Douglas Days

We love this girl!

2012-01-09T08:23:00.002-06:00

Audrey holding baby Caroline Besancon for the first time...

We sure love this little girl.

Audrey can't wait to play with Caroline when she gets bigger, but we sure will enjoy these days of loving on her while she's little.

"Church"

2012-01-01T20:27:00.002-06:00

So lately when we are laying down with Alaina to put her to bed - or when we are rocking her - she has become very specific on what we can sing. She doesn't want my sweet lullabies. She wants "church!" And "church" very specifically means "Jesus Loves Me," "Jesus Loves the Little Children," which for some reason I always segue right into "Go Tell it on the Mountain," and sometimes she'll let me sing "Jesus in the mornin..." But if I try to go into something that she doesn't consider "church" she lets me know very quickly. And our Christmas carols did not fit in the church catagory. I never quite made it through "away in a manger" or "Silent Night" (which Audrey can't get enough of.)

"Church!"

Then tonight we were going to start over our reading of the Bible at Jan. 1. I told them to get in bed so we could read the Bible. Then I asked Alaina who is in the Bible and she said "Jesus." You should hear her say Bible. It's the most southern "Biiible" you have ever heard.

crazy girl.

Family Time at the Farm

2011-12-31T15:44:00.008-06:00

The day after Christmas our family took off for "Walker Trail Ranch" for a few days.

We had such a great time enjoying the farm together.

played a little Uno by the fire

did a little swingin and singin

a little frisbee throwing

teeter tottering

some walking

a lot of ball throwing

exploring

Daddy did some shooting...

It was just plain fun!

Thanks for the stay Aunt Sarah and Uncle Eddie. We loved it!

Christmas Day at Gia and Bapa's

2011-12-31T14:44:00.006-06:00

It was a Merry Christmas at Gia and Bapa's this year.

We had some Merry girls

and boys...

And I heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight...

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Santa Came Early!!!

2011-12-24T11:11:00.007-06:00

Our girls were so good this year that Santa decided to come to our house early!

Each year after Santa leaves all the toys Mommy and Daddy sneak in and take a picture before the girls wake up. I have such great memories from my childhood, pictures in my mind of just what it looked like when I found those special - long awaited gifts under the tree.

We try to take a picture of this each year so the girls can save this special memory.

Audrey asked Santa specifically for a pink kitchen.

Here we are when they first come in. Audrey found her baby doll right away. She named her Baby Caroline (after Caroline Besancon).

Here she is finding a Santa Mouse ornament. She asked for a Santa doll. One of our favorite Christmas books is Santa Mouse so Santa gave her this little Santa Mouse ornament for her tree. (She and Sissy each get an ornament each year.)

Sissy loved her baby doll too. She named her Hannah (after Hannah Londt.)

Checking out the pink Kitchen.

Feeding babies and having tea.

Tea time with babies.

just loved this expression.

What a fun Christmas morning for the Douglas girls.

Can't wait for church with our family today and then on to Gia and Bapa's.

Merry Christmas everyone.

May Santa be good to you all!

A Sunday in December

2011-12-22T17:22:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas to all!

2011-12-13T15:14:00.007-06:00

Blessings to you and your family this Christmas Season. We hope that your year has been full of God's good gifts as ours has been. We wanted to share with you a few of the blessings we have seen this year...

It has been so sweet to see our girls growing up as sisters this past year. They are both so unique and special and they love each other so very much.

Audrey is a sweetheart. She has started Awanas this year and it has been such a joy to see her grow and enjoy learning with other kids. She is so kind and gentle.

Alaina is a bundle of joy. She has such a silly side. She just makes us laugh. We cannot believe she is 2 already. What a little personality!

Troy just finished up almost a year of a discipleship program lead by our Pastor. He was able to weekly spend time under our Pastor's teaching with some amazing men. This has been a very growing experience for Troy. He looks forward to the next stages of this journey with the men of Pantego. Work has been good. He continues to be challenged and to grow in his field.

I, Amy, have had one of the sweetest years. I just finished my first year teaching Precept Upon Precept Bible Studies. It has truly been one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. I am so thankful. I look forward to the year to come as I step out into more leadership in the Women's Ministry at Pantego. God is good. He knows my heart so well.

He truly is the giver of all good things.
We pray that the year to come is rich and full for you and your family and that you walk in the grace of our Lord and Savior, Jesus.

Blessings to you and yours,
Troy, Amy, Audrey, Alaina...and Nettie too

Bad Hair Day

2011-12-09T10:35:00.006-06:00

In case you haven't heard...the girls got a haircuts. several. first from each other...then the professional saved the day...or made it a little better at least.

In case you don't remember just how sweet and girly their hair was before...this is at Thanksgiving.

And this is after they both took scissors to each other's hair...

Nice little lopsided look. You could pretend that she just has it tucked behind her ear...

but then you might actually look at the side of her head...

Then there's the little one....

Audrey said she did a good job on Laina.

Here they are after a trip to see Ms. Vanessa and Ms. Tina (our hair stylists.)

Ms. Vanessa kept telling Audrey, "no no do that again!"

And Ms. Tina was just about as devastated as the girls when I wouldn't

allow them to have a sucker.

No rewards for cutting your own hair.

Little Pixie Girl putting on a show

Not quite what I had in mind for their hair, but what can you do?

It guess it's a rite of passage for little girls.

Proud Little Pixies

"no no do that again!"

Thanksgiving at Nana's

2011-12-09T09:00:00.004-06:00

This year we spent our Thanksgiving in Bay City with Troy's family.

cousins and new found friends

Enjoying the Christmas decor

We spent some time at the park on Friday. It was such a gorgeous day.

