and still more Christmas photos....

Taylor with his new Christmas toy -------->























Jacob with his drill -------------------->
























Opening presents ----->

More Christmas Photos

Day and Jacob with their Santa hats ------>






























Mimi with Jacob and Travis (Jacob's cousin) ------------------>

Jacob and Santa

Jacob had a really good time meeting Santa. We took him to see Santa at Northpark Mall in Dallas. Santa even had his own store there, it was really beautiful. The only issue was the wait to meet Santa was almost three hours. Forget that! We went back to Half Price Books (where we had been earlier) because we knew Santa was going to be there for a short time. Jacob waited his turn and then met Santa. Here is a brief snippet of their conversation:
Santa: Hello
Jacob: Hi Santa
Mommy: This is Jacob
Santa: Jacob, have you been a good boy this year?
Jacob: Yes!
Santa: Mommy, has he been a good boy this year?
Mommy: Nooooooooo, not so much!
Santa: You know you have to be a good boy for Santa to bring you toys... will you be a good boy until Christmas?
Jacob: Yes!
Santa: What toys do you want Santa to bring you?
Jacob: Tools
Santa: Like a screwdriver, saw, and hammer?
Jacob: Yes, and a wrench
Jacob hopped up on a chair next to Santa and posed for his picture! He shook Santa's hand as we left. Then he grabbed Santa's beard -- which I thought he was going to pull it off -- he just wanted to feel it!

Chef Jacob

Jacob LOVES to cook. Day, (his grandmother, my mom) got him a personalized apron. He loved it!

Merry Christmas

I love this photo of my grandmother, Jacob and my second cousin Savannah!

Mr. Fix-It

Jacob working with his wrench. He is trying to fix "Horsee Egg" -- who is not broken, but needs a little tune up!

Beaded Utensils

I made these for my aunt. They are presents for friends of hers. I thought they turned out really well.

Trying to take pictures

I was trying so hard to get some cute pictures of Jacob and Travis (his cousin) on Thanksgiving Day. They are both finally playing with each other. Jacob was always so into playing with Tyler and ignored Travis. This Thanksgiving, Tyler stayed in San Antonio with his mom, so Jacob just had Travis to play with. They had such a great time together. It was so hard to get them to stop playing long enough to get a decent photo. Here is my attempt, although I thought they looked so cute looking at each other!

Daddy & Jacob

This is a photo that I took of Ryan and Jacob at the Katy Dog Park. Jacob had so much fun watching his dogs run around the park. It was great to allow them to be off their leashes.

Chef Jacob

Jacob went to a cooking class at Young Chef's Academy at the beginning of December. He had so much fun. This photo is of him putting cloves into a tangelo. He also made and decorated gingerbread men. They let the kids make punch and also cut up fruit for a fruit salad. We liked the knife so much that I bought one for Jacob.

Mack

Isn't he adorable. This is my brother-in-law's and his girlfriend's English Bulldog Mack. He comes over and plays with our Doberman, Draco. They have such a fun time!

A month off....

Well it has been exactly ONE MONTH since my last post on my blog. We have been BUSY!!! When I flipped the calendar page over today to start the month of December, I couldn't believe how busy our November was! Here are the highlights:

• Ryan's brother Matt & his girlfriend, Angie, moved here from Arizona. Jacob is having a blast having them here.
• Jacob started going to an afternoon program at his school on Tuesdays. His class is science and he really loves his teacher Ms. Jennifer. He is not crazy about the bugs she has on display in the classroom though!
• Taylor had another episode of Staph Infection, it is just now getting better.
• I had a girl's day with one of my girlfriends while Jacob was at school. It was sooooo nice!
• Jacob went to two birthday parties.
• We had our MOPS Craft Night where I taught two classes.
• We went to the Woodland's Mall with a couple of friends. Jacob really enjoyed the Dinosaur Dig.
• Ryan and I bought a new washer and dryer!
• Several family dinners at our house.
• We had friends over for dinner and played games.
• Four AWANA's meetings.
• Thanksgiving.
• We took Church Directory Pictures.
• Took the pups to the City of Katy Dog Park.

Preschool: Days 15-21

To be UPDATED soon!

McCain/Palin

We have our sign proudly stacked in the ground of our front yard. Jacob and I were outside a few days ago and I think I could have made some decent $$ off this sign!!! I had four neighbors ask me where to get one and also two cars (driving by) ask about it. So where did we get it??? From our neighbors, Brandon and Betsy, across the street from us. He ordered an extra and asked if we wanted it. I said sure, as I had been wanting to pick one up. What I didn't realize is that he had to pay for them! Honestly, I thought they were free, as I had seen a few people in parking lots with tons of them. I just figured they were giving them away. He ordered them from the McCain website and paid $7 each. Thanks for our sign Brandon!

Artist at Work

Jacob has been so into painting his coloring pages lately. Here is a cute picture of him in progress!

Happy Halloween

Jacob had three costumes to choose from this year! The first was a FARMER, which he really wanted to be earlier in the month. I bought him some overalls at Old Navy and a white t-shirt. I fixed up his cowboy hat and attached a red bandanna to his overall pocket. He really looked cute. He worn this one to the Fall Festival at his school. The second costume was a BAT costume that I bought at a sale at Old Navy for $5. A huge bargain. I really just got it for him to play dress-up in. The third costume is the one he wore on Halloween night, THOMAS THE TRAIN. I bought this one at Kohl's sometime after Halloween 2007, also for him to play dress-up in. He really loves his Tommy! The only issue that we had was the hat. He wants to wear it backwards! Whatever!

