Chasing Austin

Cute kid...

2010-08-12T18:20:00.004-05:00

These are some pictures from when Nana & Pop were here...

Austin playing at the park... He LOVED hanging on this thing that slides down a pole and then stops you when you get to the end...

Austin rocking out... In his undies!

Austin as Elephant Man

Austin as a robot...

Austin the belly flopper!

Pictures of my big boy...

2010-03-18T15:04:00.004-05:00

Ha! Gotcha didn't I! These are pictures of Darek and his new friends!

Vern Troyer & Darek (aka Mini Me)

Erik Estrada & Darek (aka Ponch)

It's been a while...

2010-03-12T19:15:00.003-06:00

Well, it's been awhile since I've put anything on here, so I decided to put some new pictures up! The little boy is turning into quite the big boy these days!

Miscellaneous Pictures

2009-10-30T09:58:00.001-05:00

Pre-Halloween Fun

2009-10-30T09:45:00.002-05:00

A couple of weekend ago, we went to College Station to hang out with Darek's family. Attached are some pictures from our trip to the Farmers Market to pick out a pumpkin and go through the maze. The kids had a good time.

Poor baby...

2009-10-30T09:33:00.003-05:00

Attached are some pictures of Austin & his illness. Poor baby... Hopefully the rash will scab over by Monday so that he can return to school & I can return to work. He's miserable only in the fact that they itch non-stop and especially at night. The medicine we have for him isn't quite doing the trick. The "boo-boo" in the center of his head is from hitting the truck tailgate! Thanks to Nana & Pop for the pretty flowers & balloon. They made our day!!!

Can you say CHHHHEEEESSSSEEEE???

2009-10-08T14:32:00.003-05:00

Austin is going through a bandaid faze. There was no "boo-boo" but he wanted a Spiderman bandaid on his forehead.

One afternoon while painting pumpkins with the neighbors, Francine & Andrew, a frog appeared. The boys were thrilled to watch it hop around. It eventually hopped up on the tree stump. Austin screamed with delight until it hoped on his nose!!! This is a picture right before that happened.

When Austin had to come home sick from school Monday, we sat down to play with play-doh. Here is Austin hamming it up for the camera.

Halloween is right around the corner... Can you guess what Austin is going to be!?! I got his costume in the mail the other day and had to try it on him. He's by far the cutest Elmo I've ever seen!!!

This is a picture of Austin driving Daddy's new truck! Darek had to get a new truck for work. Austin loves riding in his "big truck"

More pics

2009-08-17T21:29:00.001-05:00

Summer Fun

2009-08-17T21:23:00.002-05:00

Attached are just a few pictures of Austin enjoying his summer... He's getting to be such a big boy! Enjoy! More to come shortly...

My sweeties...

2009-05-08T13:03:00.002-05:00

If only he was as good as he looks in the pictures!!! These are some pictures of us before we rode our bikes at a nice trail in Austin. It's got a good hill on it. Talk about a tough workout! The other picture is from when Haley was here. They wanted to play in our big bath tub, so put their swimsuits on. I think it's official that I have the world's cutest kids. What a great Mother's Day gift! If only he would behave, then I'd have it made in the shade. :) Wishful thinking... Look out 2, here we come!!!

More pictures...

2009-03-31T22:47:00.003-05:00

It's been a LONG time...

2009-03-31T22:37:00.006-05:00

I guess that the last time I posted was last year! WOW! I'm not doing to good at keeping this updated, huh?! Anyways, I'll spare you all the details of our year and try to keep it short and sweet... Rang in the new year, Darek got a promotion/transfer to Austin area, I I turned another year older, Austin broke his leg, we moved to Buda, TX, celebrated our 5th anniversary and here we are today. That about sums up our first 3 months of 2009... I've attached some pictures of the little man from that last time I posted until now. I'll put some pictures of his broken leg up when I get them off my camera and onto my computer...

Mr G.Q.

