Summer Fun

Summer 2012 is off to a great start!  Well, I won't be one of those fake blogs...it was off to a rocky start.  Having a five year old not in her usual routine is a task in and of itself.  I think we're finally getting into the swing of summer and not having a set schedule to follow.  We do have gymnastics on Mondays, so that's one thing to keep us in the mindset of having to be somewhere.  And next week Hallie will have swim lessons each evening.  But I'm betting the rest of our summer will be filled with family (my parents are coming next week), friends, play dates, lots of visits to the Spray Park and swimming at the YMCA!  So fun!

We started the summer off celebrating 8 years of marriage...and getting a new-to-us car to accommodate our growing family.  We got a 2010 Mazda 5 and we absolutely *LOVE* it!  I call it the mini-mini van. :o)

Last Monday, Hallie took her very first gymnastics class.  She did GREAT!  I was really impressed with her skills.  Can you tell that an hour of gymnastics makes a little girl tired?!  It didn't take long for Hallie to fall asleep that afternoon on the couch.

After gymnastics...desperately wanting to be a big girl and sit in the big seat.  Not yet, sweet Hallie.  Not yet.  Mommy will keep you in that harnessed booster up to 80 pounds (or as long as I possibly can--lol). :o)

After gymnastics we made a quick trip to the grocery store.  The produce section has a little corner for kids to buy several different types of fruit for a quarter.  Hallie was pretty proud of herself for eating the entire apple. :o)

The Weather Channel totally lied on Wednesday--it said thunderstorms and there were none!  So Hallie and I headed over to the Mountainview Spray Park (only a few minutes from our house and right behind my school).

Hallie loved waiting for this *little* shower.  Ha--nothing little about it.  It nearly knocked her down when the water sprayed out!

I know you can't imagine this, but Hallie *loves* to pose for pictures!  Ha!

After the Spray Park, we did a little browsing at the mall.  Hallie's new thing, if she can't get something, is to take a picture of it with my phone.  That way she can remember what she wants "for her birthday" or "for Chrsitmas".  LOL.  I had lots of little pictures on my phone at the end of the trip of things she wanted...including this lovely picture...a Hello Kitty wallet from Dillard's because she just doesn't have anything Hello Kitty!  Ha!

Hallie had a tea party with Moe after the mall...then she got to go hear her Gramps play drums with his band.  And she got to spend the night with Gramps and RahRah!

Today we ventured to the YMCA to enjoy their pool in this hot weather!  We are thankful to have a summer membership there for all the hot days to come!

Tomorrow brings dance recital rehearsals and some rest. :o)  Hallie has her dance recital Sunday afternoon!  Then we'll be gearing up for Nonna and Pop's arrival!  Hooray!

Happy Summer, y'all!!

Eight Years

OK...so we definitely need to get our wedding pictures converted into a digital file.  I cannot believe we don't have a digital file of our wedding pictures--I mean, it was 2004!  Ha!  Nevertheless, I just snapped a picture of a picture (with my phone, no less--eek). :o)

Happy Anniversary to my biggest fan--Jonathan!  I know I think it and say it every year, but I just cannot believe we have been married eight years.  As some friends have said, we made it through the seven year itch without killing each other.  I think that's a plus, yes?  Ha!  I cannot imagine walking day by day without Jonathan by my side.  He knows me better than I know myself (sometimes, anyway).  He is so loving and patient with me (most of the time--lol).  I know I'm a better person because of him!  And that's not to say that we didn't have our moments of "not so wonderful"...we can always do better.  But I'm thankful that I know I have Jonathan for the long haul!

No marriage is perfect--we're all human, therefore not perfect...however, it's a blessing to have the job of being married.  Some days it would be easier to just cruise through life being married without making any effort.  Or maybe it would be easier to just walk away.  But that isn't what we have been called to do.  We are called to love...to honor...to respect...to sacrifice...to submit--both sides are called to do those things.  Marriage isn't one-sided.  Some days it's easier to do those things than other days (especially if you're pregnant).  But regardless of the ease or struggle, it's what we've been called to do once we enter into the covenant of marriage.  Through ups and downs...good and bad.  In the end, I'm so thankful that I know that Jonathan and I both agree that the other is always worth fighting for.  Besides, you can't possibly recognize and truly experience the beauty of the mountain if you've never spent some time in the valley.

Regardless of the quality of the pictures, the quality of our marriage is beautiful. :o)

June 5, 2004

Mr. & Mrs. Jonathan Paul Echols

I love you JPE!  Here's to a wonderful eight years...and eight hundred more!  I am so thankful that God ordained our meeting in Cheyenne, WY the summer of 2003.  I will never forget our love story as it continues to grow more wonderful by the day!