Above, the girls are feeding ducks.

And playing on the playground was such fun!

What a nice Thanksgiving - full of fun with cousins, sweet grand mothers and great grandmothers and lots of yummy food of course.

We have so much to be thankful for.

Christmas is coming and all through the house...

2011-12-03T14:59:00.007-06:00

Audrey wrote a card this year of all that she is thankful for. Mommy would write a word that she said and then she copied it. She did a great job. We were both pretty proud.

I let the girls have a free time of play with playdough together one day. Needless to say...that's the last time for that for awhile. The mess was a bit more than Mommy can take.

As soon as we came home from Thanksgiving we began our Christmas decorating.

Alaina loved some time with the nativity.

Audrey was a great little decorator this year.

Have a Merry Christmas Season all!

Birthday Party Time at Gia and Bapa's

2011-11-24T19:29:00.007-06:00

What a great time we had celebrating Alaina's birthday at Gia and Bapa's last weekend.
Alaina was so treated by the fun presents and time to play with her cousins.

Quick Uncle Eddie!

This is baby Hannah.

And Audrey got some fun "lipstick" from Gia.

Laina and Audrey BOTH loved the stroller and doll.

We actually went and got Audrey a stroller the next week so they could both have one. Big girls taking care of their babies. I so wish i could get a video of Alaina rocking and singing to her baby. Just can't catch it on video.

And then there was the walking puppy that her cousins gave her. THAT was a hit. Alaina giggled and giggled at that puppy. She kept falling down giggling.

Cousins

The Turkey cupcake

And finally some time just playin with Caroline's dollhouse.

Look at that mischievieous little face.

What a great time for our big 2 year old. Thanks everyone for making Laina's birthday special.

Happy Birthday Alaina Elizabeth!

2011-11-24T08:44:00.007-06:00

My little Alaina turns 2 today!

What a joy she is to our family. It is so precious to hear her laughter, see her silliness, listen to her sing to her babies and play with her big sister and Nettie. She loves to be outside, loves to read books and wrestle with her Daddy. She is just beginning to want to cook with Mommy and still loves to be rocked and sung to. She is cuddly and rambunctious. She can be wildly grecarious and then put on a shy...maybe even sly face the next moment. What a bundle of joy!

Here she is at 1 year...

And on the day she was born...

What a precious day. We loved having family with us...especially the surprise of Aunt Sarah walking in the hospital door right before we went in to surgery. That was so precious to me. Makes me want to cry writing about it. And those first moments of holding this dear little girl will never be forgotten.

Another precious moment was sisters meeting for the first time...

And the days soon to follow

Just to give you a picture of how much Audrey has changed since then as well...

Our little Alaina. We love you!

Happy Birthday...and Thanksgiving too!!!

Trunk or Treat...Halloween Post #1

2011-10-30T20:24:00.006-05:00

Tonight we decided to start our Halloween early and take the little cuties to a local

"Trunk or Treat"...

These sure were 2 cute little Tinkerbells.

Precious Faces

Audrey did a good job of going up to get a piece of candy or two and saying "Thank you."

Laina would go up and dig around in the candy and keep taking more

until I helped her move on.

Got some cute little face painting from the Wicked Witch.

When Laina had her turn she just stared so hard at the Wicked Witch and would say "hat. hat."

It was a really fun evening. Now they are really ready for their first big

Trick or Treat night together.

Bring on the candy neighbors. :)

Mommy's Birthday Festivities

2011-10-16T16:19:00.006-05:00

Well, Friday was my 39th birthday. Can you believe it?!

We had a great weekend full of time with our home group, great breakfast, some garden shopping and planning, and finally time with my family...

Audrey and Alaina LOVED every minute with the fam.

Laina was a little tinkerbell live wire.

Audrey enjoyed carving a pumpkin with her cousins...or watching them carve.

Here is the final product - after his nose fell apart. :)

Yummy strawberry cake was had by all...

see Eddie oohing and aahing...or probably finding some reason to make fun of the awesome cake as he always does.

Laina ate every chance she got

We enjoyed some awesome chocolate covered strawberries that I got as a special birthday treat...

Laina gave Cole some sweet kisses

and wrestled all over her cousins and Aunt Sarah.

Audrey did some hair makeovers while Laina modeled for us.

And, as is normal for such an occasion...uncle Eddie napped.

A very fun time was had by all!

Nennie

2011-10-16T16:10:00.002-05:00

Mommy's oldest friend, Mrs. Stephanie, came to spend a few nights with us recently.

Audrey and Alaina were immediately taken with Mrs. Stephanie...or Nennie as Laina says.

They had some really fun storytime.

They also got to hear Mrs. Stephanie and Mommy tell stories that Bapa told us when we were little girls. Mrs. Stephanie remembered them word for word. She's a great storyteller!

Audrey loved Mrs. Stephanie's jewelry.

Laina was particularly interested in Nennie's shoes.
Thank you for visiting us Nennie.

We love you!

Fall at the Arboretum

2011-10-01T16:34:00.003-05:00

Today we went to see Fall at the Dallas Arboretum with our friend Mrs. Marilyn.

It was a beautiful day to be out...

Mrs. Marilyn gave the girls sweet little pumpkin cookies to eat in the pumpkin patch.

They LOVED it!

What a great day! Thank you Mrs. Marilyn!

Cuties!~

Where We've Been...

2011-09-29T20:45:00.004-05:00

Where have the Douglases been you ask?

We've been going about our Summer, just enjoying life as we know it...

