Dallas Friends Weekend

We were thrilled to continue our annual Dallas Friends Weekend tradition this month. Amanda, Dana, Katherine, and I have been friends for decades, and it's a rare opportunity for all four of us to be able to get together. We had a short but amazing visit in the Dallas area as we enjoyed our precious time together. Here's a recap of our awesome weekend in pictures and captions.

Dana, Katherine, and Amanda: so blessed to call them my high school besties!!

We arrived late Friday at Katherine's house and the kids immediately took off playing without missing a beat. After settling in for bed, everyone was excited to have a full day Saturday to play and catch up.

Sarah and Kaitlynn helping with the morning cinnamon rolls.

We all went to a local trampoline place to let the kids run around and play. It was COLD outside but all of the kids were hot and sweaty within minutes of fun at JumpStreet!

The Moms got started on all the catching up!

Sarah and Kaitlynn were never far apart the entire weekend.

Here's all the 9 kiddos minus sweet Roo who wasn't interested in sitting for a picture (who could blame him?) :-)

Sarah and Kaitlynn on the teacup ride.

Jacob, Connor, and Luke struck a pose on the trampolines for me.

After finishing up at JumpStreet, we had lunch together as a group. Then the Dads took all the kids back to the houses for naps/rest time while the Moms went shopping and had some much-needed catch-up time. It was SOOO nice to spend time together!!

Later that day, we all met back up at Dana's house for our annual kids' book exchange and family dinner. Such a great way to wrap up our visit.



My sweet friends and I. Love these girls!




Success! All 9 kids before the book exchange.

Smile, kiddos!

Kaitlynn loved her Princess book from Sarah!

Cheers to an awesome weekend together!

Sweet and Sassy

Kaitlynn and Anais wrapped up their Fall semester of their Reading class, so Anais's Mom and I decided to celebrate by treating the girls to a fun morning at Sweet and Sassy. It's a local salon that caters just to young girls, and boy, was it such a treat for us! Kaitlynn and Anais enjoyed a mani/pedi complete with flavored sugar scrub, sparkling nail polish, and even rings for their hands and toes. So fun!

The girls after their special morning at the salon! Love!

Sitting down for their pedicure, the girls were in awe!

Then, they couldn't contain their giggles during the sugar scrub. Ticklish girls!

More tickling and giggling.

Kaitlynn picking out a special ring, one for her hand and another for her toe.

Beautifully manicured hands!

Showing off the finished result on the built-in runway in the salon.

After their morning at the salon, we stopped at Chick-fil-A for a quick lunch before their last reading class. These girls never stop smiling and giggling when they're together!

At Chick-fil-A posing for a quick pic.

Never a shortage of hugs and smiles!

Watch Dog Dad

Earlier this fall at the beginning of the school year, I had the opportunity to sign Jeff up for a unique volunteer role at Connor's elementary school. A national program called Watch D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) allows Dads to attend school for the day with their student, helping out at the school doing various activities in the classroom and around campus. There were over 200 Dads that signed up at Connor's school this year, so it's a popular program and a great way for Dads to get involved and be a positive male role model for the kids at school.

Connor and Jeff have been looking forward to Jeff's day for Watch Dog Dads all semester, so they were both excited when it was finally his turn last week. To get the day started off on a fun note, Jeff picked up donuts for the front office and the kids in Connor's class. After Jeff and Connor got checked in, they went to the library to participate in the morning announcements. The assistant principal introduced the Watch Dog Dads and their students, at which point Jeff and Connor both gave a J.J. Watt salute. I would've loved to see that, ha!

Throughout the day, Jeff was kept busy by helping in the library and lunch room and even joining Connor in the classroom for a while. It was such a great opportunity for Jeff to see what goes on in the school and spend some special time with Connor. When I asked them both what their favorite part of the day was, they both responded that lunch and P.E. were their favorite times! So thankful they were able to have such a great Watch D.O.G.S. experience!

Meeting Santa 2013

The kids could not wait to visit Santa this year. Of course, I was NOT on top of my game and thought it would be a good idea to visit on a Sunday afternoon. Wrong! After waiting for over an hour in the Sunday line, I convinced the kids that we could come back Monday after school and have Santa all to ourselves. When we came back Monday afternoon, sure enough, the kids were able to just walk right up to Santa. Or more accurately, Kaitlynn RAN up to him exclaiming, "Santa!!" So precious! They both sat right down and had nothing but BIG smiles for Santa.

