. Nice. I choose to believe they were applauding me for winning and not applauding themselves for finally being let loose from the tyranny of a two year old..haha.

Really though, the trip went so smoothly. We had a short flight to Dallas where we had a short layover and then another short flight to Amarillo. On the first go round Molly slept on the first flight and Ryan on the second flight, which was nice so I was able to spend time with both kids one on one. On the way home Molly slept on both flights and Ryan on neither. He did so well though. Wish I could take credit, but I think it was some answered prayers that kept me sane. It went so well that I think we'll try again in the spring.

This is my favorite thing to do on an airplane! I wish I could have done this too.

My parents recently moved from a family farm between Dumas and Hartley to a townhouse in Amarillo. We enjoyed the new place and it was much easier to see one of my brothers and my sister that live there. We missed my oldest brother and wife and my friend Kathy, but hopefully we'll see them all next time. Oh, and this was the first trip where Ryan didn't have to be in the same room with me all the time. Wow, what a difference that made! He did need to know where Grandma was at all times, though.

I'm sure it's because she read him book after book after book (The Napping House was the favorite)

And they made lots of cookies!

Ryan also enjoyed playing cars with PawPaw, although Molly was spoiled more by him and got held alot. Unfortunately I didn't get many pictures this time.

This was an automated car raceway that Ryan LOVED!

He also spent more time at the table doing this that eating his food, but rules aren't the same at Grandma and PawPaw's right?

Ryan also really enjoyed his cousin Jonah and they played baseball together.

Molly of course got all the attention from her cousins Elizabeth, Hannah, and Aunt Kristi.

I of course was spoiled the whole time too. No cooking or cleaning, people to entertain my kids, visiting with family, watching my niece play volleyball, and trying out new restaurants...sounds like vacation to me!

Funny Conversation

2010-09-30T19:58:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week Ryan and I were in the garage playing/working while Molly was napping. He had wanted to go on a walk but I told him we had to stay home so we could hear Molly on the monitor while she was napping. We've had this conversation many times before. Later, while Ryan was playing, he walked over to the monitor where he had it on the ground and bent down to look straight in it.

Then he said, "Molly are you in there?''

Big pause...

"Molly are you in there?"

"No, that's just a monitor"

Then he stood up and went back to playing. I love the way his mind works at this age!

Surprise Visit from Mimi & Papa

2010-09-25T21:26:00.000-07:00

Joe's parents surprised us a few weeks ago with a very fun visit! They realized their calendar was getting full and wanted to come see us before Molly started crawling. We're so thankful that they make that long drive from Tulsa every couple months to see us. Ryan was VERY excited that they were coming and after they left said he was sad because Mimi and Papa went home.

We did lots of fun things...jumped on the trampoline with Buzz and Woody, swung, played cards, visited Kiddie Acres, went shopping, played trains and with the bouncy ball, read books, and went out to eat at the Shady Grove! Thanks again for coming to visit!

The Little Playground

2010-09-25T20:49:00.000-07:00

One of Ryan's favorite places to play right now is what we call "the little playground". Our neighborhood has a huge nice playground with several playscapes and a playhouse, but there's usually lots of people there. Ryan really likes this playground better because it's much less crowded and all shaded when we go there in the evenings. The only down side is there's no swings for Molly but she always finds a way to have some fun!

Dad gets in on the fun too!

Here's Ryan with his favorite "friend", a small Buzz Lightyear. He came with Woody but Ryan definitely likes Buzz much better. He takes him up to the top of the playscape and sends him down the slide. He also likes to bury him in the rocks. Anyone want to guess how long before we lose this favorite friend?

Since there aren't any swing at this playground, Molly gets to chew on my sunglasses. Plus it keeps her from eating the rocks!

Ryan climbed up the curvy part with Dad's help for the first time and was so proud of himself! He's growing up fast!

And one last picture of my goofy boy!

Visit from Canada

2010-09-24T19:51:00.000-07:00

Last month our friends the Morans came back to visit Austin. They stayed with us for several days and we had so much fun hanging out and catching up. They stayed pretty busy but overall we spent alot of time laughing, hanging out, and watching the kids play. Oh, and did I mention they did my dishes, cleaned my floors, and put away my laundry? House guests don't get much better than that! Come back anytime!! I put alot of pictures on Facebook, but here's a few in case you aren't on there.

Ryan and Morgandy played pretty well together this time. This was a big deal for Ryan since he hasn't really started playing with friends until recently. I definitely enjoyed it! Their favorite game was to pretending it was "raining" and make everyone climb into the tent we had set up in the office. They also colored alot with markers. Thankfully Myra taught Ryan to put the lids back on. I'm so glad they can play together now.

Morgandy really entertained Molly alot. She's a great big sister to Bretton and passed on her sweetness to Molly too.

I hadn't styled my hair in 3 days, but I had to get a picture with Myra. I loved having her back in town, even if it was just a short time.

And of course I had to post this shot of Bretton. He is so CUTE! He sat in the Bumbo next to Molly on the floor and they just were too cute chewing on their toys. I even rocked him to sleep once...so sweet!

Looking forward to the next visit with our crazy Canadian friends!

Molly at 8 Months

2010-09-14T19:01:00.000-07:00

So this post is over a week behind, but late is better than never right?? Molly is growing like crazy and is such a FUN girl! Seriously, this kid is teething and you wouldn't know it. She's still so happy and pretty content, although she notices now when I leave the room and lets me know she doesn't like it sometimes. She is getting more attached to me and lately hasn't wanted to be left in the nursery at church much, although she's usually tired or hungry during church times. She does love our friend Miss Sarah though and does great when she watches her.

Molly is still super chubby. I have no idea how much she weighs, but she's heavy! I love all the chubbiness and am relishing it because it will soon start fading away when she starts crawling. She officially scoots but hasn't quite started crawling because she keeps one foot in front and leans forward but doesn't make it all the way to her belly. She REALLY wants to explore though so she'll figure it out soon I'm sure. She also does the splits like Ryan used to when he was trying to learn to crawl. She's a flexible one!

Molly has been teething like crazy. At 8 months she officially had 3 teeth in and one barely breaking through. She didn't get them in the right order on the top though. She got the outside ones on the top first, as you can see here. I thought it gave her a bit of a vampire look, but as soon as she was 8 months and 1 week old the middle two on the top started coming through too.

Her hair is getting longer but is very fine and fuzzy! It always sticks up and is so cute!

Molly says "Dada" and "Mama" and even "RyRy" but the only one that she says consistently with a person is "Mama". Both Joe and my parents confirmed it. She says "Mama" or "Mommm" and looks for me. Yay! "Mama" is her first word! Fitting since Ryan's first word was "Dada".

Molly's favorite games right now are peek-a-boo and to "get Mommy" where she dives in and kisses or head butts you. Also when you're holding her she loves to dive backwards and laugh or squeal so you'll tickle her. No fear in this girl!! You have to be paying attention too or she'll just dive off your lap or out of your arms to get something. She also loves to have Daddy "leap" her just like her brother.

And finally, the girl loves music and being outside. And especially her big brother and doing or playing with anything he does!

Labor Day Fun

2010-09-08T20:13:00.000-07:00

We stayed in town for Labor Day this year and had a great family weekend all around. What did we do that was so fun? Here's just a few of the things.

First, I got a bike a few weeks ago and we installed another kid seat on the back so we could go on family bike rides. It took several tries to get Molly used to the helmet and the seat, but we had several successful rides as a family, including one to the big playground. Please ignore the smooshed ear in this picture. She informed Joe of the problem a few minutes later with her loud cries and they resolved the problem ASAP. I'm looking forward to many more of these outings, especially now that the weather is starting to cool off a bit.

