My Vacation

I have had the great privilege of hanging out with four great boys while their parents are away on a little trip. They were a great excuse to take a couple of much-needed days off of work. Today was day 1 of "my vacation," and something happened that made me laugh a lot at myself.

This story should also give you a pretty good idea of how much I talk to myself in my head!

Before Kristy left on her trip her iPod just quit working and nothing she/we tried would fix it. Going on a long trip without your iPod is just not a good idea, so we found a temporary solution. And, I have been looking for a reason to get to the Apple store so I offered to take hers in to see if they could figure out what was wrong with it. Now, if you've never been to the Apple store they have an "iPod bar" staffed by self-proclaimed "geniuses." Since I was in need of the services of an iPod genius that's where I headed. Sounds logical, right?

Well, I approach the iPod bar and one of the geniuses rudely asked me if I had an appointment. I replied, "no, I didn't know I needed one." He proceeded to tell me to go talk to one of the people in orange shirts about setting up an appointment. Please note that there were 17 (I counted) geniuses working in the store and about 10 customers. So, I'm thinking alright dude I'll make an appointment to talk to you. I go over to an orange guy and he tells me the earliest appointment is 1:15 (it was 12:00 at the time). I asked him if he was joking and he asked me if I had eaten lunch yet, and I didn't laugh. Normally, it probably wouldn't have bothered me but I didn't want to get stuck in Southlake when I had to be back to pick up Parker from school. I calmly left the store and did a little retail therapy while I thought about my options.

About fifteen minutes later I returned to the store ready to let them have it. I mean don't they know that I own just about everything Apple has to offer? Do they know that I tell everyone I know how great Apple is? Do they know I have a blog, that maybe five people read, and I will tell everyone on the whole internet how horribly treated I was? Do they know I'm not afraid to pick up a phone and call Steve Jobs and let him know what is happening in his stores? (Yeah right, I'm totally terrified to pick up the phone to call anybody!!) I just need someone to look at an iPod, not do brain surgery!

So, I'm so ready to be tough and when I walk back in the store the guy who helped me earlier walked straight to the iPod bar and talked to a different guy, who agreed to meet with me right away. In about 5 minutes he had diagnosed the iPod as having a completely empty battery. It just needed to be charged. Apparently, I had not been patient enough in my earlier attempts to charge it. And, perhaps I learned an important lesson - slow down, be patient, watch expectantly - you never know what might pop up on the screen.

The moral of the story is, I love Apple again. You should all buy their stuff and not be afraid to go in and talk to the geniuses when you have a question - they know their stuff, just make sure you have an appointment!

I also wanted to document the last couple days with the boys:

On Saturday, Landry was kind of missing his Momma so he walked around in some of her shoes for awhile:


Then, we watched Parker's second baseball game of the day.


Then, we went swimming, but there's no pictures of that.

Then, on Sunday we went to church. After church, Parker and I went to Six Flags for a little while. He didn't know where we were going, this was his face once he found out:


Here are some other pictures from the day:






Tonight, we had another baseball game and we've got a full house again! It's been a great time so far, I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!

You gotta love holidays

I think I could really get used to going to school for two weeks and then having a day off. Having a holiday today has really made for an extra enjoyable weekend.

Friday night I got to hang out with my good friend Kristy. We played lots of Wii tennis in which she beat me lots of times.

Saturday was filled with basketball. Basketball has always been my favorite sport so it's fun to watch lots of it. I also got to spend some time with Reagan, which was a blast as always. The fact that these kids want to hang out with me is a great self-esteem boost.

Then last night I went to see 27 Dresses with Deneise (who should really start a blog) and Kristy. We went to the new movie tavern where you order real food. It was an interesting experience for sure. I think the hardest part for me was the fact that I couldn't actually see my food, because it was dark. It tasted like a hamburger but I guess I could have been eating anything. We ended the evening with lots more Wii fun. And Deneise made the scariest-looking Mii I think I've ever seen - The Neesinator.

Today I did a whole lot of nothing. I got all caught up on Grey's Anatomy and One Tree Hill. Both very important shows. Then tonight I went to dinner and did a little shopping with Haley and Abby. It was so great to see them again, it's been way too long! Here I am with the growing girl:


That about sums up my weekend. It's been long, eventful, and very enjoyable.