Alaina had her first real haircut (other than Mommy's cut). We all get our hair cut from the same sweet ladies. They LOVE Audrey and Alaina. Alaina walks right into their shop and straight to the suckers and these ladies think that's great! When I get my hair cut they let her play around the shop and they play with her and love on her. So fun. They say they want to take her home.

Some fun times with Gia - in the HOT weather.

Lots of time outside. Audrey caught some frogs for her bug box...well, Mommy caught the frogs for Audrey's box. We fixed them right up with some water and grass. The next morning there was a huge hole in the mesh box. Mommy thought the frogs fought their way out of there...until Daddy pointed out that they didn't get out...but something else got in! We didn't tell Audrey that part of the little frog's story. Poor little froggies! Maybe their Mommy came to get them. :)

Troy and I took a long weekend away in the Hill Country. Can you believe we hadn't been away without the kids since Audrey was born?! Thank you to Gia and Bapa for the gift of the B&B and for keeping the girls. We had a great time. ...an interesting time...but a great time. :)
it's a funny story actually.
Our B&B was out in the sticks. The Burro was our neighbor.
We had breakfast served privately on our front porch. A nice country breakfast.
Had probably the best Mexican food we've had in ...forever.
I had a morning to myself studying over coffee at Panera.
Really nice. Very relaxing.

Troy turned 36 on September 8th.
These are pics of the girls waiting to surprise him when he came home from work.

And Audrey has started Awanas. It's really fun. She is learning so much.

This is her Awana's vest and "Crazy Hair Night."

When Mommy leaves on Wed. nights to go to my Bible study, Audrey leaves with Daddy to go to her Bible study. She thinks she's so big.

And of course we've been cooking. Real cooking...and play cooking.
These girls can cook lima beans like you wouldn't believe!

See how much fun we've been having? :)

JELLO

2011-08-16T18:58:00.002-05:00

Audrey and I made Jello today. She couldn't wait to eat it after dinner.

This was Alaina's first Jello.

She was quite fascinated with the strange stuff and quickly decided that she liked it.

Yummy!

Sweet Moments

2011-08-16T07:49:00.002-05:00

Alaina is getting so big that she and Audrey are doing alot together. It is so fun to see them playing together.
Last night, after the girls squeeled in the sprinklers for awhile, the 3 of us got to lay down together in Audrey's bed and do our bedtime routine all together. It was so sweet - the 3 of us laying side by side in Audrey's twin bed. We read a fun little story about a sleepy ladybug. Alaina growled when we saw the tiger in the book. Audrey patted on Alaina. We read Audrey's Bible story about Jesus healing a lame man. And we held hands and prayed thanking God for our home and our family and especially for giving Mr. Stu a new heart.
It was such a sweet moment as I held their precious little hands. One of many more to come. Thank you God for my little girls.

Monkey

2011-08-12T08:29:00.004-05:00

We seem to have a little monkey around here...

These girls are so much fun!

Somersault

2011-08-11T17:22:00.003-05:00

Someone's been practicing somersaults around here...

Good job big girl!

Hot Summer Evening

2011-08-11T13:03:00.006-05:00

It's hot. Really really hot.

Last night after dinner we played outside a bit. The girls aren't big fans of the sprinkler, but they LOVE the water hose.

Here's some water hose fun...

Laina telling us all about it...

Nettie enjoying the evening...sort of...she's hot...

But she's cute...

Daddy and Audrey doing a little watering...

Nice evening... but looking forward to cooler days to come.

Kiss

2011-08-08T17:33:00.002-05:00

In the Douglas house we very often have this little face coming at us asking for a kiss...
(Nettie not excluded)

And then she asks for a hug.

And then she says "bye"

and then she's busy again.

And at bedtime everyone gets this sweet little kissy face before she heads off to her room.

Couldn't you just eat her up?!

Play time

2011-08-07T19:35:00.005-05:00

Fun time with the family...

building with Bapa

Audrey not too fond of a lizard

cooking with Mommy

And playtime with Daddy

And last, but not least, some ring around the rosie...sort of...
(they do play ring around the rosie really well together...just not today...)

Lullabies

2011-07-25T20:49:00.002-05:00

Since Audrey was a wee tiny baby I've been singing the same lullabies to her. Now I sing them to Laina and Audrey both.

The sweetest thing is Audrey now asking for her baby songs and singing along in her precious voice.

Audrey, here are your songs. I hope you never forget the sound. I never will.

I love Audrey

she loves me

I love Audrey

she's so sweet

I love Audrey

she loves me

I love Audrey

she's so sweet.

Go to sleep my baby sleep

lullaby my little one.

Baby sleep until the mornin

close your eyes

rest your head

now go to sleep.

Pretty Face

2011-07-17T18:08:00.002-05:00

Tonight at dinner - despite Alaina's face covered in spaghetti - I said to Troy "we sure were blessed with beautiful babies." And Audrey's response was to turn her little chin down to her shoulder (in our family we say she turned on her charm) and said "THIS is a pretty face."
We certainly are a humble family aren't we? :)

Our little fish

2011-07-06T07:39:00.004-05:00

Our little Alaina is not so little anymore. She is acting like such a big girl. Talking away. Playing with Sissy. Singing with Sissy. And now swimming like a little fish. This girl is fearless in the water!

We had 2 weeks of "Mommy and Me" swimming lessons a few weeks ago with our friends Mrs. Kelli and Quinn. Alaina and Quinn had a great time together.

These pics are from their last day - "fun day."

They jumped in the pool, kicked their feet, blew some great bubbles and even jumped off the diving board. Neither one was a fan of that. Alaina would only do it once and I'm convinced it was because of the male teacher who was down below to catch her. I know she would have jumped to Mommy! :)

And the grand finale was going down this slide with their teacher...
Even Mommy got to go down the slide...