We also just hung out together enjoying each other at home. Why would you want to go or do anything else when you can watch this precious girl smile at you??

Ryan and I went to Home Depot and bought some flowers for the back porch to hang. It's his job to help me remember to water them every day. They have a bit more hope for survival with him reminding me.
We also attempted to play Cootie. I love Ryan's super excited expression. Of course by "play Cootie" he just means we should dump all the little pieces out and then throw the dice.

And finally, we had the start of football season in our house with the first Texas Tech game on tv. We walked in to the room to see Ryan watching football this way. I guess it's just in the boy gene to get comfy to watch football.

Last thing....we watched Molly trying to learn to crawl. She can scoot and rotate, and even do a few yoga moves like the splits or this lovely one where one foot is in front and one behind. I wish we didn't lose that flexibility that babies have as we age!

Hope your holiday weekend was just as fun! Oh, and did I mention I went to sleep early 2 nights in a row AND I got to sleep in? By the end of the weekend I was well rested, connected with my hubby and kids, most of my laundry was done, and my house was clean and in great shape! It doesn't get much better than that!

Ryan's first day back!

2010-09-08T19:51:00.001-07:00

On Ryan's first day back at preschool it was pouring down rain!! We weren't able to get a good setting for first day pictures, but it didn't matter much since he decided to just do funny faces the whole time for pictures. Silly boy!

We had gone the week before to meet his teachers Miss Penny and Miss Dannita, and we had really talked about how much fun he would have. He also already knew several kids in his class. He went right in and sat at the table for play-doh. He said, "You stay in here a little bit." I just told him I needed to take Molly home for her nap and he was fine with that. He told me he had alot of fun on his first day and was really happy when I picked him up. He said, "I no cry. Mommy come back and get me."

Oh, and did I mention that rain days are his favorite days at preschool because they get to ride trikes in the gym instead of going to the playground? We had been talking about the fun things he would do at school and that's one he always said, so we were glad it rained the first day so he got to do his favorite activity. Last year his teachers always made sure he got his favorite trike and he rode it the entire time. Apparently this year he branched out to the scooters and cars too. My little guy is growing up! Ha!

And how did Molly feel about Ryan's first day?

"I get to play with Ryan's toys all by myself! Woo hoo!"

Summer Fun

2010-09-06T21:40:00.000-07:00

What makes for summer fun?

Good food (yes, he's eating a red bell pepper like an apple, all his idea!)

Bike rides with dad

Learning how to scoot so you can get your brother's toys

And one very silly boy playing with his sister's toys in return!

Middle of the Road

2010-09-06T20:37:00.001-07:00

I've decided I'm a middle of the road parent. And I'm ok with that. I'm tired of all the comparisons with other moms or trying to keep my kids on their best behavior (which doesn't work!) In the end I'm a pretty good mom. Not the best, but I do try pretty hard, along with the other things in my life that are important like being a wife and friend.

Let me clarify what I mean on two big issues with me and the parents around me right now...whining and eating healthy.

On whining....Yes, my kid whines. Definitely more than most kids we have been around lately, but not as bad as some. Is it a phase? Yes. Does he whine more than some kids? Yes. Am I doing everything I know to do to help curb it not only for my sanity but those around me? Yes. So in the effort of embracing my "middle of the road" philosophy, if you hang out with me and my kids right now, you might get to be around a whiney 2 year old. I'm doing as much as I can without it overwhelming me, and it is a phase. He's actually been SO much better about it lately. And doggone it, I'm a good mom even if my kid whines more than yours!

On the second...healthy eating. Do I try to give Ryan a balance of healthy foods, like protein, fruits, vegetables, and carbs throughout the day? Yes. Does he always eat a good variety? No. Could I do a better job of giving him only healthy options? Yes. Could I eat better myself? Yes. Do I let him eat junk food all the time or only his current favorite food for every meal? No. Did I use M&M's to potty train even though the experts say not to use food as a reward? Absolutely. Do I regret it? Not a bit! Yes, I can do better in this area. But sometimes I choose to play with Molly or have a few minutes to myself instead of cooking or preparing food. If you focus on giving your kids as healthy as food as possible, I support you. That's awesome. If you make your own baby food, that's great! I'm really sincere about that. But if you're like me and use things like lunchables to make those preschool mornings not so hectic, don't feel bad about it either.

As a mom you can't do everything and be everything for everyone all the time. You pick and choose. I really don't choose to be the best at anything but go for moderation alot. Because trying to be the best is way too exhausting for me and feeds into my achievement-oriented personality. Also, I'm surrounded by some awesome moms and don't want to compare myself with them constantly. We're all great moms in our own ways.

Schlitter-barn!

2010-08-30T21:02:00.000-07:00

I just posted about the "girls trip" that Joe's mom takes her granddaughters on, but Joe's dad also does a "boys trip" with his grandsons too. Joe and Ryan went for the first time last year and loved it, so this year the boys drove from Tulsa to our house and stayed for one night before heading out to Schlitterbahn.

When we first mentioned the trip to Ryan he thought we said "Schlitter-barn" and even expected to see cows and horses there. Joe's mom brought him a brochure from there to help him get excited and he talked every day until the trip about "Go to Schlitter-barn and ride the big, big slide!" He was so excited!

Again we had a house full of guests and loved it. Joe's dad, brother, and 2 nephews all stayed in Ryan's room while he stayed in our room. Somehow they managed to get some sleep.

Molly had some Papa time before the big trip.

Ryan really warmed up fast to his cousins Sean and Travis. He had been having alot of social anxiety this summer (more than normal) so it was so nice to see him immediately play and be comfortable around them. He doesn't see them often but he really does have a special bond with them.

I made a collage of some of the pictures of the trip. They had a blast! Ryan even took a nap under a tree at the water park. I think he'll definitely want to go back again next year. And yes, he did get to ride one big water ride after a pretty tough hour long wait in line, but it was the highlight of the day and he still talks about it often.

Molly and I had some great girl time over the weekend while the boys were gone. I really enjoyed spending one-on-one time with her and we did lots of shopping! One of the best things though is when the boys came home Ryan ran up to me and did this all on his own, followed by a super big kiss on the cheek...all his idea =)

Giggly Girls + Chocolate = Crazy Fun!

2010-08-30T20:37:00.000-07:00

Wow, I'm so behind on blogging. Here we go on catching up! Last month Joe's mom took all her granddaughters (except Molly) on their annual "girls trip". This time Joe's sister Mary came along too. They decided to brave Sea World and stayed with us one night on the way. It was a short night, but we packed in lots of fun!

We all crammed around our table for dinner.

The kids and Joe jumped on the trampoline, but then Lilly decided to swing a bit.

Molly LOVED all the attention from her cousins, including Grace.

And finally, there was chocolate. LOTS of it. I thought it would be fun to have chocolate fondue. The girls helped me prepare all the yummy things to dip in the chocolate. We had a great time. Then all 4 girls slept in Ryan's room together, Mary was on the couch, and Sherry was on an air mattress in the office. Oh, and Ryan was in our room. Turns out we really can sleep a small army in our house, at least once all the chocolate wore off!

Summer Blues

2010-08-20T20:30:00.000-07:00

Sometime back in the midst of my "summer blues" month where it seemed Ryan was whining and crying all the time my parents came to visit to give me a break. Thank goodness! I enjoyed all the spoiling, and so did the kids. Molly especially loves to have family and friends over, and was held lots by her Pa Paw.