Scenes from the Wii

I received a Nintendo Wii for Christmas from my parents and it is one of my new favorite things. I seem to be spending the most time playing tennis and I know I have played more tennis in the last two weeks than I have in my entire life. It's fun to play, fun to watch, and apparently I've got some nice moves.

The Wii Sports game has a Fitness Test that gives you an age based on how well you play. The first several days I, embarrassingly enough, had a fitness age in the 60s. Not anymore, my friends. Last week, this was my age:

And tonight, I was 21!

Here are some more Wii Accomplishments:

Alex bowling a perfect game

Earning all 10's on Dancing with the Stars
And no, I'm not in the habit of taking pictures of my TV screen, but I didn't think anyone would believe me if I didn't have proof! :)

What a Day

Yesterday, I had the great privilege of hanging out with my good friends; Alex, Reagan, Jordan, and Meagan. I've mentioned before how much fun these kids are and yesterday did not disappoint.

We started out kind of early and headed to Grapevine to see ICE! at the Gaylord Texan Hotel. After much discussion the kids agreed that they felt more comfortable calling the hotel the Happy Lord. They referred to it this way most of the day. Here they are in front of the Happy Lord Hotel:

I think the highlight of the day for Alex and Reagan was the door:

Once we got inside we had some fun exploring the big atrium. It reminds me of the River Walk in San Antonio, except cleaner and a lot less humid. We made our way to ICE! and the kids were starting to get nervous about how cold it was going to be. Not to worry my friends, you get a really cool gold knee-length parka to wear:

The highlight of ICE! was getting to go down the slide! I was amazed at how patiently the kids waited in line (at least 20 minutes). They found lots of ways to entertain themselves, like seeing who could hold their hand on the ice the longest, or putting their faces behind the ice and laughing at how they looked. Here's a short little video of them sliding and entertaining themselves:

I let the kids decide where we were going to eat lunch and I told them they could go anywhere they wanted. Drumroll, please: their choice was CiCi's. Excellent, because I know right where a CiCi's is in Grapevine! The iPhone led us astray and we had quite the time actually getting there. Our adventure did allow me the opportunity to show the kids one of my favorite places; the airport. I don't know why, but I have always been fascinated by the airport, the kids didn't seem that impressed :).

After a delicious lunch we headed home! It was a very fun day, full of laughs and interesting occurences!

Painball...oops, I mean Paintball

Just kidding! I really enjoyed my first ever paintball experience. It was especially great because it was in celebration of one of my favorite kid's birthdays! Happy Birthday, Reagan! I will admit that I was very nervous about what it would feel like to get shot with a paintball and I won't lie to you, it does hurt. The pain did go away quickly though. I didn't run into any wild animals or hunters, but I did have an encounter with some nasty thorns. And, I don't remember that being included in the "Waiver of Liability" paperwork. All in all, it was a very fun experience. Thanks Reagan for having a birthday and letting me play too!

Now, on to some other news. This afternoon I knocked out a huge chunk of my remaining Christmas shopping. There really is nothing like waiting until 4 days until Christmas to get with it. Everything was going great until I decided to go to the mall. Believe me, this is a place that should probably be avoided this time of year.

Anyway, while I was out today I noticed that new tanning salon is opening up on the other side of town. Now, I'm not going to try to act like tanning is bad or anything. I've certainly done my share, but I don't think what I saw today is a good idea.


I don't know if you can tell from the picture, but this place has about 10 tanning beds. The problem, they are all out in the open. I just don't think that's right. I mean, it's one thing to go in a little room and have some privacy, but I can't imagine being comfortable in this situation.

Now, I realize that they probably just haven't built the walls yet, but the thought of this place opening up as is, made me laugh.

Can they stay up until next year?

I thought that I really enjoyed putting Christmas lights up on my house. I was so proud of myself last year and have no recollection of it being a tiring, frustrating, or really cold experience. This year, however, has left me wondering what people would say about me if I left my Christmas lights up all year long.