After the picture, they talked to Santa a little bit about what they wanted for Christmas. This is always where Mom and Dad have to pay extra special attention. You never know what they will come up with when they're on Santa's lap, ha!

Before visiting Santa, we sat down at home and wrote letters to Santa, so they were already prepared for what they were going to ask Santa for this year. I couldn't resist posting their cute letters.

Connor's letter to Santa (I blacked out the address)

Kaitlynn's first ever letter to Santa. She asked for a princess bike and Barbie doll house :-)

The mall we visited to see Santa has such awesome Christmas decorations that I couldn't resist taking some pics of the kids. It was such a fun Christmas memory for all of us!

All smiles after visiting Santa!

End of Season Wrap-up

Connor's Texans team wrapped up the end of their season this month. What a great season it has been!

Our first playoff game against the Eagles was a hard-fought victory. The boys were so excited to move on to the semi-finals in the playoffs, where they would once again play the (mighty) Dolphins (the #1 team that beat the Texans 21-0 in their opening game).

On the day of the big game against the Dolphins, we had unusually COLD weather. It was in the low 40s with frigid wind and rain. The football field was a muddy mess, and the kids (and spectators) were miserably cold. Despite the tough team and nasty weather, our Texans played so hard and kept it a close game, within a touchtown in the 4th quarter. In the end the Dolphins won, but one of their coaches later admitted that it was probably their toughest game all season. We were SO proud of our Texans for hanging in there and playing so hard.

The whole family was there for the big game against the Dolphins.

Kevin and Kaitlynn trying to stay warm.

Collin was a cold spectator.

I took some video during the game and was able to capture one of Connor's great plays of the season. He was playing defense when the Dolphins were going for their extra point after a touchdown. Connor (#90) brought down the runner by his feet. Awesome tackle!





Here's a story from the game that I don't want to forget. After the hard-fought game, the boys were just miserable from the cold and from the loss. I felt so bad for them! I was quickly scrambling trying to gather up all of our gear and belongings, and I looked over to see Connor standing there shivering and looking pretty pathetic. I walked up to him, realizing I should probably get him warmed up, and I could tell he was on the verge of tears.

"Hey buddy, are you OK?" I asked, walking up to him. That's all it took, and then he burst into tears! I was caught off guard because Connor rarely shows emotion, so I started wondering if he was hurt. "Are you OK?" I asked, as I pulled him into a hug.

"I don't know," he sobbed.

"Are you hurt? What's the matter?" I asked, kneeling down and looking into his eyes.

"I don't know!" he cried. "No really, I don't know!"

At that point, I realized he was just overcome with emotion from the loss of their playoff game, the hard-fought loss in the tough weather. Poor guy! I hugged him tight while he let his tears flow, and I shed a few myself for my sweet boy. Oh, the emotions of this game we all love!!

After the game, the boys were filthy!

To celebrate a great season, one of the coaches hosted a team party. I wasn't able to go because Kaitlynn was at home sick, but Jeff and Connor had a great time with the team.

But probably the highlight of Connor's season was the semi-finalist team presentations at the Turf Bowl (the "super bowl" of his league). The Texans were presented their semi-finalist tropies on the field at Rhodes Stadium during half-time. Each player had their name called over the loud speaker at the big stadium and ran onto the field to accept their trophy. It was in the low 30's with frigid wind, but that didn't stop the boys from relishing their moment. As Connor ran to accept his trophy, he gave a J.J. Watt salute, ha! It was such a honor for these guys to be recognized for their great season.

Connor, #90, walking off the field holding his trophy high.

A quick sideline pic of the semi-finalist Texans. Great season, boys!