Ryan was pretty attached to me and had to know where I was almost all the time, but he still enjoyed having Grandma near. They played together and she even had the patience to "cook" with him, which is something I haven't had the patience to do in awhile. Here they were attempting to make a layered dessert of angel food cake, pudding, and fruit.

Ryan didn't want to put the strawberries in the dessert...he only wanted them in his mouth! Luckily we had plenty of strawberries for both!

Molly loved her Grandma's glasses! This is such a sweet picture.

I'm so glad my parents are retired and can come visit often. It was a much needed break for me during a rough time!

Water Fun

2010-08-20T20:26:00.000-07:00

One of Ryan's favorite things ever is to play in the water. Luckily they opened these really nice fountains in the new section of the Domain shopping center. I LOVE that there's some shade and seating right along the edge and a super nice family restroom very close by. Great planning by someone! Oh, and the top picture with Ryan's tongue sticking out...that's his "excited" face. My favorite is him just standing in the water with his finger in his mouth, like it's nothing unusual to have water shooting up at you. Silly boy!

9 Great Years!

2010-08-19T20:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary to the most fun, handsome, sweet, and crazy guy I know! He's also an AWESOME dad as well as super duper husband. 9 years ago I made the best decision ever to marry Joe, and I haven't ever questioned it for a minute. Thanks to Kathy, a broken computer, and a football game for bringing us together (finally!)

Who's 7 Months Old?

2010-08-12T21:22:00.000-07:00

I am 7 months old! Pick me!

Yes, Molly is officially past the halfway point and just keeps on going! I'm going to copy the words of my friend Caren and just say that I'd really like to press the pause button on her for a bit because I love this age so much! She is adorable, almost always happy, and not mobile!! Usually she's pretty content with what's in front of her, although I've seen it in her eyes the past week that she's figured out there's more out there than what's in front of her. I think in a month or so she'll have discovered some means of getting those cool toys her brother plays with just out of reach. But for now, my job is still easy with her!

What do I want to remember about this age? Let's see...

She started really sucking on her top lip alot a few weeks ago. I haven't gotten it on camera, but it's really funny. She also sticks her tongue out alot and blows raspberries all the time!
Her bottom two teeth have really come in, as you can see...

And she loves to use those teeth on "real" food. I discovered that cucumber sticks and whole wheat bread crust are less messy/disgusting than biter biscuits and cheaper too. She has major food envy and insists on having something in her hand when we're eating.

She's got an independent streak and won't allow me to put puffs in her mouth for her anymore even though she's still only about 50/50 on getting them in herself.
She is very expressive, and can even raise one eyebrow. She does it quite often. She's actually much better at it than I am. Here's an attempt at a picture of it.

She is still quite chubby and beautiful!

She gets frustrated now when she loses toys or when a mean Mommy takes them away for pictures. She can really let loose with some gut-wrenching cries when she's angry or frustrated. She usually only does it at night when she's falling asleep or wakes up in the middle of the night.

For the most part she makes friends with anyone, but if she's really tired or hungry and someone else is holding or talking to her she'll stare at them for a few seconds, realize it's not mom or dad, and then just do that cry from the picture right in their face! Always makes the person feel bad. Sweet little dramatic girlie.
She's started waving bye-bye...cutest...thing....ever!
We're settling in to a pretty nice schedule with longer and more reliable naps at home, but that also means she has a harder time sleeping places other than her crib.
She may have her first word. She almost always says something that sounds like "Goo" while she's eating and at no other time. I think she might be trying to say "good". We'll see!
She is a super happy girl and gives these grins & laughs often, especially to her brother. We're so happy to have her in our family!

Molly laughing from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

Why I love my job

2010-07-30T13:42:00.000-07:00

Ok, so for the record 2 1/2 isn't not one of my favorite ages. 6 months is, but unfortunately the whiny 2 1/2 year old has sucked most of the attention from the happy 6 month old. I have been exhausted, angry, frustrated, and cried alot this past month. Thankfully things overall are improving, but I've felt like such a negative Nellie this past month. So I started thinking today about all the awesome things about being a stay at home mom. Here's some of them.

1. Naptime for everybody! (as Ryan says most days)
2. The dress code is VERY casual and comfortable. Even pj's are acceptable and flipflops are mandatory. You don't even have to shower every day!
3. I get to spend alot of time outside, from parks and walks to swimming in the summer.
4. I get lots of smiles just for coming out from behind a corner or talking to someone.
5. I can play music as loud as I want.
6. My co-workers don't care if I hum or sing "You've got a friend in me" a million times a day. They love it actually! Who cares if I don't know the rest of the words?

7. Sometimes "work" consists of laying in my sons bed while he brings me his blankie, Mickey Mouse, a book, a picture to look at...

8. The commute is awesome!

9. Lots and lots of hugs =)

10. I have lots of great friends that I see often, even if there is chaos around us.

11. I've learned to carry a conversation with lots of interruptions, and occasionally remember what we talked about. It's definitely a learned skill!

12. Quiet afternoons occasionally to sit and read a blog or post.

13. My daily reviews by co-workers include, "Mommy you're the best!" and "Mmm.mmm"

14. Awesome job security!

15. Getting a chance to see my son bring toys to his sister or hear her just laughing and giggling at him in the car. (If they were in daycare they'd be in separate classes.)

16. The snack section and refrigerator have all my favorites.

17. I get to watch my kids learn and develop every day, like when Ryan suddenly starts matching toys or Molly starts waving.

Ok, I'm out of ideas for now, and I've been working on this post for awhile. You other SAHM, what's your favorite part of your job?

Thank you Sesame Street

2010-07-23T20:50:00.000-07:00

Apparently we've been watching the episode of Sesame Street about the letter Y alot lately. I had no idea until Ryan was playing the drums and suddenly announced, "I made the letter Y!" Or maybe it's from all that work I have done writing his name over and over with him.....ha, ha! Probably a bit of both, but still nice to know that tv time IS teaching him something!

Silly Ryan

2010-07-23T20:40:00.001-07:00

Here's some fun videos of Ryan I've had for awhile but not had time to post. Things have been crazy around here!! We've had two really good days in a row, though, so I'm in a good place right now. Hopefully my "happy Ryan" is here to stay for awhile again!

Joe started telling Ryan stories at bedtime, and they always start out with "Once there was a boy named ____". One of Ryan's new favorite games is for Joe or I to pretend to be going to sleep and he'll bring us his blanket, Mickey Mouse, pillow, etc. and pretend to tuck us in for the night. Sometimes we're lucky enough to get a story from him. Right now the boy is always named Anderson or fire truck, and they usually go to the playground or ducks in the pond.

Ryan the Storyteller from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

This next video is a follow up to the last video I did of Ryan dancing. One morning Ryan announced he was "dancing with my eyes" and this is what he was doing. I love it when he comes up with stuff like this!

Ryan "dancing with his eyes" from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

Icecream!

2010-07-12T21:12:00.000-07:00

I left Joe alone with Molly for 2 minutes, and this is what they were up to!

Ryan won't touch icecream, so I guess Joe decided he'd better start early training this one to enjoy the good things in life!

Molly at 6 Months

2010-07-12T20:46:00.000-07:00

Time flies by, especially with the second baby. Molly is already 6 months old, and I forgot how much I LOVE this age! Here's a quick comparison.

Molly at 1 month

Molly at 6 months

Molly is seriously the happiest baby ever! I really feel like she gets ignored because she's so happy. Not fair, I know, but that's how it works sometimes. I do actually play alot with her, and I love how easy it is to get some great giggles out of her, especially by tickling under her chin. She is almost always content and usually smiling and laughing. She's as happy chewing on a strap as a toy, and she gets very energized by being around people and being talked to or held. She definitely wants in on the action but is pretty content watching for now. I was trying to do a photo shoot this afternoon and Ryan wanted in the picture. Look at how much she ADORES her big brother!