I officially started decorating on Sunday. It was about 41 degrees, there was a light breeze, and some occasional rain. It was probably the worst time to put up lights ever, but for some reason, I really wanted to get it done. Today it warmed up to at least the low 60s so I thought this afternoon would be the perfect time to finish the job.

I started putting up the lights and really was hating the way they looked so I stopped and decided to switch the type of light. The only problem was, in order to get the lights to line up straight I was going to need to be much closer, and, I don't own a ladder. I did what any problem-solver would do, I decided to climb out of a second-story window onto the roof. I called my sister so someone would know what I was doing, just in case, then I did it. I have never, ever, been on a roof before so it was kind of exciting and totally terrifying all at the same time.

My sister came by a little while later to make sure I wasn't splattered on the ground. Thanks Ashleigh! She also took some pictures, because well, it's probably never going to happen again.

This is me, just chillin' on the roof-

This one looks like I'm about to fall off -

Here's a couple things I learned from climbing on the roof:

• Don't wear wind pants, they don't have any traction

• Make sure you have everything you need from down below before you go up

• Daylight is probably a good thing

• It might be a good idea to have someone there just in case you do fall or need something

Don't come look at my lights yet, I'm not quite finished. Think Chevy Chase's "Christmas Vacation," with class. :)

I'm not good at bowling

My life is really just a journey towards authenticity. So in an effort to be as authentic and transparent as I can, I will confess my shortcomings in the sport of bowling. That's right, I got the opportunity to be a substitute bowler again this week. It didn't go so well. I feel particularly bad because the person I was subbing for really is a great bowler.

Even though I'm not going to be joining the Professional Bowler Association of Whatever, I did have a very fun time. I think I bowled my lowest score ever in my life and the really sad part was that I really was trying. Sometimes things just don't go our way. I'm so embarrassed by my score that I'm not even going to put it on here, although I'm sure someone who reads this will be happy to leave it for everyone in the comments section. I will say this, my score has a digital root of 4. I'm hoping there aren't any mathematicians out there working hard on their calculators. :) For those of you who don't know, a digital root of 4 could include the following possibilities: 202, 121, 49, 211, 94, 103, 22, or even 112. The possibilities are really endless.

During the third game Kelly, Deneise, and I made a bet that the loser has to buy Slurpees for the other two. I thought a little wager was all I would need to get my game in gear. It happened quite the opposite. Those two are so particular about their Slurpees that they drew me picture of exactly how to create one to their specifications. And, here it is:


In other news, only 8 school days until Thanksgiving Break! Eight days and I get a whole week off. I'm quite excited about it even though I have no particularly fun plans, as of yet. :)

Tuesdays may be my favorite

Tuesdays are turning out to be quite unpredictable here lately. That's not a bad thing at all, I'm just noticing a pattern. Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to Bass Hall with Deneise. You can read all about that experience, here. Last Tuesday I got to experience my first sick day, which was made the best-sick-day-ever because Kristy brought me lunch, which was so very nice of her. Then, tonight (Tuesday) I was given the opportunity to be a substitute bowler in my church's "Just for Fun" Bowling League.

It all started when I was walking out of school on my way to watch some former students play football. I noticed that I had a missed call from Deneise so I called her back:

Me: Hey Deneise! What's up?
Deneise: Hey Emily, I was wondering how you felt about bowling?
Me: Hmmm, I feel fine about bowling, I guess.
Deneise: Well, do you want to bowl tonight with me, we need a sub?
Me: Uh yeah, I could do that. That sounds like fun. I don't have to be good do I?
Deneise: No, no, you don't have to be good. It's all just for fun.
Me: Ok, well, I'm on my way to watch some football and then I'll just need to run home and change clothes (sound familiar?)
Deneise: You don't need to change clothes, you'll be fine

This time I did insist on changing clothes. I am at least a little bit ok with being underdressed for the theater, but way not ok with being overdressed for a bowling alley. :)

Here's a quick recap of the bowling greatness:

Game #1, unfortunately, was my best game and I beat Deneise.

Game #2, something was wrong with the pins or something, they just wouldn't move in front of my ball. Deneise did quite well and beat me. Best two out of three, right?