2008-12-13T07:53:00.004-06:00

Last weekend we went on our first house hunting trip to Austin. We stayed with Glenn & Debbie in LaGrange. Austin enjoyed running around on their 5+ acres. He also enjoyed riding Grampers tractor and playing in a box, or posing like a model in it! I've included some of those pictures...

Let's read a book...

2008-12-08T05:50:00.002-06:00

After spending Thanksgiving in Houston, Austin was glad to be back home. He was back on his turf and could run and do what he wanted. He decided to read some of his books. Enjoy the pics!

Outdoor fun

2008-12-05T06:16:00.004-06:00

At Thanksgiving, Austin got to run and jump in the leaves for the first time. He really enjoyed himself and loved chasing after his cousin Marissa.

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-05T06:12:00.001-06:00

Not much to report other than we had a great Thanksgiving with Darek's family in Houston. Haley came in for the holiday, but it was too quick of a trip. Attached are some pictures from our week.

At trip to the zoo

2008-12-05T06:05:00.004-06:00

A few weeks back we got a wild hair and took Austin to the Houston Zoo. Attached are some pictures from our trip. It was a beautiful day and Austin really enjoyed the day!

Tis the season...

2008-11-22T21:08:00.007-06:00

These are some cute pictures that I got of Austin this morning. He doesn't like to have his picture taken because he wants to see the picture on the screen! One of the pictures is of him sitting in time out because he wasn't listening to mommy! All you have to do is mention time out and he takes himself there and waits until you call him out to explain what he did wrong and ask for a hug & a kiss. It's so cute and it seems to be working too!

The Holidays were officially kicked off today here in Lufkin. They had the 42nd annual lighting of Rudolph the Red Nosed Pumping Jack! This event is sponsored by my company Lufkin Industries. This was our first time to attend this event. As you can see from the pictures attached, Austin got a cute pair of reindeer antlers. We however, did not make the lighting as someone got a little tired and cranky... No, not Darek! 10 minutes into the car ride home, Austin was sacked out! I'm excited to see what this Holiday Season holds with such a cute little boy! This is going to be a fun year!

P.S. Austin is now officially 18 months old!!!

November 08

2008-11-16T20:12:00.005-06:00

Well, November is almost over and I realized I haven't posted anything since Halloween. On Halloween day, Austin got pushed down by another boy in his class into the side of a wooden kitchen. Needless to say, he got a nice little shiner. It's almost healed, but you can still see some bruising. His class pictures are Thursday too! Oh well, I'm sure it's the first of many for this little man!

Today was a nice, crips day so we took Austin to the park to play! He loves to be outside. I've attached a few of the pictures from today. His cheeks are rosy red but only because he has 4 teeth coming in! Poor baby! After these 4, he shouldn't get anymore for another year or so!

Looking back on last year at this time makes me realize how much Austin has grown. He was just starting to eat some soft foods at Thanksgiving time and this year I think he might eat the whole turkey himself! We have quite an eater on our hands! Luckily he prefers the fruits & veggies! Oh how we are so thankful for all we have been given!

Today Austin used two words together for the first time... "Let's go!" And he says it with such a cute Texas draw! Hopefully this is the first of many more words! That's about it for us. Don't know much else. Hope you enjoyed the pictures.

More Halloween

2008-11-01T07:17:00.002-05:00

Attached are some more pictures Halloween. They are actually before & after pics! Me & him are from 1st thing in the morning & well, you can guess when the other one is. He sure didn't want to let go of the sucker and glow stick!

Little monkey...

2008-11-01T07:11:00.002-05:00

Well our official 1st year to go Trick-or-Treating has come and gone. We went to only 7 or so houses, but stick got plenty of suckers! That was our request as that's about all he gets to eat when it comes to candy! Attached are some pictures from the day before and Halloween day. Enjoy!

Five Dollar Deal

2008-10-27T20:30:00.005-05:00

See what you get for $5 dollars from Wal-mart?! The worlds cutest pictures of the worldest cutest kid!!! I'm really impressed with Wal-mart's photo center since they upgraded to the same software as Sears! Yeah Wal-mart! I hope you enjoy the little man's pictures as much as I do! He's now officially 17 months old!