Molly also officially has 2 teeth. They came in within days of each other about a week or so ago. She had been having a little bit of trouble staying asleep at night, but overall really wasn't that fussy at all.

She was given the big ok at her checkup today. Very large head, above average weight, and a bit on the shorter side. All in all, just about like Ryan was at this age, which again makes for a super chubby and cute baby!

Molly is starting to want to sit up more and is getting better at balancing. She's great at rolling from her back to her stomach and then will stay there happy for a long time, but she's forgotten how to roll from her tummy to her back, so then she gets frustrated. It's one of the few things that frustrates her besides being hungry or tired. She's been eating rice cereal for a month or two but is just now really enjoying it every time. Since she's the second kid she's already had tastes of all sorts of food, like kix and icecream, but I'll save that for another post.

I'm so thankful for such a beautiful, sweet and happy girl. She makes me laugh so much every day! Thanks God!

Molly in the morning from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

4th of July- Part 2

2010-07-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th of July!

I'm so thankful that I live in a country with so much freedom. I don't reflect on how great this country really is often enough. I don't fear for my life every day. I don't wonder if the water I'm drinking has some serious disease in it. I don't have to bribe government officials for my safety. There's definitely some things I think could be better about our country, but overall America is a great place to live!

We had a pretty low-key 4th of July. We had church that morning, and in the afternoon Joe took Ryan to do some of the free activities our neighborhood had going on while Molly and I napped. Then I took Ryan swimming while Joe cooked a steak dinner...with corn on the cob! I love fresh corn on the cob. It's one of my favorite things about growing up in the country. Looks like our kids love it, too. This was supposed to be Joe's corn but Ryan demolished it. (And yes that's a "shiner" under his eye. He ran into the corner of a table at a restaurant that Friday)

Yes, Molly is a second child, and gets to try all sorts of things she shouldn't just for the fun of it! She needed something to try out those 2 new teeth on, right?

After dinner Joe took Ryan out for some sparklers and our neighbors were out with their son Joey, who is just a little bit older than Ryan. Ryan wasn't too sure about the sparklers at first, but later on that night he really enjoyed them. Joe also got some snakes, too, which Ryan thought were fun.

Our neighborhood isn't in the city limits, so you can set off fireworks here. The nice thing about that is there were fireworks all evening that we just sat out in our driveway and enjoyed. The annoying thing was there were fireworks all evening, especially lots of firecrackers from the boys across the street! It actually wasn't that annoying and a great way to slowly introduce Ryan to fireworks so he wasn't scared by the time they did the big show. As we were sitting in our camp chairs in our driveway watching random fireworks I told Joe that it reminded me of the 4th of July parties we had growing up on our farm where all our "city" friends from church would come out every year to shoot fireworks off at our house since they couldn't do it in town. The only thing missing was homemade icecream, and sure enough our friends Sam and Sarah came over a few minutes later to watch the big show our neighborhood put on and brought fresh homemade vanilla icecream! Perfect. By then Ryan was so tired he wouldn't stop riding his trike to watch the fireworks much, but he'd seen lots during the whole evening. All in all a great holiday weekend!

4th of July- Part 1

2010-07-08T21:11:00.000-07:00

Our friends the George's invited us and some friends over on July 3rd for pizza and lots of kid craziness. Caren got all the little ones together for a cute picture. Here's Molly with her friends Emily and Evan.

And here's MY friends, Caren, Tanya, and Noelle. Caren always threatens to steal my children, but so far she's never gone through with it.

Ryan has some funny expressions lately, including just sticking his tongue out when he's not thinking about it.

And here's one excited girl on July 4th!

Joy

2010-07-01T19:59:00.000-07:00

I won't lie. It's been a rough week! I don't know what's been going on with Ryan, but he has been super attached to me and sad all week. I don't know how many times I've had to ask him or one of his toys why they're "sad and crying for Mom". Also it was our first week potty training, and to top it off it's a deadline week for Joe so he's been working crazy hours. Molly also was sick and has had trouble sleeping. BUT today was very different. We all had fun today! What was so great about it?

First off, it rained! I timed our dinner outing at the park just right so we got to the car just as it started sprinkling so we would stay dry, but of course once we got home Ryan wanted to play in the rain. It was his idea to take off all his clothes but his "big guy underwear". It was pouring rain, but Joe and Ryan went out walking in it probably 6 times. I love that when Ryan asked Joe to go out in it, his response was, "Sure, let's go!" I was just smiling the whole time watching them.

The rain cooled everything off nicely, so we took two walks today and Ryan actually enjoyed being outside and playing with his toys. I did too! This picture wasn't from today, but I love how it just shows his pure joy playing with his baseball bat!

Molly also was more herself today. Why, you might ask? Well, her first tooth finally came through! Yay! I saw lots of smiles from her today, and those big blue eyes are just precious.

And finally, my favorite picture of all from today. Molly loves her exersaucer, but I think Ryan likes it just as much or more. He always asks me to put Molly in there so he can play with her. She obviously loves her big brother. I just felt so happy and peaceful watching them play together. These moments make all the other ones fade away. It's all worth it!!

In Control? Ha!

2010-06-27T20:58:00.000-07:00

Our guest preacher at church today talked about the god of control and how we try to control things in our life. This sermon was one that really resonated with me for alot of reasons. I definitely like to know what to expect and have things figured out, but like he pointed out, life has a way of keeping you on your toes.

What does this picture have to do with it? Well, first of all, my kids really teach me often about how little I control. I may be able to hold Molly and control where she is, but she's shown me in the past 2 days that I really can't control fully when she naps or even keep her poop off my pants! But she's awesome, just the way she is. Even when she acts super tired but doesn't nap. I hate it because I feel like I read the signs all wrong and makes me feel out of control, but that's just a part of having a baby. And all in all I really shouldn't complain because she's a great sleeper at night. I just don't like these transition times with naps when I don't know what to expect, but I also really love this super sweet age.

Ryan is also teaching me about how I'm not in control. First he's decided that he's 2 1/2 and he can say no to me when I ask him to do something. So we're having lots of negative consequences around here for choices. Not fun. But the big thing is that Ryan has basically decided he's ready to potty train. For the past few days anyway. Sure, we've given him the option for awhile and he's been going on the potty about once or twice a day for a few weeks, but the past couple of days he's decided he really wants to wear that big guy underwear. Whether his mommy is ready or not!

Finally, in that picture Molly is wearing a dress made by her great-great-grandmother over 60 years ago for my aunt Sharon when she was a baby. My aunt Sharon passed away over a week ago. She was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer only 3 weeks before that. In the sermon the preacher talked about someone in that room finding out in the next year they have cancer, and I couldn't help but think about that. Not many in my family have had cancer, but the possibility looms. I could dwell on that or read articles about how to eat this and avoid that to prevent cancer, but again, that's trying to take back control when we really don't have any.

One last thought on control. As most of you know we had 2 miscarriages before we had Ryan. We weren't even sure we'd ever have a baby at some low points, although we always held out faith that we would. And then sometime later we thought maybe we'd have another, and boom, here comes Molly! Life keeps you on your toes, but God is always there. I'm glad to hand over the reigns to Him. Because look at this beautiful family He gave me!

Molly is 5 Months Old

2010-06-11T21:27:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby girl is growing up so fast! She's just so much fun right now. She's a sweet, happy girl who loves to smile at people and especially watch her big brother. Here's that beautiful smile!