Fun times at swimming lessons for all!

Happy July 2 and 4!

2011-07-05T18:27:00.010-05:00

This past weekend we went to Matagorda, Tx, to spend some much needed time with Troy's family on the beach.

(be sure to click on the collages if you want to see them better. There are some fun pictures there. :)

Alaina entertained herself in the car on the way...

Saturday the 2nd of July was our 6th anniversary. Our day started with a fun time of golf with Larry and Cameron.
We then headed to the beach house and out on our anniversary date.

We ate at this awesome little restaurant on the bay. It was in a little house, had wonderful gourmet food and such a neat atmosphere. Our meal was amazing and it was a perfect time for us.
Then we headed out to the beach to play around for awhile.
We had quite a time taking silly pictures.

The next day we had a great time at the beach with the family. Alaina was gung ho for the beach immediately. She absolutely loved the water and had no fear. Audrey took some time warming up to it.

They both had some great time with Nana, Papa and Cameron.

By day 2 on the beach we were all ready to play. Audrey had so much fun with Uncle Jeremy, Daddy and Cylus. Mommy got her second day of sitting in the surf and reading...for a LONG time. It was awesome! We love the beach.

Then on the 4th more family came and we enjoyed the day together. Here are a few family pics from the 4th (remember we had been playing on the beach all day...we're a little beached out!)

The girls really enjoyed their time with cousins (even though Alaina is crying here - she really did enjoy it. really. And Elijah didn't want his picture taken, but he had a great time as well.)

What a perfect time of vacation for our family. Thank you Nana and Papa! We love you and we had such a great time with you all! Looking forward to next time.

Celebrating Us

2011-07-01T11:38:00.005-05:00

Tomorrow Troy and I celebrate 6 years of marriage.

What an amazing 6 years it has been.
Here is a walk down memory lane of some of our favorite times...

Thanksgiving in Mass. before we were even engaged.
Troy's birthday celebration at The Blue Man Group in Boston (pre-marriage)
Engagement, February 14, 05
Ogunquit, Maine. Just before we were married
The big day!
July 2, 2005
What an amazing day it was.

Honeymoon in Bar Harbour, Maine.
Acadia National Park - honeymoon
Winter in Boston - with first addition to family - Nettie
Istanbul, Turkey

Audrey born, March 20, 2008
Alaina born, November 24. 2009

And our 5th Anniversary.
Love you so much Troy. Thank you for 6 beautiful years. So many more memories to come!

Audrey's Swimming Lessons

2011-07-01T11:10:00.005-05:00

Audrey just completed 2 weeks of swimming lessons and she did a GREAT job!

Laina finished her lessons a few weeks ago along with Mommy (pics of that to come.) Laina loved watching Sissy.

Singing songs

Blowing bubbles

Jumping to her teacher Mr. Matt. He was a great teacher.

Kicking like a big girl.

And the grand finale was "fun day" where Audrey got to go down the slide with Mr. Matt. She was quite "reluctant" at first, but had a great time and now says it was her favorite.

What a great time for our girl. We are so proud of her.

Now we are off to the beach to test our skills. :)

One Sunny Sunday

2011-06-26T15:55:00.003-05:00

Once upon a time, one sunny Sunday, there were two little girls ~

sweet sisters in their sundresses ready to go to church...

They make my heart so proud.
How precious.

Sweet Friend

2011-06-24T16:02:00.003-05:00

This is one of my dearest friends, Tamiko, and her darling baby boy, Caven. So happy to have gotten to visit with them and her husband Cory the other day.

Sister Fun

2011-06-21T07:14:00.006-05:00

A Fun Weekend with Family

2011-06-20T19:00:00.015-05:00

This past weekend we enjoyed having Troy's brother, Jeremy, Aunt Jessica, Cylus and Elijah come for a visit.

What a great time our kids had playing together...

Elijah checking out the bubbles.

some swinging

and sillies

Hot fun at the Fort Worth Zoo

Laina discovered Aunt Jessica's snow cone...and then some grapes...lots of grapes...

We discovered some caves...

then we discovered some water...

Laina LOVED the water!

What a fun day at the zoo!

Then, after church on Father's Day, we went to play in the water for awhile...

some nice cool ice cream before going home

the weekend came to an end as we enjoyed an evening playing together

and visiting with Granny Hilda...

I think these girls really enjoyed their Aunt Jessica

Thanks for coming guys. We hope you'll come again!

Morning playtime...

2011-06-10T08:48:00.002-05:00

My girls love to play together in the mornings.

Nettie loves to supervise

Mommy taking care of baby

(This baby bed was mine when I was little. Laina loves to get in it.)

And in another bed (we had the pack n play set up for baby Quinn.)

This bed caused a bloody nose for Alaina the other day.

Audrey thinks it's fun to climb in and out and was trying to help sissy.

Now off to swimming lessons.

"The Charlie Brown Show"

2011-06-05T17:21:00.006-05:00

If you've been around Audrey much lately you know that she is pretty obsessed with Lucy and the Charlie Brown Show. In fact, most of the time these days she introduces herself to people as Lucy. And I have decided to leave it alone and just let her. Although most of the time I do let the people know later that her real name is Audrey.

And much of our time is spent singing songs from The Charlie Brown Show....

Thanks to our cousin Cate (below) for inviting Audrey to her performance of "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" (where Cate played Lucy.) We do enjoy Charlie Brown, Cate, but please make sure you pick a good musical for next year seeing that we will all hear about it for the rest of the year.