Our big boy

2008-10-08T19:50:00.028-05:00

Austin is such a sweet, loving, energetic little boy! We have been thrilled to watch him grow. He is constantly learning and it's so much fun to watch. Below are some of the things that he's doing, saying, trying, etc... I hope you all enjoy as much as we do...

Words Austin Says

Mama
Dada
Hi
Buh-bye
Ball
Mamma - (Banana)
Bubba
Bobo - (for a freckle, scratch, etc.)
Walla - (koala)
Dm-dm - (tractor)
Hot
Wa-wa (water)
Uh-oh
Mmm - (when he likes his food)
Aaahh - (after getting a drink)

He's also trying to say the following: thank you, tractor sounds a little better than dm-dm (it's come a long way), panda, zebra, kangaroo (roo), baby

Animal Noises Austin Makes

Meow-meow - Cat
Growls like lion, tiger, etc.
Who-who - Owl
Whale noises
Opens & closes his mouth - when you ask him what a fish says
Elephant noise while tilting his head back
Makes clicking noises when he sees a bird - this started after seeing humming birds in Ruidoso

He's trying to moo like a cow, make seal noises, and nods his head when I ask him what a dog says. Bock-bock is right around the corner too! I'm working on what a monkey says too, so he can do it for Halloween.

Other Austin Antics

Austin likes to have lotion put on, but has started to lick it off his legs now. Quite the picture. If I can ever capture it, I'll put it on here!

He likes to climb on everything!

Goes "mmmmaaa" - Kisses anyones bo-bos (freckles)

Runs straight into the kitchen EVERY morning once he gets out of bed, runs to the counter and starts chanting "mamma, mamma, mamma" until he is happily fed his "mamma"

Austin LOVES bathes! After dinner, the clothes come off and he takes off running down the hall to the bathroom. He sits with his back under the water spout and grins away! He also enjoys laying down in the water and "relaxing".

Waves his arm when he sees a bug and mumbles some words - He's trying to copy me by saying "Shew bug shew"

Darek & I have been singing to Austin since he was little. Now that we are listening to the "kiddie" songs, we've really been singing . When Austin sits to eat the following, we have to bust out into song: Banana (I like to eat, eat, eat, Apples & Bananas), Hot dog (aka corndog)(The hot dog song from Mickey Mouse Club House), Goldfish (I love the fishes cause they're so delicious) Austin rocks back and forth and hums along with delight!

Austin is such a big boy now, that when you ask him if he's ready for bed, he goes into his room and waits by his bed until you put him in it.

I know there are more things, and I could go on forever, but it's late, my brain is starting to shut down and I'm ready to get vertical on the couch! I'll fill you in with his other antics as we go forward!

Following in his footsteps...

2008-10-08T19:45:00.006-05:00

Lately, if you leave your shoes out (which I do everyday when I come home), Austin will try to put his feet in them. Yesterday evening, Darek's work boots were on the floor. Darek & I were talking and noticed that Austin had gotten quite. He was concentrating so hard and trying to put his feet into Daddy's Boots. So, with a little help, here is the end result. Too cute for words!

Weekend fun...