She's growing like crazy with lots of chubbiness. I love it! You can see her chubby legs and arms here.

As I posted before, she is drooling all the time now. I either have to put a bib on her or put her in several outfits a day because she just soaks them in drool! Teeth probably aren't too far behind.

She's started eating oatmeal once a day and gets so excited to have the spoon coming to her mouth. She tries to grab the spoon or put her fingers in there too. She usually tries to chew her oatmeal and alot falls out, but she's getting better and loves trying. I often see her like this with 2 fingers in her mouth or more recently a thumb, but this is her favorite to do when she's falling asleep since she doesn't take a pacifier at all.

A few other things about Molly right now:

Molly is a great night sleeper and is really starting to settle in better with naps by sleeping for longer than 45 minute stretches. Longer naps less often definitely are easier when you have 2 kids!
She's wearing mostly 9 month clothing at 5 months old. She's a healthy girl!
Molly is super tickling near her collerbone and will really chuckle when you tickle her sometimes.
She loves singing, especially "God made the big round sun" while I help her with the hand motions. She's also starting to really enjoy peek-a-boo and loves to be read books (when I find the time!)
Molly doesn't mind tummy time and can roll to her back, and she's probably not too far off from rolling from back to tummy. She can rotate herself somehow on the floor 180 degrees, which is funny because when you leave her and come back her head is where her feet where when you left her!
She'll copy me when I stick my tongue out by sticking hers out. She's also tried to imitate Joe whistling and me clicking my tongue.
Molly is pretty much either content or really happy unless she's hungry or really tired. And even then it's pretty easy to distract her from it.
She already likes swimming alot, and she even fell asleep in the pool the other night without crying at all! Looks like we have two kids that are part fish.

What a fun blessing Molly is! So glad she's a part of this family. And one more picture to make you laugh...

"What do you mean, I'm 5 months old? I was just born yesterday!"

Personality Differences

2010-06-02T20:55:00.000-07:00

I can already tell that Molly and Ryan have some differences in their personalities. Both of them love their Dad and love to be outside and doing fun things. They both have beautiful blue eyes and long eyelashes, and I'm pretty sure they'll both have blonde hair. But I think Ryan is naturally more of an introvert and Molly an extrovert. I remember at this age really having to work to get Ryan to smile and talk, and when we would go for pictures he was always too busy inspecting everything to really smile. Molly is the opposite- anyone talks to her and she's ready to respond with a smile and maybe even some cute babbling. For example, see how at her first time at Bible class she immediately smiles at all the toys...

While Ryan is just taking it all in with those big eyes open wide!

I've figured out recently that Ryan is kind of shy. I always thought he wasn't interested in the playground equipment at our neighborhood park because he liked exploring better, but it turns out he loves to play on the playground at school where he knows all the kids there and is comfortable with them. Our neighborhood playground is very popular and there's always lots of kids there that he's never seen before, so he's too shy or uncomfortable to play with all the other kids on the actual equipment. When we go to the small playgrounds where there aren't other kids then he'll usually play on them and have alot of fun! I'm glad I've finally figured out what's going on and I've been trying to help him get more confident around other kids or in new situations. He just takes after his mom a little bit =)

It'll be fun to see how Molly is at this age. I have a feeling she'll make friends pretty easily, like her dad, and be much more spontaneous. Ryan likes his routines and wants to know what to expect, like his mom. But things can always change, and one fun thing about being a parent is watching your kids' personalities develop!

And the chewing begins!

2010-06-02T20:49:00.000-07:00

Molly has definitely entered the chewing phase this past month, as you can see. I'm sure she'll be sweet to her doll later, but for now she was just proud to chew on it!

Here she is with her FAVORITE chew toy, her hands. I'm honestly pretty lazy about giving her toys since she loves chewing her hands and she doesn't drop those!

Molly loves these flowers and will work around as much as she can in her Bumbo to try and reach them. You can tell she has one thing in mind for those flowers in this picture...

And the other thing is that she's discovered her feet this past month! The best toys are the ones that can't get lost!

Montreal Pictures

2010-06-02T20:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a collage from the day we walked around Old Montreal. I loved all the old buildings and cobblestone streets.

Molly and Bretton really enjoyed meeting each other. They even held hands. I promise we didn't set this one up!

Morgandy loved having Molly there. She would read books and sing lots of songs to her, and Molly would just laugh and talk to her! Sweet girls!

This is Morgandy at the Patisserie. We had the boys in our slings for the walk and of course Morgandy needed to bring her baby in her sling too.

I had such a great visit! The Morans are great hosts. I highly recommend making the trip if you can!

Austin Angels

2010-06-02T13:27:00.000-07:00

Well, I posted a short bit about this on Facebook, but here's the whole story in a novel version for those of you that are interested! I flew by myself with Molly to see my friend Myra in Montreal, Canada and meet her baby boy Bretton. I was very nervous about crossing the border with Molly. I wasn't able to get a passport before we went because I only have one birth certificate and you have to send that off with the passport application, and by the time I was ready to do it all I wasn't sure I'd get it back in time for the trip. So I read online you can cross the border by land with a child under 16 with just a certified birth certificate, and decided to fly to Burlington, Vermont and drive across the border.

Traveling there was great. Molly nursed alot but did great and slept most of the flights. I did have alot of trouble with United airlines agents not being nice to me in Austin, but once we actually got on the plane it was pretty easy. Patrick (Myra's husband) picked us up in Burlington and we headed for the Canadian border. I was very nervous. The border agent had no trouble with me crossing with my passport and only her birth certificate, but he was very stern about wanting to know where my baby's father was. Joe was home with Ryan, but I guess it did look strange to cross the border with a man who wasn't her father. I explained it was a short trip but he said I should have brought a letter with me from the father saying it was ok to go. He made me look at the window with pictures of all these missing children and said, "How do I know you are going home and she won't be a missing child??" I wasn't sure what to say, so I said, "Well, I have an airline ticket to fly home on Monday." My next idea was to offer to call Joe, but he just lectured me a bit more and let us go on our way...Whew!

The next three days in Montreal were awesome! Lots of hanging out and catching up, yummy food including pastries from the local patisserie, exploring old Montreal, and just experiencing what it would be like to live there. It felt like vacation to me to only be watching one nonverbal, non-mobile, and non-whiney kid! Plus I didn't have any dishes or cooking to do. Awesome! I was pretty homesick for Joe and Ryan by the time I left to come home though.

Again I was pretty nervous to cross the border, but this time I had no trouble at all. I think it helped that Myra took me and I was going home. We got to Burlington in plenty of time to eat a nice lunch before Myra dropped me at the airport. As I'm checking in I don't see my flight listed at the right time on the board, but the kiosk lets me check in no problem. I go through security like a breeze and I'm thinking how good of a traveler I am...BIG MISTAKE! I get to the gate to get my stroller tagged and the gate agent casually mentions..."You know the flight is delayed right?" Ummm..no I did not! It's delayed over an hour, which is a problem since my layover in Newark was only 40 minutes. My options were to stay overnight in Burlington, or take the flight to Newark and hope my connecting flight was delayed enough that I could get on it. I decided to at least try to make my connection in Newark since I had no car and no one in Burlington to keep me company. Myra had her cell phone off since she was in the states so she had no idea what was going on. This is the first instance of me almost collapsing in tears, but the hope that it all might work out kept me calm.

We boarded the plane for Newark and as we're landing, Molly has a huge blowout diaper. Poop all up her back..and a little bit on my skirt. Luckily the seat beside me was empty so I decide to change her there (on her diaper pad) as we're taxi-ing to the gate so that I can then rush to catch my connecting flight. Also I didn't want to carry her off the plane and have poop oozing out everywhere. Sorry to all the people nearby, but you do what you have to!