And now for a funny story about the trophy presentation. Connor recently had to write about a "small moment" for a homework assignment. He chose to write about when he received his semi-finalist trophy. Here is the story in his own words:

"Introducing Chad Hagan's Texans!" said the announcer. I heard and saw the crowd applauding. Then I heard my coach (Coach Chad) starting to call out names. "Kaden Glass," he said. Kaden ran toward our coach. He got a huge trophie [sic]. "Hunter Boudreaux," he said. Hunter is so fast, he looks like wind. And finally, I heard the name I was waiting for. "Connor Courtright," he said. I ran toward Coach Chad. At least halfway through I did a J.J. Watt salute. I did the salute, and kept on running. When I got my trophie, I looked at it. At the bottom it said, "2013 Katy Youth Football Pee Wee Division Semi Finalist." I was so excited. This was the biggest trophie I ever got! It looked like real gold. When I started to walk back up to see my dad, I yelled, "We're rich!"

I laughed and laughed when I read his story. This kid sure knows how to tell his story! I'm so proud of Connor and the entire Texans team for a great first season of tackle football. We all learned so much and can't wait for next year!

Recent Pics

It's that time again: time to clean out the iPhone pics and make sure they get posted to the blog! Here is the latest round of recent pictures and updates.

Before Halloween, we got "booed", meaning that an anonymous neighbor left us some Halloween goodies on the front porch. We then made our own boxes of treats and booed some more neighbors to keep the fun going. When it was time to do the booing, the kids were in stealth ninja mode to make sure we weren't found out, ha!

Making our boo treat boxes.

Stealth ninja mode. Nothing to see here!

This may be the most random picture I've ever posted. Julie and I went shopping for lamps recently and wanted to make sure we got them home without breaking. Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase, "precious cargo!"

A busy fall usually means one thing: worn-out kids! I can honestly say this has NEVER happened with one of my kids before now:

She was OUT!!

And speaking of exhausted kids, here's how you know it's gotten out of control: when your 4-year-old comes up to you in the middle of the day and asks to take a nap. Then she walks upstairs, puts herself to bed, and falls SOUND asleep for hours. Yep, WORN OUT!!

OK, one last pic of my exhausted kids. This was from our recent hotel stay in Michigan. Late one night, I put the kids to bed (they were sharing a Queen bed) and then I went to take a quick shower. After my shower, this was the scene. Ha!

Here's another first for us...we were recently invited to a birthday party for one of our neighbors' pets. Stella the dog turned 1. We celebrated with cupcakes! Hey, any excuse for neighborhood cupcakes, ha!

Connor's elementary school had their book fair recently. Man, you would've thought it was Christmas with how excited the kids were to pick out books. And after we checked out, I was reminded of why we love the library so much (way cheaper!)

Ever since Connor learned to ride his bike, this has been a common sight at our house. They love bike rides with Dad!

Recently we had both of the older boys home for a visit. Jeff arranged for them to babysit so that we could have a date night. The kids were beyond excited! The babysitters did a great job keeping the kids happy and entertained. Their first activity was a Memory Game challenge: The K's versus the C's. Guess who won?? (The K's! LOL!)

100 Club

This post is for the grandparents. Kaitlynn hit a big milestone last week at school: counting to 100! I had to remind myself that the kids in her classroom are only 4, because some of them are so advanced and have been counting to 100 for a while. It's a big accomplishment at her preschool when the kids can count to 100. They induct them into the 100 Club with a sticker and pencil for their efforts. So cute!

Ever since school started this fall, Kaitlynn would come home talking about her friends who could count to 100 and she was discouraged that it took her a while to do it. We kept working with her and praising her efforts--she was so close! Finally, one morning last week, she was counting in the car on the way to school. She got mixed up around the 50s and again around the 70s. She expressed some frustration about it, and I reminded her about the secret of counting to 100: remember how to count by 10s to know what comes next. For some reason, this seemed to click with her. She counted to 100 right then without skipping any numbers. We were so excited but I figured she still needed some practice to do it consistently.

Later that day when I picked Kaitlynn up from school, she walked to the door and I immediately saw her 100 sticker on her shirt. My eyes got really big and I asked, "You counted to 100??!" Apparently after I dropped her at school that morning, she went straight to her teacher, told her she could count to 100, and counted right then without missing a beat. After all of Kaitlynn's hard work, I was SO excited for her! We hugged and squealed with delight all the way home, LOL! And then she requested that I make a video of her counting to 100 so that her grandparents could see.