My Hero, Julie!

Julie and some her friends at her school decided last September that it would be "fun" to walk a half marathon in the San Antonio Rock and Roll Marathon last weekend. She walked a lot in her neighborhood, then on Sunday afternoons, all of them would meet at a nearby park and they would walk up to THREE HOURS at a stretch! It was often very hot during these walks, and if that wasn't bad enough, they frequently saw coral snakes on this trail! But did that stop them? No! They had the "faith of a mustard seed," (see my post about Marshall saying that a few months ago, below). Something really cool was that she wore some kind of a "chip" on her body and as she passed through certain milestones, I would get a text message which said, "Julie Metcalf just crossed the 5K line," etc. I had gone to Houston for Ainsley's second birthday, and was driving home when I got the message that said, "Julie Metcalf has crossed the finish line for the Half Marathon!" It was a great feeling! I knew from the beginning that she would succeed because when Julie sets her mind to something, she always succeeds! She is an awesome daughter! I am a mother filled with pride.

"Little Lady Bug" Turns TWO!!

Little Ainsley, AKA "The Lady Bug" turned two on Friday. The next day was her birthday party. The day was off to a great start when Mary, her sweet babysitter/nanny came over with a pink donut with sprinkles on it. Mary knows what a birthday girl likes for breakfast!

She had a fun birthday party with a lady bug theme that afternoon,with lots of her friends and her mom's and dad's friends. The highlight of the party was a visit from "The Tumble Bus," a recycled school bus outfitted with a small trampoline, padded walls, monkey bars and all sorts of things to climb up and slide down!

Daddy and her friend Anthony helped her blow out the candles on her lady bug cake!

She even dressed like a lady bug!

This is what was going on inside the Tumble Bus!!

It was hard to get a clear picture because she was in constant

motion!

Mommy, Mary, and Lisa

When the party was over, Lisa and Matt stayed for Ainsley to open their present. Here it is:

To all of my grandmother/friends, you may want to steal this great idea. It's from Hallmark, and it records YOUR voice reading the entire book! Ainsley now has "Aunt Lisa and Uncle Matt" reading her this beautiful book!

And she loved this super soft big blanket from her Gigi, especially before she opened it all the way up and used it like a "muff." Before she went to bed, she said, "I want my SOFT blanket."

 Here she is playing with one of her presents, a little van that she quickly labeled "The Tumble Bus!!!"

Papa and I got her a new tricycle, which she called her "motorcycle," and Macy and Marshall gave me some money, and asked me to go shopping for a helmet for her when I got to Houston (they wanted her to pick it out.) She takes her shopping very seriously.

The Barbie one was OK...until we found....

....the "Bling-Bling Monkey Helmet!" You can't see it but it even has pink rhinestones on it.

Today, before I had to leave, Ainsley was eating breakfast and watching the news on tv (really!) and I couldn't resist taking a few more pictures of her. She has changed so much in just two months since I had seen her. She truly is turning into a "little girl." She is almost potty-trained! She can identify many of the alphabet letters and can sing the "ABC Song." Like all two-year olds, everything is "MINE." When I started singing the "ABC Song," she said, "NO, Mimi, MY ABC SONG!" She loves to put together wooden puzzles and doesn't need much help anymore. She also loves to color and dance. She enjoys watching "Word World" on tv, and can identify the words as soon as they pop up. Her teachers are amazed at how she talks in complete sentences. At her cupcake party in her classroom Friday afternoon, she got up to throw away her napkin, and she even said, "I go to throw away my trash." Later that night, she said, "Mom, may I have a drink of water, please." And then the one that surprised me later in the evening, was when she said, "I want the light on in the other room." A nine-word sentence! And she just turned two! Here are just a few more pictures that captivated me this morning.

Little Lady Bug, it was such a fun weekend. I can't wait to see what new things you'll be doing this next year in your life. I think if I had the power, I'd freeze you at this age!

Halloween '09

Peter Pan and Tinkerbell

Ainsley, the Bling-Bling Lady Bug!!

Cutest lady bug I every saw!

Funny Grandkids

Macy is easy to spot in this picture of Kids' Choir at their church. They had an outdoor concert at Family Night a week ago. She looks like she might be the daughter of one of the Blues' Brothers!

Here's Marshall in the back of his dad's truck at Movie Night after the concert. They had a huge outdoor screen to watch "Horton Hears a Who," and everyone sat in lawn chairs or in the back of trucks. He fell asleep with Gavin's older sister snuggled next to him!

Bicycle Rodeo, 2009

Just a few bicycles awaiting their owners!

Marshall had just received his inspection paper and was eagerly awaiting his turn in his first Bicycle Rodeo.  His training wheels had just come off two weeks ago, and he was full of confidence.

A proud boy with a blue (participation) ribbon! The smile on his face says it all!

Now, it's time for the first graders. Macy waits for her turn with her Disney Princess helmet and bicycle. She was decked out in pink and purple from head to toe!

She's listening to her mom, "What's the most important thing about the Bicycle Rodeo? Not winning...but..." and Macy said, "HAVING FUN!"

Her cheering squad on the sidelines chanting, "Let's go, Macy, let's go, (clap, clap)!"

She was beaming with excitement.

It's hard to stay in the lines when someone is talking to you!

She's also a winner of a blue ribbon! Oh, I dread the day that one of them wins a better award than the other one!

Marshall and The Mustard Seed

The disciples said to Jesus, "Tell us what Heaven's kingdom is like." He said to them, "It's like a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, but when it falls on prepared soil, it produces a large plant and becomes a shelter for birds of the sky." Thomas 2

The parable of the mustard seed is mentioned many times in the bible, in Matthew, Mark, Luke and Thomas. Macy and Marshall have attended a Christian Day School at their church since they were three months old plus Sunday School and Kids' Choir as well. They were both in Awanas for a year, where they were rewarded for learning bible verses. You still just never know what sinks into their little brains.

A few days ago, Macy, Marshall and I were working on a craft project. Macy took to it very easily and enjoyed it, although it was a little tedious. They had to put little tiny beads on a plastic form in a certain pattern, and then we fused them together with an iron.  Marshall started working on it, and said, "No, this is too hard. I don't want to do this." Macy and I continued to work, while Marshall went on to play with some trucks. Later, he came back to where we were working. I said, "Come on, Marshall, I'll help you." I got his project going and then he began to work hard at completing it. I praised him for his hard work and in a little while, he said, "If you have the faith of a mustard seed, you can do anything. I didn't think I could do this, but I had the faith of a mustard seed, and I did it!!!"

An Acorn Hunt With Second Cousins

This is Marshall with my brother's grandson, Kollman. They are both five years old, and enjoy playing together. They came over with my brother and my niece and her husband last weekend to have lunch and play. We are so happy they moved back to Texas from North Carolina! It was a hot day, but they enjoyed going to the little park across the street from our house and feeding the fish and looking for acorns. Acorns? We take them so for granted, but to little kids, they are pretty cool! They are definitely dropping early this year, I guess because of the drought. Marshall and Kollman began collecting them in a bag and then Macy and her cousin, Madeline began collecting them also, and before you know it, the race was on. It was boys against girls. Who could find the most? It was like an Easter egg hunt!

The girls ran all over the park looking for big groups of acorns. They finally realized what oak trees looked like and would cluster under them, so they could get more acorns than the boys.

Julie began helping the "Boy Team" who got easily distracted with feeding the fish hamburger buns!

My great-nephew, Ryan, age 2,  was not too interested in the acorn hunt, but he picked some pretty flowers for his mom, niece Becki.

We hope to have many more "Second Cousin Get-Togethers" in the future.