Moving on...here are some fun pics from time in the pool with Cate, Caroline and Cole...

Let me apologize for Cate's baseball cap. I would've covered the letters on it if I could. Let's just pretend she's wearing another, more appropriate hat.

And finally some time lovin on Bapa...

On of my favorite things to hear Alaina say these days is "Bapa." She says it really slowly "ba....pa" And "Gia" sounds like she is yelling "Gya!"

These girls just adore their Bapa, can't you tell?

Sliding...and more sliding

2011-06-01T20:18:00.000-05:00

Blog Book # 2...

2011-05-16T07:32:00.003-05:00

As you may know, my goal in blogging is to print the blog into books so that the girls will have an awesome scrapbook of their lives.

I just printed book #2.

I love it!

I am so glad for my girls to have these memory books for when they are older.

Camping

2011-05-15T19:40:00.007-05:00

The Douglases went camping this weekend at Lake Texoma.

Would you believe that Mommy didn't take any pictures until the very last day?

To sum up the camping...

Our site was awesome. Hidden back in the trees. Lots of space.

Girls loved it. Loved playing and exploring.

As you will see by the pictures, all of their clothes got so dirty that

by the last day we were very mismatched.

We fished.

We ate.

We told stories by the fire.

The first night Laina went to sleep great...but then was awake for about 2 hours in the middle of the night. Crying...wandering around the tent...crying...and playing with Nettie...who was not so agreeable to being played with in the middle of the night.

But she did go back to sleep and slept great the second night...despite it being really cold.

The second day we went canoeing, picnicking and kite flying...

Alaina and Mommy did get to canoe too. We had the whole family in there. But Laina got kind of wiggly and we cut her trip short.

And then came the picnic and kite flying. The girls LOVED it...

Audrey was an excellent kite flyer

Laina mostly ran around and squeeled.

Then Daddy rigged Laina up with her own kite...

Sisters flying kites together...even Nettie helped out.

Some picnic face...

Mommy got some excellent kite flying in as well...

And finally some silly faces on the way home.

(These faces were a result of them both wanting a bite of Daddy's ice cream cone...)

Great camping trip.

Now we are exhausted!

Sprinkler Time Again...

2011-05-09T10:19:00.003-05:00

It's getting hot here in Texas so we decided it was time to get out the sprinkler.

Audrey ran through - or next to - on the periphery of - the sprinkler.

Laina stood next to it - out of range for the most part - and screamed.

And laughed

More fun in the sun to come...

How thankful I am to be their mother...

2011-05-08T15:01:00.004-05:00

"I don't mind if you've got something nice to say about me
And I enjoy an accolade like the rest
You could take my picture and hang it in a gallery
Of all who's who and so-n-so's that used to be the best
At such'n'such ... it wouldn't matter much
I won't lie, it feels alright to see your name in lights
We all need an 'Atta boy' or 'Atta girl'
But in the end I'd like to hang my hat on more besides
The temporary trappings of this world

I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough
To make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering
A child of mercy and grace who
blessed your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy

I don't have to look too far or too long awhile
To make a lengthly list of all that I enjoy
It's an accumulating trinket and a treasure pile
Where moth and rust, thieves and such will soon enough destroy
Not well traveled, not well read, not well-to-do or well bred
Just want to hear instead, 'Well done good and faithful one'... "

Happy Easter 2011

2011-04-24T18:59:00.015-05:00

This Easter brings several things that we are especially grateful for ~

the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and the life we have in Him

worship of our risen Savior

there aren't enough words to express this gratitude.

two beautiful girls with whom we can share this amazing truth

dear friends and family

and a church that we can call home.

Our Easter weekend began with a Good Friday Service at Pantego Bible Church. We enjoyed a special time of reflection on the work of Christ for our salvation.

On Saturday morning Audrey and Mommy made "resurrection rolls." Audrey did alot of the work here. We put "Jesus" in the "cloths" and annointed him with "oil and spices." Then when we baked our rolls we found that He was gone! He had risen from the grave!

Audrey loved this.

On Easter morning our girls awoke to Easter baskets filled with goodies...

Laina found yummy cookies in some of her eggs...

We sure have 2 cute little bunnies...

Audrey showed us everything in her basket...

After church we tried to get some pictures of Alaina and Quinn.

Alaina wasn't too excited about that.

Quinn seemed to enjoy it though.

Then Audrey showed up and Alaina warmed up a bit.

precious babies

The rest of the day was spent at Aunt Sarah and Uncle Eddie's ranch

The girls got so many treats. so so many treats. alot of treats.

And lots of lovin

Laina gave some good lovin too...

and kept on

and on...

There was some great Easter egg hunting

There was way way too much candy eaten....which we may pay for tonight at bedtime...

We found ladybug. Laina was ready to play with it.

Happy Easter everyone!

Weekend at the Farm with Friends

2011-04-11T08:53:00.020-05:00

This past weekend we went with our dear friends from Boston the Lucases, Thomasons, and Besancons to a farm in Glenrose, TX.

What an awesome time we had playing on the farm... Checkin out the farm...

Friends...

Some fun with the animals...

Fishin lessons...

Audrey loves Mr. Travis

And Mrs. Becca... Check out all of these great animals. Just next door to our farmhouse...

Ice cream time. This is Alaina's first time to hold her own ice cream cone.

Needless to say, she enjoyed a bath afterwards.

Now on to the real fishing. Kids and Daddy time.

A little silly time in the hammock

Easter egg hunts...

The dinosaurs...

Playing around in the water...where dinosaurs walked!

This is a dino track that we have our feet in...