I get off the plane and ask the gate agent about my connecting flight...which apparently has already left. Blurg. She tells me I'm booked on the first flight in the morning, at a joyous 5:30 am! No, that's not a good option I say, so she directs me to the customer service counter, where I ask if there's any way to get to San Antonio. Nope, that flight left too. So I beg to go to Houston, where at least I'll be in my home state. He just starts typing and asking for my date of birth. I'm waiting...trying to keep from crying for the second time. Finally I ask if I can get to Houston or not and he prints out my boarding pass. He has a heavy accent but asks me to look at it and see what's unusual about it. Really, are you going to mess with me at 8 pm at night? I try to be patient and look but pretty calmly say, "Sorry, I'm tired, and I have no idea what I'm looking for." He points proudly to the part that says "One Pass" which he explains means I'm flying first class! He said it was because I was traveling with a baby (who was in the sling looking super cute at him) I think he expected me to jump for joy, but all I could muster was a "Wow, thank you very much". Then I was off to find elevators to go down to the bus to go to the next terminal, all the while talking to Joe and planning what I was going to do overnight in Houston.

Joe booked a really nice hotel for me by the airport for the night that had a shuttle. I talked to someone about having my bag transferred to my new flight and they assured me it would be on the plane. I was looking around for something to eat and suddenly realized they're boarding my plane. Well, luckily I flew first class which means they gave me food! Funny how fruit, cheese, a couple carrots, some cookies and crackers can seem like a gourmet meal when served on a real plate while everyone else is getting nothing! I was pretty nervous though trying to keep Molly quiet since I was surrounded by businessman, but she did great again. We landed in Houston at 11:30 pm and all I could think of is getting to the hotel and that comfy bed.

Oh, did I forget to mention that right before my plane left Joe called the hotel and found out that the hotel shuttle stopped running at 11? Basically it was up to me to hire a taxi. I could always have called my sister in a jam, but she lives half an hour away from the airport. No problem, I can do this, I kept telling myself. At least I'm in Texas! So in the sling Molly goes because she's asleep and off we go to get my bag. As I'm waiting and the first bag comes out, I notice Molly is awake and hear water hit the floor. I feel the sling and realize that her diaper I'd changed earlier on that other plane wasn't on tight and she'd leaked through the side. So off we go to change the diaper...now I'm down to 2 diapers. And all the stores are closed at the airport. Guess the taxi will have to take us by the gas station on the way to the hotel so I can buy diapers. Still ok, I can do this, I keep saying...

And then I walk out to get my bag. And it's not there. I watch the carousel go around a couple times in disbelief, but it's not there. And I hang my head against the stroller, because this time, I'm really gonna cry. I deserve it. But this woman beside me says, "Are you ok? Can I help you?" I just laugh and say that I'm beyond help...I was supposed to be in Austin and I'm stuck in Houston with no bag and no ride to my hotel. She immediately says she and her husband are from Austin and have 3 kids, and they would be glad to have me stay with them and drive me home tomorrow. Wow! Seriously, God was working in her heart right there. I don't even know why they were still in the luggage area because everyone else had basically left. I just asked them to take me to my hotel so I wouldn't have to get a taxi, and they gladly offered to do that. They had just flown in from Isreal. I know they were exhausted, but they were cheerily doing everything to help me out. I started to go check on my bag but would've had to take a number and wait, so I just walked out and thought "Forget it, I'll deal with it tomorrow."

So Simone & Darren and Darren's father drive me to 2 gas stations to find diapers and a contact case, and Darren went and bought them for me so I didn't have to take Molly inside. They wouldn't even take my money. I called Joe as I walked to the car and very happily said, "Hey these really nice people at the airport offered to give me a ride to the hotel, so we're going now. They're from Austin." I'm expecting him to be a little freaked out by my riding with strangers, but his immediate response was, "That's great! Be sure to invite them over for dinner so I can thank them in person!"

The hotel room was really nice, and they had a toothbrush and toothpaste for me. They also had the pack & play all set up for me too, which was awesome! Molly and I crashed then headed to the airport the next morning and flew home, all without a hitch. I seriously haven't been that homesick in a very long time, and I am loving being home. I don't regret going, because it was completely worth it, but I'm so glad to be home again!

Family

2010-05-17T21:07:00.000-07:00

Like many of my friends in Austin, we don't have any immediate family that live in town. Joe's first cousin lives here with his family, but we don't have any siblings or grandparents that live here. Sometimes we really miss having immediate family close enough to drop in or babysit for us on the weekends, attend preschool events, or just meet us at the park. We love Austin though, and have so many great friends that we basically consider family and help us out like family. Also, both my parents and Joe's parents are retired and travel here often to see us and their grandchildren, which we love.

This mother's day my family spent time with my sister Kathy and her family in Houston. My parents also met us there. Three hours may seem like a long way to drive with a 4 month old and a 2 year old, but compared to 8 or 10 hours, it's not that bad! We drove there to see my nephew Zach get his black belt in Karate, and I'm so glad we live close to attend. What's even more special is that my sister and her family always make us so welcome in their home. Kathy and Wayne always cook for us, and Zach gives up his bedroom and nice queen size bed for us. The pool is always warm and ready for Ryan to swim. It's almost like a vacation there.

Kathy, Wayne and Zach always make an effort to come see us for important events like baby showers and holidays, too. Kathy is the oldest of the 5 of us kids, and I'm the youngest, with 17 years separating us. But we're still sisters, and I'm so thankful that we are able to share our lives and families with each other on a regular basis. We love our other siblings and their kids too, but we just don't get to see them as often!

On to the pictures...

Ryan found a car in the bottom of the huge pool toy box. So typical. If there's a car in a 5 mile radius, he'll find it!

And the best picture I was able to get of Aunt Kathy with both kids. What a treat on Mother's Day to see my kids loved on by my sister and parents!

Swimming with the McNeils

2010-05-17T20:49:00.000-07:00

We went swimming at the McNeils super awesome pool at their apartments before they move. Luc is always so excited to see Molly and loves giving her kisses. He's going to be such a sweet big brother!

Ryan was a little shy at first in the water but then really started liking it. He enjoys playing more with containers in the water this year than just running and splashing like last year. MUCH easier for me =)

Who can resist that smile??

And of course we must have a picture of Luc and Ryan together. They really are good buddies!

Scary Brian

2010-05-17T20:41:00.000-07:00

Here's proof that "Mr. Brian" is a really scary guy. First he scared both Ryan and Brooklyn at their first Christmas party back in 2008...

And then made Molly cry at her first pool party!

Just kidding of course! Brian is actually a great dad of two fun boys now...Congratulations!!

Take me out to the ball game..

2010-05-12T21:28:00.000-07:00

Molly is 4 months old!

2010-05-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

Wow, time really does go so much faster the second time around. I can't believe my baby girl is 4 months old already! I know everyone says the same thing, but really, she's growing up much faster than Ryan. I really, really am loving this stage though. She's still flexible enough to sleep on the go and not end up too cranky, but yet she just loves to interact with people when she's awake. I love her sweet smiles and giggles especially, and she loves to talk to anyone that will listen. She started saying her "vowels" as I called it with Ryan, which is super cute even at 6 am.

Molly, like her big brother, has the biggest blue eyes and loves to take it all in. Thankfully she's also pretty easy to distract when she's upset, which makes life much easier around here. She really is almost always a happy, content little girl.