Game #3, I was having the same problem with the pins and really just couldn't get anything happening. Unless, of course, you look at it this way...Imagine the 9th Inning of the Seventh Game of the World Series. Your team is gonna lose but you want to end it on a high note by hitting a home run. This was the pressure I was putting on myself, I wanted to finish strong. So, here we are, 10th frame of the third game. I'm getting beat pretty badly but I want desperately to save face and maybe, at least get a spare. First bowl, I knock 8 pins down. Guess where the remaining pins were? That's right, they were at opposite ends of what looked like the Grand Canyon. With all the courage I could muster, I bowled that ball perfectly, and knocked both pins down. People were cheering wildly (ok, they were cheering but the wildly was probably in my head), Deneise looks up and says, "What happened?" I say, "you didn't see that?" Her response, "No, I wasn't watching because I knew you wouldn't get it!" This response made me laugh really hard and I told her that I was going to write it down so I would be able to blog about it. I didn't have anything to write on so I wrote it on the bottom of my Sonic Cup and Deneise tried for the rest of the night to get me to throw it away. :) So it can live on forever in Internet glory, here it is:


So, I didn't come home the big bowling winner, but I did get to come home smelling extra special. I also came home with a thankfulness for all the new, amazing people that have come into my life in the last year. People that have made Tuesdays, and really every other day of the week, the best days ever. :)

Every kid should experience this

When I was a kid there wasn't anything better than going to McDonald's or Chuck E. Cheese and getting to play in the ball pit. Somewhere along the line though people got smart and realized those things were a breeding ground for all kinds of nasty stuff. Now it's nearly impossible to find a good ball pit to jump around in (with good reason), unless of course, you're 2 years old and have people in your life that like for you to experience such things.

My Mom found the famous ball pit balls not too long ago at some store so she bought some for Will to play with. We started out kind of small and Will did love it. Somehow though, this just wasn't quite the same experience I had as a child.


He was just about beside himself today when the number of balls tripled and he got his very own ball pit contraption. It was cool and I have to admit, I had a pretty good time myself!! :)

A funny thing happened on the way to...

For the most part, my life is pretty predictable. Monday through Friday from about 7 to 4:30 you can find me at school, Saturdays you can find me at the ballfields, and Sundays you can find me at church. Sometimes though, my life can be totally unpredictable and quite spontaneous. Today was one of those days!

School was pretty normal but instead of staying until 4:30, I left at 3:20! Watch out!! I then ran home to change clothes (Baylor T-Shirt, jeans, tennis shoes) and then headed up to the Intermediate School to watch some of my former students play some football. When the games were over I made my way to Walmart to grab a couple things for school and church tomorrow. As I was pulling into the parking lot my phone rang, it was Deneise. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: Hello
Deneise: Hey! What are you doing?
Me: Oh, just on my way to Walmart.
Deneise: Well, I was wondering if you wanted to go to the Bass Hall with us to see Cirque Dreams?
Me: Well, sure, I could do that. That sounds fun! Count me in.
Deneise: Ok, we're going to go eat before we go, where are you?
Me: I'm at Walmart.
Deneise: Ok, stay put! We're coming to get you!
Me: Ok, should I go home and change clothes or something?
Deneise: Oh no, you'll be fine!

So, five minutes later I'm heading to the Bass Hall to see Cirque Dreams with Deneise and her Mom in my Baylor t-shirt, jeans, and tennis shoes. We enjoyed a lovely meal at El Ranchito in the Settlement (which I promised I wouldn't blog about) and then got on I-30 West to head to downtown! :) We made a brief stop at Barnes & Noble where I located a book faster using my iPhone than the store employee could using their system! The iPhone, my friends, rocks!

Soon we were safely in our seats and the show was about to begin! It was interesting for sure. I was amazed at the abilities of those people but it left me wondering how in the world do you get started in something like that? For example, where do you go to school to learn how to contort your body into the shape of an emu? Or how to balance on a rolling coffee can? Or how to old up another person using only your neck? These are all questions I will be seeking answers to. I'll keep you posted! It was a lot of fun though, thanks Deneise for thinking of me! By the way, I didn't feel underdressed AT ALL!! :) Also, just in case anyone was wondering, I've reached my quota of seeing people in tights for like the next fifteen years!