And now all of the cutie kids at our farmhouse...

The Mammas

And the whole fam...

We love you guys! Thanks so much for coming.

We cannot wait till next time!

Some Cuteness to Start Out Your Day

2011-04-07T08:28:00.008-05:00

Ballerina fun...

Alaina and her buddy Quinn playing outside together...

Gia kept the girls while Mommy and Daddy went to a baseball game on Sunday.

When we came home this is what we found...

We recently had some good friends we knew in Boston come and visit as they are preparing to move overseas. This is their sweet little Nathaneal with Alaina.

Audrey's first Easter treat of the year.

And this is how Laina's breakfast ended today...

Now on to a bath.

A Treat for Daddy

2011-03-25T10:17:00.003-05:00

Our little chef helped make cinnamon rolls today...

with a little rolling here

some stirring and sprinkling...
and they're ready to go in the oven.

Yum! Tomorrow morning Daddy will enjoy these with the girls
(while mommy is out of town on a retreat for the WHOLE weekend!)

My sweeties

2011-03-23T15:24:00.000-05:00

I couldn't resist reposting some of my favorites in a sweet little collage.
This morning at church I told a friend that her little girl was precious and her reply was "I agree totally!" So, I was just looking through these sweet pictures and wanted to say how totally precious these girls are. I mean Come on! So cute!

Birthday Weekend...

2011-03-20T20:40:00.017-05:00

Can you believe our girl is 3?!

Birthday morning

And birthday party...

We were so glad to have so many family and friends join us for a great day at the park...

We even had a cute little Easter Bunny...

Some hot dog eatin

And cupcakes of course

Laina wore a party hat...for a minute...with her hands held down

Cam wore some nice ribbons

Isn't he pretty?

And Audrey opened some very sweet presents.

We appreciated them all very much.

Friends looking on

And sissy taking a look as well

Then we had lots and lots of play time...

Look Mom, I'm flying!

(I think that saying applies to both the pic above and below)

Thank you everyone for helping to make Audrey's birthday so special.

She absolutely loved every minute.

So on Sunday (her actual birthday) after church I picked Audrey up at her class and she asked if we were going to have her birthday party now. So, we headed on over to McDonald's for some happy meals and play time there.

Then we spent the rest of our afternoon playing in the backyard.

The Holt kids gave Audrey a cool bubble gun and she had a ball playing with it...

(notice the nice patio that Troy just finished....work on the grass is next...

you can see the need for that also...)

What a great birthday weekend it was!

Dallas Blooms with Gia and Bapa

2011-03-17T17:20:00.019-05:00

Today was a fabulous day in DFW so the girls and I decided to spend it with Gia and Bapa at the Dallas Arboretum.

It is "Dallas Blooms" time and the theme was "Fairy Tales."

Everything was gorgeous. We all loved it!

What a great day!

And what a start to Audrey's birthday weekend!

Spring Fun at Our House

2011-03-17T08:35:00.007-05:00

Spring has sprung at the Douglas house.

We have been very busy outside.
When we moved in last year (yes, it's been a year now!) we worked so hard renovating the inside and didn't get to the outside too much. This is the year to work on the outside.

I have been planting planting planting.

All of our beds are full of beautiful perennials now (some yet to pop up...but they will.)

And as of this week I put in my vegetables and pots of annuals.

Here is the front walk.

This bed on the right will be full of knockout roses eventually. We have 3 as of now. And I have some new iron pieces in there that I love. I also planted a Carolina Jasmine on the nearest end there. I will put a trellis there behind it. And some of the pots are seeded so I'll take another pic when they are in bloom.
We are also working on our grass and will lay some here on the left soon.

The girls have been spending a lot of time outside playing lately.

One day I was sitting inside watching them out the window and suddenly Alaina was up in the top of the fort! She is such a little dare devil. She crawls up the ladder and goes down the slide by herself. We can't keep her out of it.
Little stinker.

Laina slides down by herself and just flies off the bottom of the slide. Then back up to do it again.

Audrey does it all of course.

And now...our dear friends John, Kelli and Quinn have just moved from Boston to Ft. Worth ...right down the street from us!

Here are Quinn, Laina and Audrey playing together.

(Many days like this to come I am sure!)

And some popsicles from the Ice Cream Man to end the evening of fun...

This is Quinn's first popsicle.

I think he liked it.

Laina would NOT let Mommy hold her popsicle.

She basically will not let Mommy feed her anything anymore.

It makes for a messy girl...but a happy one.

Audrey LOVES when the Ice Cream Man comes around.

Happy Spring days for us.

Today we are on our way to the Dallas Arboretum with Gia and Bapa. More pictures to come I am sure.

Happy Shrove Tuesday!

2011-03-08T12:48:00.003-06:00

Today is Shrove Tuesday, also known as "Fat Tuesday." Do you know what this day is really all about? It is a great reminder to us that the Easter season is both prefaced and climaxed with joy and celebration. As in the story of the prodigal son, God never wraps His arms around a weeping prodigal without shouting to the heavens "This - my child - was dead and is alive again! He was lost and now is found! It's party time!"

So often brokenness is accompanied by joy incomprehensible.

So in observance of this day before the Lenten season begins, Audrey and I made a "King Cake." This is a traditional mardi gras cake.

I know, it doesn't LOOK so much like a King Cake - it needs some purple, green and yellow food color - but I didn't have any so sprinkles had to do. :) This thing is as homemade as it gets, from dough rising to rolling with a pin. Audrey is such a great little cook.

Hopefully it tastes like a King Cake. :) Our home group gets to be the judge.

Weekend Fun...