2008-10-05T16:44:00.005-05:00

The weekend has come and gone, but it was a fun one! Friday night consisted of picking up dinner and movies and coming home. Austin wasn't in the best of moods, so we didn't want to chance any "fits" while trying to eat out. Saturday all woke up happy! Austin & I were up early and went for a morning walk and then to a few garage sales. It was Darek's day to sleep in! Upon Darek's awaking, we went out on the town! Shopping, lunch, playing... We went looking for a new grill, but were unsuccessful at finding one. Now is the time of year to purchase though as everything is on clearance. Hopefully we'll find one because our current grill is on it's last leg. Literally, it's falling apart! We also went to the mall to eat Chick-fil-a, aka bock-bock. Love that place! Then Austin got to play on the toys in the mall for a few. I always swore I'd never let my kid do that, but I'm learning to relax a little... After coming home for an afternoon nap, we ventured out to the local carnival in town. We got fortunate and it wasn't very crowded when we were there. Austin got to fish for prize. I think we've got a little fisher on our hands! YIPPPEE! That makes Dad (and Mom) happy! Austin & Darek rode the merry-go-round, but Austin wasn't too sure of it. He didn't like that the horse went up and down. Give him a few more years and he'll be hanging upside down from it! Austin rode the following by himself and did very well: A little kiddie roller coaster that was shaped as a pig, he drove Herbie the Love Bug by himself and that was it. We were done and so was he! Mom goofed and forgot her camera, so I don't have any pictures of him riding the rides. I can tell you that he was the cutest kid, but it sure made him look like such a big boy to ride the rides by himself! :( After the carnival, we went to El Chico (our favorite) and then home for the evening. We went for a family walk too after we got back! It was nice! Sunday morning was my day to sleep in!!! I can't say enough how much I needed the rest! Austin & Darek played and hung out. After I got up, we got ready and went to a new church. Darek & I enjoyed it and the people were very welcoming. Austin on the other hand, wasn't a happy camper that we left him with strangers and kids that he didn't know. He never cries at daycare, but he did today. After church, Austin & I dropped Darek off at the house (of course after we had lunch) and then we went shopping. I got him a cute Halloween costume, but I'm not so sure how much he's going to like Halloween. The decorations at the stores scare him as it is... We'll have to see. Oh, he's going to be a monkey since he loves his "mamma's" so much! (aka Bananas) I've attached some pictures of Austin all dressed up for church. He looked so handsome. He's hiding in his room in his favorite hiding spot. That pretty much concludes our weekend. I've got a pot of beans on the stove and we'll kick back and watch some football. Until next weekend, have a good week!

The little man

2008-09-27T17:09:00.003-05:00

Today Austin was sick... again! Above is a picture of him when he was feeling a little bit better. Check out his cute house slippers! He LOVES to wear them!
We were hamming it up for the camera.
Happy little sick boy!
Going somewhere? Austin playing in the suitcase that Daddy used on his trip to Florida.
Isn't he the cutest?!?!

Hurricane Ike * UPDATE *

2008-09-11T19:28:00.007-05:00

Well, we survived Ike and came out of it rather well. Of course we lost power the morning of the storm at 9:00 and didn't regain it until 2 days later. We were VERY fortunate! Below are some pictures that we took during the storm from our home.

This is a picture of the mailbox across the street. A HUGE pine tree fell and went right around the mail box. Didn't even scratch it!

The above two are from our front porch. We lost 1 of our trees. We only have one left! It fell across the neighbors driveway. The next picture is the glass that was broken out in Austin's room. A tree branch broke off the tree and flew into the decorative column on our front porch and pushed it through the window. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Austin's room was full of 6 cats at the time.

My little hurricane baby. It was pretty hot that night, plus Austin was sick and running fever, so this is how he slept in our bed. He looks SO big!

Unfortunately, not everyone was as lucky as we were. Trevor, my brother-in-law, lost his apartment. The picture above shows the roof blown off. He lived in the bottom apartment, but once the roof was off, the rain came in ran downstairs and ruined everything.

We had 5 evacuees, 6 cats, 2 dogs & the 3 of us & our animals during the storm. 3 of our 5 evacuees (all from the Beaumont area) made it through the storm just fine. The other 2 were not so fortunate. As I mentioned above, Trevor lost everything, as did Nan, one of our other evacuees. Nan is 80 years old and had lived in her house for 46 years with her husband. The water was chest high in her home. Because she was unable to return for a week or so, everything was molded and ruined upon her return. Please keep Trevor & Nan and all the others who lost everything in your thoughts and prayers.

