Halloween Preview

She finally picked a costume! Madison will be trick-or-treating as Jasmine from the Disney movie Aladin. Here she is trying it on.



McKenzie is going as a fairy, compliments of Auntie Julie's birthday box of dress up clothes.

Kim isn't a big fan of Halloween and I will be out of town for the big event, so HUGE thank yous to Sarah for agreeing to take Maddie, McKenzie, and Emery trick-or-treating while Kim and Stacey hand out candy.

I will be with my clients, who are the members of MCC of the Rockies in Denver, aboard the Carnival Celebration sailing from Jacksonville, Fl. I am so excited that Mom is coming with me on this cruise and we will be dressing up as a Nun (Mom) and the Pope (me). If you had seen the costume for the devil I considered wearing for just a brief moment, you'll undertsand why I went with the Pope!

Good Bye Mt Sinai

Friday marked Maddie and McKenzie's last day at Mt. Sinai Christian Academy. I was sad. I still am. McKenzie has only been there since April, but this is the only child care facility Maddie knows. I thought she would be sad to leave her friends, but she seems unaffected thus far. Kim and I have been very emotional about the change to the new school. We feel so much a part of the Mt. Sinai family and I will NEVER forget the ladies who helped us be better mothers to Maddie and McKenzie. I know there are exciting times ahead for our family, but for now, we pay tribute to the school we've loved for four years. And we will certainly never forget the Mt. Sinai cheer!

Sly and the Family Stone

Kim went to work for Emerson Academy in September. The child development center is owned by our very good friends, Sarah and Stacey. Their daughter, Emery, is Maddie's best friend. Making this change in career has been such a blessing to Kim. She is a different person! She enjoys the peolpe she works with every day, she comes home tired and accommplished, and she has fun. It has been wonderful! The school officially opens on 10/15 and Kim is excited. The school will cater to special needs children since both Sarah and Stacey have a background in special education.

The school itself is incredibly unique. There are animals out back, including 2 goats (1 is pregnant with twins), 2 bunnies, and 3 miniature horses. Until today, there was also a miniature donkey named Sylvester. Kim fell in love with Sylvester. And Sylvester fell in love with Kim. In many cultures, they would be considered married.

Sylvester, however, seems to like only Kim. He has twice attacked the goats with fairly serious results. Sarah and Stacey decided he was too agressive and sold him to a sweet family out in the country. We went by the school this morning to say good-bye. Here are the first and last looks at Kim's donkey - Sylvester.

We're Moving on Up!

We are so excited to share the news with our peeps! We are buying a new house in Round Rock! Kim bought the house we live in now in December 1999. I moved in a few months later. It was the perfect house for 2 people and 2 dogs. We began to outgrow the house when Baby #1 came along with all of her baby stuff. Now that we have Baby #2, we are on top of each other!

The new house is in a golf course community. We stumbled upon the spec house (Ryland Homes) by accident. The house is less than 1/4 of a mile from Emerson Academy, where Kim is now working and the girls will be attending in 2 weeks. The house is on a cul-de-sac with great neighbors. There are several children on the block and many non-white faces. The house is more than double our square footage and we can hardly wait to move in! Of course, we have to sell the home we're in first. Keep your fingers crossed!

We can't wait for all of you to come for a visit. There is plenty of room now! The new address will be 107 Hal Sutton Cove. Though I'm not crazy about the street name (golfer), I love nearly everything about the house. Everyone will have their own room, including Nanny when she comes for visits. I have a beautiful office and the girls have a game room/play room like nothing I have ever seen. Kim has the kitchen of her dreams and we are both drooling over the amount of storage in the house (we have none where we are!). If all goes well, we will move in next month. I promise to take more pictures. For now, here is the outside of the house.



FYI - We had our current home painted in August. For nearly 8 years, I have lived in a brown house. Now it is green. We're meeting with the paint people about changing the brown door and shutters to rust.