Our first stop was First Baptist Church of Katy, where we attend church and also MOPS, AWANA, and Bible Studies. Everything was in the parking lot, so they had lots to choose from. We met our friends Melissa and Brian, as well as Melissa's sister Jennifer. The boys had a blast playing games (here is one of Jacob playing putt-putt). They did really well, but still got toys/candy even when they didn't win. A big hit were the bounce houses. I think there must have been 10. They also went on the rock climbing wall, but not together, they both went at separate times. Jacob was really excited to climb it, so we waited in the line. I wasn't sure if he would do it once we got the harness on and he was at the front of the line! He was really nervous and asked if I was going to climb with him! I watched him go up a couple steps with a woman in charge of the event. She was really helpful and encouraging, but he just wouldn't go any further. I did manage to get a photo of him up a few steps though!

After FBC-Katy, we went back to our home so that Jacob could Trick-or-Treat at our neighbor's homes. I wanted them to see him in his cute costume. We had a bathroom break and checked on our dogs then left again. This time to Jacob's school, Crosspoint. The parking lot was packed, so we had to park with the other couple hundred cars on the grass. At least we were in Ryan's truck! We met up with our friends again. It was packed, but lots of fun. We went into the maze. This time it was dark, but Jacob brought his pumpkin shaped flashlight, which was super helpful. After the maze, we went back to the classrooms where the preschool games were going on. They were so much fun. Jacob also got to show off his classroom!!! His classroom was hosting the tattoo and face painting. The boys got lots of candy again! After the games, Brian's family headed back home. We ate some hot dogs and chips. Then went outside to watch the fireworks. They were great and we had a wonderful view from the back of Ryan's truck.

We had a fun-filled Halloween. Tonight we are going to our HOA Halloween Party. More on the later!

Preschool: Day 14

What a fun day to be a preschooler. Jacob's class had a visit from the Fire Department for Fire Safety Week. Of course, that is right up his alley! They also had an Ice Cream Party as a reward for collecting over 1700 cans (of food) for Hurricane Ike victims. Jacob said his ice cream was vanilla and they ate outside! They also got to tour the maze, with the lights on, of course! The maze is something that Crosspoint puts together in the sanctuary area for the Fall Festival. It is made of huge cardboard boxes and plywood and is lots of fun for the kids.

He is still practicing his songs for school, "I Just Want to be a Sheep" and "Go Tell it on the Mountain".

Starting Tuesday, November 4th, Jacob will be joining an afternoon special, the science club. When class is over at 11:45am, he will go with the other students who stay for the afternoon and eat lunch. Then he will join the group who participate in the science club. Here is a brief description of the science club: Hands on Science. Children will experience a number of activities that will spark the imagination and curiosity in a fun and interactive way of exploring God's world. I think it will be lots of fun. I will pick up at 2:30pm.

Preschool: Day 13

This week will be a great one at Jacob's school, not so much on Tuesday, but Thursday was a blast!

This week their letter is "G", color is "black", number is"3" and shape is "square". Their book of the week is "A Color of His Own" and their theme is "Fire Safety". More about fun Thursday in the next post!

Preschool: Day 12

This week will be a fun one for Jacob. He is "Star of the Week". His teachers allow him to share a few pictures, a list of his favorite things, and a favorite toy with his classmates. He wasn't very happy about taking a toy to school, as he is worried that someone will take it. Ryan was able to convince him to take his crocodile game.

This week they are learning about the letter "F", the number "3", the color "black", shape "square", theme "Pumpkins/Fall Harvest". Their book this week is "A Color of His Own".

The school is hosting a Fall Field Day for all the students. They have a variety of games, hayrides and a pumpkin patch. I signed up to help, so I should be able to see Jacob as he enjoys the different activities!

Halloween Fun

We had a few of Jacob's friends over today for a little Halloween fun. I baked sugar cookies (pumpkins, ghosts, cats & bats) for the kids to decorate. Cathy brought over an art project for the kids. They made finger print leaves with finger paint on a tree. We had pizza for lunch. Then the kids played for a couple hours. We had lots of fun!

Happy Almost BOO to You!

I found this picture in some of my Halloween decorations and couldn't resist it. Draco is a Sherif and Taylor is a pumpkin. I believe this is from 2004.

Mary Jo Peckham Park

Yesterday (10.18.08) we took Jacob to the park. He had such a great time.

Preschool: Day 11

Day 11 was picture day. I dressed Jacob is a nice plaid button-down shirt and brown pants with a belt. He looked really handsome. Ryan fixed his hair before school, but by the time we got there, it was already messed up! I can't wait to see them!

He seems to have had a great day. They made elephants from various shapes and used wiggly eyes, which Jacob thinks are so fun!

Next week at school they are having their fall field days. It should be lots of fun!

Pumpkin Patch

While Day was here, we went to the Pumpkin Patch again. Jacob had a great time showing Day all the pumpkins. He loves to pick up the big ones and see how much he can lift. He is really strong! Day picked out a friend for Squashy!

Bowling

Mom, Otho, Jacob and I went bowling Monday (Oct. 13th). We had such a great time. Jacob loves to bowl. He claims to have gone many times and tells everyone about it, but this was actually only his second trip. He and Day picked out his orange ball, and eight pounder! After his ball got stuck (from not going fast enough) out on the lanes twice, an employee brought over a metal ramp for Jacob to pass the ball down. It worked really well. Jacob ended up with a score of 100, which was the highest of all four of us! He did, of course, have the gutter rails and ramp to help him though! We all had lots of fun.

Every time Grampy (Otho) bowled, it looked as though he was throwing his whole body into it! My mom and I kept saying that it looked like he was going to hurt himself. I must have said something about it looking like he was killing himself. Later at dinner, Jacob had to fill his daddy in on his day of bowling. He told him that it looking like Grampy was going to "kills his self"!