Her new thing the past few weeks is that she's really good now at getting her hands to her mouth. She's been batting at toys for awhile but is getting really good now at chewing on her hands and fingers. And along with that she now drools all the time! It's so funny watching her lock on to her hand and watch it like it's an alien, and then as she brings it to her mouth she crosses her eyes. Gotta wonder what's going through their minds at this age. Oh, and I just love the chubby arms. Need to get a good picture of the chubby legs, which are even more amazing.

And here is proof to ease my conscience that I do give her tummy time...occasionally =) Somehow at the end of the day I realize I never found the time to do it, but she seems to be developing just fine. This is actually a picture from several weeks ago, and she's gotten much better at holding her head and body up. Hopefully crawling won't happen for a long time!! She can roll but honestly doesn't get much practice. Poor second kids.

Molly is growing just great! She weighs 15 lbs 9 ounces, which is definitely above average for her age. She's already in some 9 month clothing...crazy girl. So glad she's a part of our life!

Happy Birthday Joe!

2010-05-04T13:35:00.000-07:00

For Joe's birthday we took our first camping trip as a family of 4 to Lake Georgetown. We had a great time, but yes, it's alot of work with two! They both did great though. We took Ryan on his first campout when he was about Molly's age, and honestly it's a great time to do it before they get mobile. Ironically we packed about as much stuff on this campout and used the same tent as when we used to go camping with just the two of us. We just brought more kid stuff and less things for ourselves.

Some funny memories:

We bought a small camping chair for Ryan but he only wanted to sit in the big camping chair since it had a cupholder, so Joe ended up sitting in Ryan's chair most of the time.

It poured down rain in the middle of the night, but we all stayed pretty dry. Poor Molly had a little bit of a hard time sleeping but Joe was able to comfort her and help her sleep.

We bought a camping mat for me to sleep on like Joe's, and it was so much easier to use and more comfortable than an air mattress except that my arms or legs kept falling asleep!

Ryan woke up before 7 ready to go for the day. About an hour later we were all exhausted again and laid down in the tent for a rest. Joe fell back asleep so hard that he didn't hear us climb over him or unzip the tent door which was right by his head!

Here's a few pictures to commemorate the occasion.

Big Brother Torture

2010-04-29T20:49:00.000-07:00

The "big brother torture" has officially begun! Joe had to work late tonight so I was trying to get ready to take the kids on a walk. I told Ryan to go keep an eye on Molly while I got a few things together. I hear from the other room, "Molly wear Ryan's hat. Silly Molly. That's Ryan's hat!". And this is what I saw...

This is a game Ryan came up with that's a combination of a couple things. We used to put Ryan's baby doll in the Bumbo and there's a small baseball hat that Ryan likes to put on the baby, so you can see why he came up with the idea to put his hat on Molly. We've also been pretending to change his stuffed Mickey Mouse's diaper since he hates the process so much lately and I say, "Silly Mickey, that's Ryan's diaper". Love the super huge grin and laugh he has with this though. Poor Molly...it's only begun!

On the other hand, Joe and I usually have Ryan say, "it's ok Molly" or "it's ok baby girl" when Molly is crying to comfort her. Well, one of the girls in his preschool class cries sometimes when she's dropped off and apparently Ryan is the little gentleman that goes over and pats her on the back and says "it's ok" to comfort her. It's so nice when you realize that they repeat the good and not just the bad =)

4 Generations

2010-04-26T20:53:00.000-07:00

Patricia Gibbins, Kimberly Gail Pollard, Molly Gail Pollard, and Mary Gail Weatherford

A few weeks ago we drove to my grandma's house and met my parents. We then drove up to Dallas to see my niece Kaetlyn play in a volleyball tournament. That place was crazy! The whole Dallas convention center was one big open room with court after court after court, and games were going on at each one constantly. Interestingly enough all the noise jazzed Ryan up and he just ran around constantly the whole time, while Molly got overwhelmed completely and wouldn't let anyone but Joe or I hold her. I had a great time finally watching Kaetlyn play volleyball, and my other niece MaKelti enjoyed chasing Ryan around for us.

Turns out one of my best friends from college was also in town and my mom spotted her at their hotel the night before, so we took a break from the volleyball craziness to ride the "train" so Molly could meet her for the first time. Kathy and I lead parallel lives but just a year different. Her son was born a year before Ryan, then I had Ryan the following January, then she had her daughter the next February, and I had Molly the next January. I told her it's her turn next but she didn't agree to it!

My aunt drove down the next day from Ft. Worth to meet Molly. She's quite a popular girl! Ryan had such a fun time that he's been asking to go to Grannie's house. Joe and I always enjoy relaxing on the farm and just getting away from all the normal distractions.

My grandma entertained Molly with her beautiful singing while Joe and I napped

Ryan was so tired and ready to head home on Sunday! He has his blankie, paci, and Mickey...all that's left is a good nap.

Our evenings & weekends

2010-04-18T11:41:00.000-07:00

We spend most of our evenings and weekends outside this time of year. Along with the walks to the normal destinations of playgrounds and the "ducks in the pond", one of Ryan and Joe's favorites is the soccer fields. Ryan loves running around in the open space, throwing "kribees" (frisbees), and watching Dad fly a kite. On this day he decided to just push the stroller around for a little while.

Joe is amazed that his kite flew for more than 1 minute...a new record!

Proof that it really did get pretty far up there before hurtling to the ground as usual in an attempt to take out of one Joe's beloved family members

Here's pictures from the playground near the pond that we enjoy.

Looks like he's modeling for a magazine..too cool to slide..

Wait, maybe sliding would be fun after all..

But watch me dangle first Dad!

I'm so glad we live in Austin and have such a great weather and places to enjoy it!

Bluebonnets!

2010-04-18T11:39:00.000-07:00

Easter & Birthday

2010-04-18T11:35:00.000-07:00

What happens when your birthday and Easter fall on the same day, and your husband is sick that day? You get a picture of the trail the Easter Bunny left (of jelly beans and m&m's, but only the m&m's were eaten immediately by Ryan)

A picture of a happy girl who's Easter present was to graduate to having toys on her swing..

One picture of your happy girl in her Easter dress...

And no pictures of the two of your kids together! Oh no!

All in all it was a fun day. Joe rallied a bit and helped me get the kids ready for church, and after nap Ryan and I went to the "toy store" (i.e. Walmart because my favorite Target was closed) where Ryan picked out a pretty Gerber daisy plant for my birthday and got a few toys for himself. We then went and played with his toys at the soccer field. Molly had already gotten me some nice earrings right after she was born so she was covered =)

Somehow I didn't get any pictures of Ryan hunting Easter eggs, but he had alot of fun hunting them several times at school at church. He also really figured out that there were "brownies" (chocolate) in the eggs and loved opening all the eggs on the way home to find out what was inside! Being a kid is so fun...and so is being a mom and getting to enjoy it with them =)

Talker

2010-04-11T19:03:00.000-07:00

Molly is definitely a talker! She makes alot more noises at this age than what I remember Ryan doing. He was too busy observing everything. I love how chatty she is! Here's a video that catches some of it. By the way, she officially turned 3 months old yesterday! Hopefully I'll post some pictures in the next couple days to mark the occasion, but for now, here's the video.

Molly chatting from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

Playtime

2010-04-08T19:56:00.000-07:00

Ryan's playtime has been very fun lately. Here's a snippet of what I can remember and a few pictures.

First, Ryan loves this little people farm, but he rarely puts animals or people in there. Instead it's usually a motorcycle, or in this case a "little bike" and a dump truck.

Shhh...the dump truck is sleeping!

I walked into the kitchen the other day and saw Ryan like this with his foot up on the table and his little potato head hat on his head. Silly boy!