2011-03-07T12:44:00.010-06:00

This weekend our home group went to a pizza and games place to raise money for a local ministry - www.6stones.org

Our family had a great time...

Audrey loved playing the games...

I think Daddy kind of enjoyed it too.

This is sweet Kayla from our home group.

Our girls love her, her sister Madison and her brother Braden.

Look Mom, no hands!

Lest you think Laina missed out on the fun...

She spent most of her time looking around at all the busyness and lights...

But she also had a little merry go round fun...
And some froggy car
Then she went to check out some games for herself

No, Alaina does not miss out on the fun. That's for sure.

Madison took the girls to see the big puppy dog.

Audrey loved him.

Laina held on to Madison for dear life.

(Although she did wave at the puppy - from a distance.)

Some more fun time with Madison...

This little stinker is a wiggle worm. She's never still for long.

Fun times with the home group!

And then on Saturday Mommy and Audrey went to see cousin Caroline in a track meet.

It was chilly...

Audrey loved watching the races,

but she loved being around the big kids even more.

She got lots of lovin from Cate and Caroline.

Big buddies.

February Fun

2011-02-19T08:35:00.010-06:00

So Gia came and spent a couple of nights with us and then took little Alaina home with her for a night. That meant that Mommy and Audrey had a whole day to ourselves!

We went to MacDonald's for lunch, got our hair cut together, and tried to visit a local farm...which was closed.

But we had a great time just with Mommy and Audrey.

(Man, things are different when you just have one...so much calmer...and to run around town and just get one in and out of the car is a pretty nice break.)

Here is Audrey and her baby Andi at MacDonald's...

getting her hair cut (which she loves to do...it's the promise of a sucker.)

(Can't you just tell she pondering what kind of sucker she will get??)

Then last night we met the family downtown for a birthday dinner for Cate and Cole.

Audrey and Alaina were so happy to see eachother....

Alaina was pretty attached to her cousin Caroline.

Audrey gave Cate and Cole their birthday cards...

This girl just loves her cousins so much!

Apparently this one does too...

The cousins...

Some lovin from Aunt Sarah

And Uncle Eddie...

Goodbye kisses

Uncle Eddie showing Laina something fun...

And telling her something profound I'm sure...

Now Laina is showing Bapa the horse and carriage...

And some loving with Gia and Bapa to end our evening

Happy Birthday Cate and Cole! We love you!

Date Night COOP

2011-02-14T15:40:00.004-06:00

On Saturday we had our first ever "Date Night COOP" with a few friends.

Troy and I were the first to host the kids for some fun while the Moms and Dads went out for a Valentine's date.
We enjoyed 7 kids + our two...

Audrey and Allie doing some swinging

Allie getting some pushes from Braden

Kayla with Andi and Jud

Braden taking care of the 2 little ones
We were so lucky to have some big kid help

Audrey and Allie having some pizza

sweet little baby Andi

Madison was a huge help. She's going to be a great babysitter!

Troy with the magic touch...and scarey face

Sweetie little Jud

Valentine's craft time

And some heart cookie decorating

Final masterpiece of the night

And all went home without a scratch...that we know of

God picked me up

2011-02-11T13:51:00.002-06:00

Audrey: I fell down and busted my lip on the concreke, but God picked me up and wiped off my lip.

Bowlhead

2011-02-10T16:16:00.004-06:00

Notice the cheerios all over the floor. This bowl is way more fun as a hat!

Just Another Day with Laina...

2011-02-10T15:01:00.002-06:00

This girl is quite the character...

It's Almost Valentine's!!

2011-02-08T07:17:00.001-06:00

Yea for sugar cookies!

Superbowl Super Kids

2011-02-07T08:27:00.005-06:00

We had some good friends over for the Superbowl last night. It was a fun time...

the kids loved it...

Alana and Alaina

Audrey and baby Andi...look at this sweet little baby. We love her.

Doesn't Laina look huge next to her?

3 sweet babies...Alaina, Andi and Jud

Audrey loves baby Andi. She named one of her baby dolls after her.

And Alaina did a little football watching herself.

She just crawled up on the couch and chilled out for awhile.

Jon and Allie are Audrey's special friends. She has such fun with them.

I think they will be friends for a long time.

It was a fun night for all...especially the kids.

Now who won that football game?

Really. I have no idea. :)

I have successfully "watched" yet another football game without actually seeing a single play.

And Singing

2011-02-06T07:33:00.003-06:00

"What are you singing about Audrey?"
"I'm singing about God, Dad. Cate taught it to me."

Deep Thoughts From Audrey

2011-02-06T07:13:00.001-06:00

Last night after Daddy prayed over our dinner, Audrey said, "It's good that God saved us."

Our Sweet Family

2011-02-04T20:51:00.005-06:00

Yesterday our family was together to remember our grandmother, Mema, who went to be with Jesus this week.

It was freezing cold for the graveside gathering, but it was a sweet time with family.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures of our time together...

My little snow bunny so cozy and warm...

Beautiful sister and cousin. Two of my favorite people.Tired little baby...

Dad, Aunt Lynn and Tom

And the cousins (minus Lauren)...

And...Another Snow Day...

2011-02-04T20:33:00.006-06:00

Today was yet another snowy day here in Ft. Worth.

Yet another day playing inside, but we had lots of fun...

Audrey made us cupcakes...

lots and lots of cupcakes...

The cuties watched the snow...

And the cute little squirrel

And some lunch...doesn't it look yummy all over Laina's face?

some more sister fun...

So much fun around here...wonder what we'll do tomorrow...in the snow...

Snow Day!!!

2011-02-01T14:45:00.011-06:00

What does the Douglas family do on a wonderful snow day you may ask???