Baby Girl

While at school today, Hallie drew two family portraits.  In the top one, Baby Girl is in Mommy's tummy--"See, Mommy, your arms are around your tummy." :o)  The bottom portrait has Hallie and her tiny baby sister holding hands (melt my heart!).  I thought these were so sweet...so I decided to use them as our little "name reveal" (not that it's a huge secret...haha). :o)  Hallie is super excited about Baby Harper coming. 

A Walk Down Hallie Lane

Hallie's last day of PreK has me reminiscing.  I just cannot believe my sweet little girl is five years old...I cannot believe she'll be starting kindergarten in the fall!  I'm definitely looking forward to spending this summer with her as my "only" before she becomes a big sister.  The fall will bring many wonderful changes...but I don't ever want to forget Hallie's "little years".  As I've been walking down Memory Lane, I've been looking at old posts of Hallie...mostly from when she was two and under as I haven't made it through the past three years of her blog yet!  Here are a few of my favorites...I had to stop b/c I think I could just repost them all.  Some we had forgotten about--so I am SO very thankful for today's technology and this online scrapbook! :o)  Hallie is such a treasure and we love her so incredibly much!!

VIDEOS (Click on the pink link):
The Giggle Straw (10 months old)
Frogs and Mazes (11 months old)
Christmas Cards (2008)
Miss America 2027 (2009)
How Big is Hallie? (2009)
Pop's Hat (2009)


STORIES/PICTURES (Click on the pink link):
Hallie in the Sink
Hallie Coloring
Hallie is ONE!
Uno for One
Parade on Cumberland (2008)
87 in January (2009)
Conversations with Hallie (2009)

Then & Now

First Day of PreK...                        


Last Day of PreK...



First Day of PreK...                            Last Day of PreK...
    

A Few Tears

Today was Hallie's very last day of PreK.  Our little girl is getting so big.  (Sniff, sniff)  I won't lie...there have been several tears shed this week.  Every day it was a little something.  It started Monday with Jonathan picking her up from school and dropping her off at my school to go to ballet for the last time.  The day ended with me reading Hallie's last PreK newsletter (her teacher sends out a weekly newsletter).  The waterworks began as I realized this was her last week in PreK.  On Wednesday, her little yellow mug was sent home--we had to send it at the beginning of the year for her to drink water out of during snack time.  She had decorated it...most of the little drawings were smudged off...except for the beautiful little smiley face heart on the bottom.  Then today came...the very last day.  Jonathan took her to school like normal.  I picked her up at 10:00 for her end of year swim party.  It was a wonderful day filled with good memories.  It did make us all a little sad to leave the comforts of a small, Christian school.  But we're excited about Hallie's adventures ahead!

Hallie eagerly posed for me this morning...she knew it was a special day! :o)

Last day for Daddy to take a PreK-er to school (Hallie now says that she's a Kindergartener since she's done with PreK!)

Hallie and her sweet teacher, Mrs. Beaudin.  We could not have asked for a better teacher.  She showed Hallie so much love and patience and embraced Hallie's personality!  Mrs. Beaudin is a very special teacher! 

Hallie has officially completed PreK...and she got the award for "Most Artistic"! :o)

The pool party!  Hallie *loved* the slide!

This face says, "I'm SO excited to be here...and it is SO cold!!"

It has been in the 90s all week...today it was 77 most of the morning.  It wasn't until later in the day, when the clouds rolled away, that it got into the 90s.  Needless to say, the swim party was a little chilly!

Such a fun teacher!

Hallie and her PreK BFF, Marleigh.  These two are going to miss each other and got really sad today when it was time to say good-bye. :o(

Some of the sweet littles from Hallie's class!

Joe, Abby, Hallie, Sarah, Marleigh, Jordyn, Ellie, Mrs. Beaudin (and Abby's little sister)

We have been so blessed to have Hallie at Texas Christian Academy the past two years.  Hallie has been loved, encouraged, and taught about the love of Christ!  I know Hallie has learned so much the past two years and is completely ready for Kindergarten!  

Summer's Here Early!

It was so hot this past Tuesday...I mean it was 92 degrees so hot.  Good grief, it's only May!  After spending the entire morning at the zoo with my first graders, I was looking forward to a restful afternoon.  After picking Hallie up, we headed home.  After riding her bike for a little while, Hallie asked if we could get out the sprinkler...I didn't have a good reason to answer no since it was so hot.  She was *thrilled* (can you tell by the first picture?!)!!  I am so thankful for this little girl who is just FULL to capacity of personality--a wonderful combination of sweetness, spunkiness, silliness, and sassiness!  Wouldn't trade her for the world.

Doing a little dance...she makes me giggle!

Playing in the mud puddle

Little Cubbies Roar

Hallie has completed her first year as an Awanas Cubby!  She has really enjoyed going to Cubbies each week where they learn and recite Bible verses, play games, and learn more about Jesus!  The last night was a little awards ceremony followed by lots of laughter, playing, and ice cream. :o)

Singing the Cubbies song

Getting her little award. :o)

Ready for ice cream!