Tonight I went to go upstairs and saw this. I'm sure that took some perseverance to get the stroller on the stairs that way!

Last picture is what Joe saw when he came home the other day. I left Ryan alone for about 20 seconds with a pen and he had fun...all over his face! The sticker was added later...all his idea!

On the flight home from Tulsa Ryan had 2 cars on the tray and started having them play ring around the rosy. They even fell down on their sides! Too funny.

Ryan likes to change up his favorite song, Twinkle Twinkle. Lately it's been Twinkle Twinkle Little Moon.

We've been known to say "it's ok baby Molly" when she's crying. Well, Ryan will randomly look at Joe and say "it's ok baby daddy" and then just laugh!

Finally, we were playing with his little people the other day and I asked their names. We've never named them, but the first one was George. The next was Joey. And the next was peanut butter. And the last cracker. Don't know where the first two came from, but the last two weren't much of a surprise! Life is fun with a two year old =)

When you're bored at the doctor's office

2010-04-08T19:51:00.000-07:00

One day I was waiting at the doctor's office and just had Molly with me. Since I rarely get to just focus on my little girl, I took full advantage of my camera nearby and we had some picture time. Much more fun than reading a boring magazine!

Woah! Big eyes!

Love profile pictures of my kids but always forget to take them.

And here she is working up to a great big smile..

Here it is! My happy girl!

Molly's first visit to Tulsa

2010-04-08T19:50:00.000-07:00

Joe and I visited Tulsa several weeks ago with both kids for the first time. We had planned to go this coming weekend but moved it up a few weeks so we could attend his grandfather's funeral. Joe's "Papa" was a great Christian man who leaves behind such a great legacy. I'm so thankful that I got to know him before he went on to heaven, and I'm glad we were able to see some of the many people outside of the immediate family that love too!

We had to take some pictures of Molly's first exposure to all her "Okie" cousins. Ryan had so much fun with the family, and comes out of his shell more every time we go. Wish we saw everyone more often!

Little Old Men

2010-04-02T12:23:00.000-07:00

Caren took this picture of our "little old men" the other day at Kiddie Acres, and it's priceless!

Gotta love the one of Ryan with Ally in the plane too, with her pigtails flying in the wind!

Joe's childhood dream fulfilled

2010-04-01T21:01:00.000-07:00

How do you make a husband and toddler both very happy and very tired? You let the husband buy a trampoline!

Thank goodness for the subaru's roof rack. The guys at Academy were very concerned about Joe carrying it home this way, but we made it! He has good rope tying skills.

And my happy tired, boys!

A fun video if you missed it on Joe's facebook.

Ryan Flopping from Joe Pollard on Vimeo.

Of course friends are welcome too!

Hmmm

2010-03-24T21:13:00.000-07:00

Wonder what she's thinking...

Maybe she's thinking:

It's been over an hour since I ate...wonder if I can talk mom into letting me eat again =)
That fan is SO cool!
When is Ryan going to run past me again and share his motorcycle with me?
Where is Daddy? I LOVE talking to him. Maybe I'll just plan out what to tell him next time I see him.
I think I look better in blue than in pink..at least Mommy tells me that anyway.
I think I'll just rest and look cute for awhile =)

My girlie girl

2010-03-24T21:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, I admit, it's REALLY fun to dress up a girl, especially for church on Sunday. She however doesn't always agree. This dress is the one I wore home from the hospital when I was a newborn. The detail work on it is so precious. Thanks Mom for keeping so many of my things and passing them on for Molly.

Here's the most recent outfit. I love that it has little pant bloomers that match which you can't see but are just too cute! I'm pretty sure Caren got her this precious outfit.

Here's one of her "all in pink" outfits. I think purple and white are more her colors, but it's still fun to just go all out pink sometimes!

And of course there's the flower bow that I just couldn't resist getting her one day. At least her shirt isn't pink this time..ha!

Spring is Here!

2010-03-24T20:49:00.000-07:00

Again, I'm playing catch up on my blog. Here's some pictures from the last month. It's started feeling like spring, and we're loving it! We went to a new park & playground with friends a few weeks ago and Ryan had the best time ever. Usually he doesn't play on the slides and actual playground equipment much, but he loved this one!

Molly enjoyed sleeping mostly, but when she was awake I was thankful that friends were there to help me juggle having two kids!

The local baseball team, the Round Rock Express, had a free open house day a few weekends ago. They had a health fair there where they gave out free bicycle helmets, so of course we got one for Ryan and he wouldn't take it off after they fitted him. Then the guys got to go out on the field during batting practice. Ryan still talks daily about going to the baseball game. Great idea Dad!

Sibling love & 2 month info

2010-03-17T13:51:00.000-07:00

Wow, things have been BUSY around here! With Joe working lots of extra hours on his project, I was barely able to stay sane with all the work. You don't realize how much your hubby does for you and helps keep you sane until he isn't there. Thanks for being a great husband and dad, Joe, but you sure do leave a big hole when you aren't around =) Thank goodness the project is over and it was a success!

Molly had her 2 month checkup last week, and she's doing great. She weighed 12 lbs 11 oz, which puts her in the 90th percentile! Crazy girl loves to eat, just like Ryan. She's also a little shorter than average, just like Ryan, so I have another super chubby baby on my hands. I love it! My back, however, would like her to slow down with the weight gain just a bit =) The shots did make her not want to eat much for a day or two, which I never experienced with Ryan. Guess she's a little more sensitive to these things.

I don't have an official 2 month picture, but I decided to play around and put her in a big bow yesterday for fun. I always said I wouldn't be one of those "big bow" people with my girl, but I have to admit she is pretty stinkin cute in it =) As you can tell, she's smiling alot now and really talks to me alot too.

Ryan really loves his sister. If she's crying he'll announce "Check on Molly" and literally run to check on her saying "It's ok Molly" the whole time. He also shares toys with her pretty frequently, and any time she's in the bouncer he's usually beside her talking to her or playing with it too. She already loves seeing him and usually grins anytime she's sees him. Here's one collection of toys. He must love her if he's sharing his motorcycles, because they're his favorites!

And yes, they do look alot alike!

Someone asked what it's like having two. Mostly it's just alot more work. I spent almost all of my time with the kids just doing basic needs stuff and not really getting to sit and play with either of them. I've been dealing with alot of mommy guilt feeling like neither one is getting a great mom out of the deal, but I know it's worth it. And Ryan has discovered the joys of Handy Manny and Mickey Mouse, which he gets to watch while I feed Molly and has helped cut down on the jealousy he feels because I'm busy with her.

Overall we're adjusting well and have two awesome kids! Some days are definitely VERY hard, and I miss having free time, but they're worth it!

By Request

2010-03-09T09:01:00.000-08:00

Joe has been working alot this past week and requested a video to cheer him up! So here you go Joe!

Ryan's dancing skills from Kim Pollard on Vimeo.

Here's some pictures thrown in for good measure =)

Joe getting some snuggle time Sunday morning before church

Molly zeroed in on Joe one morning before work. Total focus.

She then gave him some of her best smiles! Oh, and don't you love the beautiful dress my mom and dad got her on their cruise?

And finally, you have to smile when you see this, even if it isn't the best picture taking I've ever done.

Hang in there Joe! Just a couple more days!

Snow in Austin

2010-03-01T21:50:00.000-08:00

Yes, it actually snowed in Austin. A real snow and everything! It did start out at sleet but turned into beautiful snowflakes coming down. And the best part is that everyone panics when it snows in Austin, so they closed Joe's office and he picked up Ryan early from preschool so we could all play in the snow and build a great snowman (and baby snowman!) Fun all around!