Let it snow...

I can't believe it's snowing!!!!

Snow this early in December...in Houston...who would have thought!

What a beautiful sight. I'm just sad the kids were asleep. They were only able to see a light dusting before bedtime. I had no idea it would keep snowing!!!

Gary's footsteps on the patio!

Covering the rooftops...
My car (on the left) already has a few inches!

Even the grass is covered!!! Oh so much fun!

Christmas Tree

Gary and Abbie came home with a big surprise about a week ago!

They brought home a Christmas Tree!!!

Gary brought out our Nativity Scene on Thanksgiving but Abbie wasn't satisfied. She wanted more Christmas decorations. We have a small (maybe 2' tall) tree we used last year that I expected to use again this year. But no...Abbie wanted something bigger. So...they bought a pre-lit tree about 4 and a half foot tall!

He let Abbie pick out some ornaments as long as she got some Asher would also enjoy. She choose Santa's, snowmen and western themed ones for herself; baseball, basketball and football ones for Asher. What a sweet sis to think of her brother like that. He just loved them!

We had a blast decorating the tree! The star Abbie choose for the top is just too heavy. Poor tree. Big thanks to Abbie for picking out a great tree and such cute ornaments!

Asher's Surgery

Asher's surgery to remove his dermoid cyst was mid-day today. He slept well last night and woke up in a good mood. He was being silly when we took pics of him just before we left for the hospital.Silly boy!
Texas Children's Day surgery center was great! The waiting areas had all the stuff kids love. Asher had fun trying out all the chairs and tables. We got there plenty early so he had lots of time to color and goof-off. Abbie and Papa Hank were there with us. I unfortunately didn't get any pictures of them. Abbie was so great and had a blast with her Papa. Dad is so great with her!

This next pic is so funny! Got to love the hospital rules of writing on the part of the body that is going to be worked on. The team of doctors and nurses that worked with Asher were great. They explained everything and talked to Asher about it all too. He choose root beer scent for his mask. They thought that was such a big boy choice. He just loved that!
Our sweet boy showed just how awesome he is today. When they brought us back to the recovery room he was still sleeping. He looked so peaceful. His color was great and he didn't have much bruising. When he woke up he just turned his head to look at us and didn't say a word. There were quite a few kids in the recovery room that screamed and were really fussy when they woke up. We are so blessed! He really wanted to hold his mama and drink some apple juice. He also really enjoyed his grape Popsicles. His stitches are inside and will dissolve on their own and his other band aids are expected to fall off in about a week or so. So glad he doesn't have the old style stitches to worry about.
The car ride home was a little rough on him...he lost about half of the apple juice and Popsicles. We were well prepared for that and didn't have a big mess to clean up. He took a great nap just after we got home and woke up with a great big appetite. I guess he was making up for not eating breakfast and lunch! He is doing so great now and I think he'll be off the pain meds tomorrow. Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. The doctor said there is a very low percentage that he may get another one but it is not likely! Awesome news.

Mom...is it Pumpkin Day yet?

Abbie keeps asking me if it is Pumpkin Day. I'm not sure if she is referring our annual trip to the pumpkin patch for pics and to buy a pumpkin, or if she is referring to Halloween. It's just too cute. I was going to take them to the pumpkin patch today but just didn't make it...so, I decided to take a few pics on the steps. Here are a few.

So sweet...

My little monkeys.

Recovering from Ike

Sorry I haven't posted anything is so long! I was away from a computer for quite a while during the evacuation from Ike. Since getting home I've been so busy figuring everything out it has been stressful. The kiddos and I evacuated to my dad and grandparents house in Hondo. Gary stayed in the Katy area because of work. We stayed for a week and then headed back. We were very fortunate to be able to stay with friends while we figured out what we needed to do for our apartment. Gary was called back to work the Tuesday after the storm and told that his overtime would start. I was fortunate to not have to go back to work till the following Monday. Abbie's school district was closed and the YMCA program she would normally go to was relocated. Thankfully she had a fun place to go! Asher's daycare didn't receive any damage except that the power pole was snapped in half and the center didn't have any power. They relocated to a different location that was very close to my work. Thankfully everyone in our family was safe and had a place to be. Abbie had an abscess tooth that was supposed to be removed the week just after the storm but wasn't able to have it removed because of the evacuation. Thank goodness for antibiotics. I'm happy to report that she had the tooth removed last week and is doing well!

Our apartment complex has been giving us trouble about replacing some carpet that got wet and is moldy. We have been wanting to move but hadn't found the right place yet. As of last night, I think we have our housing situation figured out. Gary's mom plans to move to her lake house and telecommute for work. We will rent her place. She has a very nice 3/2/2 so I'm excited.

Thanks for all of your help, prayers, love and support. This whole experience has been overwhelming and awesome all same. Thank goodness for friends and family!!!

Much love to all! - Jess, Gary, Abbie & Asher

Astros Game 8/2/08

Gary's boss gave us four great tickets to Saturday's Astros game.Both of the kids love baseball and have already been to a game this season. Last time we were way up and they had a hard time getting into the game. This time were were in the dugout seats just behind home plate looking down first base. What an awesome opportunity.

Abbie and Asher both had fun with all the activity and being able to really see the players.

It was really nice to go to the game together and have such a great time. We left the game in the 7th and the score was 4 to 1 with the Mets leading. We checked the score at home after getting the kids to bed and found out the Astros won 5 to 4!!! We missed all the action but that's ok. It was already 8 and the kids were tired.

Visit to GiGi & Papa Rex's House 7/26/08

What a wonderful visit with my grandparents we had this past weekend. The kiddos had a blast running around outside and playing with the neighbor kids.

We had fun watching all the wonderful creatures! Gary and Asher found this little (well not so little) guy sunning himself on the porch during the middle of the day.

We didn't get any pics of the deer this time but Abbie spotted this cute little rabbit.

The birds were a constant source of entertainment and subject of conversation at the dinner table. I sure do miss the "country" life! It was hard to leave.