Sweet friend, Memory...

...these two are rather silly!

Hallie sang the Cubbies song for us on the way home. :o)

We are so thankful for the teachers who worked with Hallie and the other kids throughout the year!  They are very special people, and we know Hallie is learning to hide the Word of God in her heart! :o)

The Sweetest Things

Hallie drew this precious picture for me at school! I love the details she added--like the parts in my hair, how I have blue eyes, and Daddy's spiky hair. And evidently, Daddy is the only one who wears shoes in the family. :o) She has also predicted that Baby Sister will have blond hair and brown eyes just like her. I will always treasure this sweet picture!

Mother's Day 2012

Mother's Day started off...early!  And by early, I mean that Hallie had to be at church for the early service at 9:30 to sing with the Cherub Choir.  She sang again at the 10:30 service (our usual).  It was precious, and it was a lovely beginning to Mother's Day despite the fact I had a really, really hard time getting her out the door to be to church on time. :o)

After church, we headed to Jonathan's parents' house for lunch.  As a Mother's Day treat for RahRah, we took her picture with her two grandbabies.  I think Jonathan took 200 pictures (I'm only exaggerating by about 50).  It was quite hard to get smiles out of one of the littles...I won't name any names. ;o)

Take 1...

Hallie's smile is already fading...

Maybe some tickles will help...nope.  So serious. :o)

How about sharing Hallie's toy?  Eh...it's interesting enough.  

Gramps came out and got a few smiles. :o)

And after 10 minutes of taking pictures, Hallie was *not* interested in a Mommy & Hallie picture.  This is the only picture we got...the end of Hallie's smiles.  Ha!

Then Hallie just *had* to show Daddy the tiny little tomatoes that RahRah is growing. 

After the little photo shoot, we headed inside for lunch.  It was delicious...good food, good company.  We opened a few presents and spent the rest of the afternoon resting.  It was a wonderful day, and I felt completely loved!

And on this Mother's Day, I am so blessed to be the Mommy to the most precious little girl in the world (and another precious one on the way!).  Hallie challenges me to be a better Mommy, and I cannot imagine loving her anymore than I already do.  She is such an incredible little being! :o)

Counting Backward

I've decided that I'm going to now count backward for my age. :o) Works for me.

I'll be honest. Yesterday won't go down as the greatest birthday of all time. At least not the "daytime birthday". I was grumpy, tired, and honestly wanted to crawl into bed with the covers over my head. There wasn't anything in particular that made me feel that way...just several things clouded into one gray cloud. Despite my sweet (and very loving and patient) husband's attempts at bringing me out of my funk, nothing really helped.  Toward the end of the school day, I received two beautiful bouquets of flowers that brightened my day tremendously!  I'm very thankful for my sweet mom and mother-in-law.

However, after school, Hallie and I rested up for dinner. I took a quick nap and felt a little refreshed afterward. I was ready to celebrate (and even had a smile on my face).

On the way to dinner, Jonathan gave me the sweetest card, saying that I'm his very best friend. It came complete with an old school friendship bracelet (which I am proudly displaying on my wrist). Dinner was very entertaining (Fuji Japanese Steakhouse), and I just couldn't not giggle when Hallie proclaimed she was done with her salad and ready for her "hot water soup"! :o) After dinner, we headed home for cookie cake (my favorite). Jonathan sweetly had them only use orange, white, and yellow icing as I think most of the others (especially blue and red) are disgusting. I don't care what anyone thinks...they are. My cake might have looked quite bright, but it tasted divine. :o)

After cake, I opened some sweet presents--a James Avery remembrance ring with Hallie's birthstone from Jonathan; an Amazon gift card from Hallie bc she wanted to get me a book for my Kindle (she is the sweetest!); and from my parents and in-laws...shopping money!  Hooray!  Of course, my parents weren't able to join us, but we did celebrate with them via FaceTime. :o) Then Hallie entertained with her gymnastics moves. Lol.

And now it's the day after my birthday:  Jonathan told me about his sweet conversation with Hal on the way to school this morning. Hallie proclaimed this morning that mommies don't get enough presents like kids do...I like her thinking. Haha. She really is super sweet!

Overall, it turned out to be a great birthday--one where I realized just how much I am loved. So thankful for my family and friends. Until next year...when I'll be 32. ;o)

My sweet friendship bracelet from the Hubs. :o)

Hallie finally got her "hot water soup"!  This girl cracks me up!

Yummo cookie cake! :o)

Isn't the handwritten candle the best?  It's from Hallie's 4th birthday--and has a 4 on the other side! Ha!

Our after cake/presents entertainment. :o)

I have *got* to sign her up for summer gymnastics!

And my very sweet ring.  I *love love love* it!