Well, if you watch the news, you know Hurricane Ike is looming in the Gulf. Although we are not on the coast itself, I'm still very concerned. It's going to be ugly. We're stocked up on goods, we'll all 3 be safe at home tomorrow afternoon and we'll just ride it out, I guess!? Not my idea of a fun weekend. If we have power and access to the town, I'll try and post any damages in the area. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Memo to Mommy

2008-08-24T10:40:00.003-05:00

I got my Parenting magazine the other day and it had the following quotes in there that I thought were really good. It mentioned that we have a lot of lessons to teach our little ones, but they also have a few words of wisdom for us as well! I'm going to post them all over the house as little reminders... I hope you enjoy.

"Stop freaking out about the mess! There's always time to clean - but how often do we get to make mud pies!"

"Love me, even when I'm naughty. I'll only be this age once."

"Be patient. I do everything for a reason, but I don't know enough words yet to give you an explanation."

"Let me do it. I know you can do it faster and better, but sometimes experience is the best teacher."

"Don't expect too much of me. I want to do what you ask and make you happy, but I'm still little."

"Keep your promises. It's all about trust. When I'm a teenager, you'll understand why it's so important."

"Don't try to reason with me when I'm having a tantrum. Trust me - I can't hear you over my own screaming."

"Don't keep asking me if I've been good. I'm not even sure what that means, but if I was bad I'd never admit it!"

"Don't let me think that you're perfect. I feel a lot better knowing I'm not the only one who makes mistakes sometimes."

"Set limits. I can't actually eat a whole box of cookies - I just want to see if I'd get away with it."

ADA... Austin's Daily Activities

2008-08-24T10:19:00.000-05:00

We officially have a 15 month old now, who is into everything! He keeps us on our toes, so today we are going to purchase some gates to keep him out of certain areas of the house. Did I mention that he's into everything?! He has such a great personality that is really starting to blossom. The posted pictures are of him getting into his toy bin box, riding his little car backwards, driving like his Daddy in his big boy car and unrolling the toilet paper roll. At this very moment, he's taking all of his books out of the container and throwing them on the floor. There is never a dull moment in this house! His shingles are starting to scab, finally! I'm hoping to be able to take him back to school tomorrow. We might run by the doctors in the morning to get a note, just in case.

Poor baby

2008-08-19T08:45:00.000-05:00

It hasn't slowed him down, but it's put him out of school and me out of work until further notice. Yep, Austin has shingles! Apparently this means that his chicken pox vaccine is working. Not quite sure if I'd agree that it's working, but whatever! We'll be hanging around the house and playing, cleaning, mowing, whatever we can do to keep from being bored. I might have to rearrange some things just because. I've posted a picture of what his little shingles look like. Hopefully they won't spread to his whole arm, but I've been warned that they probably will. Until they scab over, he's contagious and has to stay home. It seems that my little man has had every "rare" sickness there is to be had. Hopefully this will be the last of them. More to come later.

More Summer Fun

2008-07-28T20:07:00.000-05:00

I said the list goes on and it does! We also went to the Lufkin Zoo, visited the Kemah Boardwalk and Darek & Haley went to a Jonas Brother's concert in Dallas. Haley got to sign their bus! This was the summer of concerts for Haley as she had never been to one before. Overall we had a busy fun summer, but the time ALWAYS goes by too fast. We had fun with our families along the way too. My mom & aunt came down for a week or so and were SO much help and fun! We went to the coast with Darek's dad and that side of the family for the 4th of July and had a great time!

2nd Go Round

2008-07-28T19:58:00.001-05:00

Well, it looks like I did things okay for the first post... I'm now going to attempt to show you what we have done this summer... In a nutshell, we've done the following things: Celebrated Father's Day, lost some teeth (3 to be exact for a total of $40 profit)(Thank you Texas Tooth Fairy), played, and saw Carrie Underwood. And that's just the beginning...

My first rodeo...

2008-07-28T19:42:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official! This is my 1st attempt at blogging. There is alot in this head of mine, but putting it to paper will take a little time. I'm excited to try something new and I think this is a great way for my family and friends to see what is going on with my family and everyday life...

With a 14 month old, who knows what the future holds?!?!