After looking at the snow quite a bit, making pancakes and drinking lots of hot coffee...

We cook homemade cheese soup and sourdough bread...

We do a few puzzles...

And we bundle up to go out in the snow of course!
check out our pink girls...

Nettie seemed to have forgotten first thing this morning that she used to

live in Boston. We could hardly get her to go out.

BUT

by this afternoon she was all about playing in the snow.

Just like she used to do in Boston,

she ran around with her nose down in the snow.

Here's a close-up...

Audrey loved it!

Alaina wasn't quite sure what to think.

" What do you expect Mommy? Unlike my Sissy, I was born in Texas!"

here's a quick smile...

A little hat hair to finish it off...

And lest you forget how fickle Texas weather is...

It was almost 80 a few days ago.

Dancin Time

2011-01-27T19:01:00.001-06:00

Just a Little Photo Shoot...

2011-01-27T11:59:00.006-06:00

Girl's Weekend in Hot Springs

2011-01-27T11:41:00.005-06:00

A few weeks ago 5 of my dearest friends got together in Hot Springs, Arkansas, to surprise one of us for her 40th birthday.

Here is Kelly walking into our cabin where we were waiting to surprise her...

Vicki, Marianne, Kelly, myself, and Reba.

We all lived together in seminary. Kelly, Reba and I also went to college together at SFA.

What precious friends that I am so thankful for!

We had quite the time doing photo shoots around town. :)

Our times together always seem to include a good breakfast.

How grateful I am for these amazing friends that God has blessed me with. And I look forward to many more years (and girl's weekends) with them!

Has it Been so Long???

2011-01-24T15:51:00.004-06:00

Well it has been pointed out to me that I have not blogged in far too long. I will definitely try to correct this unfortunate situation.
Let's start for now with my favorite picture of the last couple of weeks. This is my cuties waiting to see the Dr....

I'm telling you what, this is my phone wallpaper and I just can't look at it enough. They just make me smile. Those little sweetie faces. Don't ya just want to kiss em?!

January Fun-ness

2011-01-04T07:30:00.009-06:00

There has been alot of fun going on at the Douglas house lately...

Alaina LOVES the swing ...as you will see in the video below

And the slide is a big hit with everyone. It's a long slide with good hills.

You can sit Laina on the top and she inches her little bottom down until she starts sliding. She loves it! She's quite the dare devil. Isn't that a shocker?!

Sisters sliding together.

Audrey "taking care" of her sissy.
If the slide doesn't hurt Laina, sissy's choke hold just might.

Such fun times!

And a little more of the silliness we've been having around here...

(enjoy my hill billy singing...)

This is a bunny you might have nightmares about...

Oh, the fun never ends.

Day 2 of the Project

2011-01-01T14:48:00.006-06:00

Well, the play set in the backyard is up. Troy had some friends over to help complete the assembly. Some little people came with them to make for a very fun (although quite chilly) morning ...

Audrey climbing up and so excited about her new play set.

Allie on her way up to the fort.
Jon helping put it all together just right.
Look at me Mommy!

The finished product...

now on to the ground beneath it.

And lest you think Alaina missed out on all of the fun...

We officially have a walker on our hands.

And apparently a pickle eater...

New Year's Weekend?

2010-12-31T14:20:00.004-06:00

What are the Douglases up to this New Year's weekend you may ask?

A little project in the back yard

Some Christmas decoration removal

And a little dancin of course...

Audrey's Christmas Day

2010-12-26T15:26:00.000-06:00

Audrey had such a fun Christmas day. She enjoyed playing with Cole, pulling presents out of her stocking, riding in Cate's new car and playing with new toys. What a great Christmas Day!

Alaina's Christmas at Gia and Bapa's

2010-12-26T15:19:00.000-06:00

Alaina's Christmas was big this year. It included lots of loving from Cate and Caroline, pie with Bapa, singing on a microphone, playing with Gia, first steps and her 2 front teeth!

Mommy, I heard Santa!

2010-12-26T14:36:00.000-06:00

The girls had such a good time together playing with the toys Santa brought them. Alaina danced to her move and groove table and Audrey named her baby Andi. Daddy and Nettie supervised from the couch. Fun times on Christmas morning!

Santa Came! Santa Came!!!

2010-12-26T14:25:00.002-06:00

On Christmas Eve Mommy and the girls came home from the service before everyone else and we made cookies for Santa. We made a star, a donkey, a wise man, a manger and Mary. (yes, some turned out better than others.)

Audrey loved leaving the cookies and milk for Santa.

And Santa loved eating Audrey's cookies!

Every year we take a picture of what Santa leaves before the girls come in and dig in.

This year Santa brought Audrey a dollhouse, a babydoll, and a computer. Alaina got a move and groove table.
Thank you Santa!

Christmas with Nana, Papa and Granny Hilda

2010-12-26T14:21:00.000-06:00

We were so happy to have Nana and Papa here with us for a few days this Christmas and Granny Hilda joined us for Christmas Eve. The girls had a great time with their Douglas grandparents. Above you see Audrey modeling some of Nana's jewelry, the girls helping Granny Hilda open her presents, Alaina eating a cookie during her first Christmas Eve service, the girls loving on their Nana and then just some fun times playing together.

Snowman

2010-12-26T14:11:00.003-06:00

Audrey enjoyed checking out her snowman.

Entech Christmas Party 2010

2010-12-26T14:08:00.000-06:00

Daddy's work party was fun for the whole family - complete with hamburgers, bowling, toys for the girls and face painting for Audrey. The face painting was definitely the highlight of the party.