The whole day allowed me to come to this conclusion: I'm thankful that for right now, I can live my life that spontaneously. It leads to lots of fun/crazy/interesting experiences!!

Just for Fun

This summer I had the opportunity to spend a day in Seattle, Washington. I had been to Seattle once before, but I never made it to the world famous Pike's Place Fish Market. I was particularly interested in seeing the fish market because I was planning on implementing the FISH Philosophy into my classroom this year! It was really neat to see all the people gathered around the Fish Mongers just waiting for them to throw the fish and other seafood to each other. Then, it became even cooler when I got to get behind the counter and try to catch a fish myself!! Honestly, I can't stand fish, but I really wanted to be able to share the experience with my class. It took me a couple tries but I finally caught a fish! It was really cool and I am really glad I did it!!

I have been meaning to make a little movie about the experience but I just got around to it! I also thought it might be fun to try to post it on the blog. We'll see how that goes!



Also, I'm aware the song choice may be a little strange, but I was happy that day and nothing else really seemed to fit! :)

Fun Times

This week has been full of some really fun times! It started Monday night when some great friends came over for dinner. For me, the whole experience was just really great! I don't cook, ever, so I was a little nervous about preparing a meal for them, but I think it all turned out ok. It gave me a whole new respect for all the moms in the world who plan a meal, cook a meal, and clean up after a meal on a daily basis! Monday night was easily the highlight of the week so far!!

Then today, I got to hang out with some of my favorite people in the world! Don't let the fact that they are ten-years-old take away from their greatness. These kids are full of funny stuff and when you get them all together they make me laugh so hard. After school we went to the local Main Event and played some laser tag. I am not sure the teams were balanced but we all had a great time! Here is a picture of the kids in their gear:


I was sure to take the picture in the dark so you couldn't see their faces, you know, internet security and all! :) Just kidding! The iPhone camera lacks a flash. Thanks to their great parents for letting me hang out with them today! I can't wait to see what the rest of the week has in store.

I saw a boat

Earlier this evening I was doing some major multi-tasking. I was vacuuming, listening to my iPod, and thinking about my lack of blog material. I mean, seriously, I haven't posted anything new since last Sunday. So, I was thinking really hard and then my sister sent me a text message and suddenly I have enough material for several posts. :)

Ashleigh's message was simple, "I'm buying a car!" I sent her one back, "Cool! What kind?" Then she called and filled me in on all the details. She "bought" the car but she is the third person in line to actually take delivery. I am way impressed with her patience, because I would have totally given in and settled for something that I could have driven away in right away. Things got very interesting with her next statement:

Ashleigh: "After we leave here we're going to grab some dinner and then go to the lake to play with Dad's new toy."
Me: "What new toy?"
Ashleigh: "Dad bought a boat!"
Me: "He bought a what?"
Ashleigh: "He bought a boat!"
Me: "A boat, like what people ride in?"

I need to provide some background. For the last several years my Dad has been very mildly obsessed with sailboats and sailing. For Father's Day this year my Mom gave him sailing lessons. So, this summer he spent about 10 hours one weekend taking sailing lessons and it honestly wouldn't shock me if he had decided to buy some small sailboat. I was just a little shocked that I hadn't heard anything about him buying a boat and suddenly we're going to the lake to ride in one. Imagine my surprise when I find out this is what he bought:


Another great moment came when I realized the "lake" we were going to go to was really just a very small pond in a nearby neighborhood. He has also decided that his remote control speedboat is a lot more fun than really sailing. I have a feeling we'll all be getting our own for Christmas!!

Since it was too late to take the new boat out on the "lake" we decided to just go eat. They came and picked me up and then we had to make the toughest decision ever, where do we eat? My Mom said she wanted Italian and suggested either Olive Garden or Margie's. Now, I had never even heard of Margie's but let me assure you, it is a fine establishment. I mean what place isn't that boldy advertises this:



That'll teach me not to take indoor plumbing and air conditioning for granted! I kind of felt like I was in the middle of a Mob movie or something, but it was good and we laughed so much that I'm pretty sure people were pointing and staring. Oh well. Besides the fact that they had indoor plumbing and air conditioning my favorite moment was when my Dad tried to open the door. He pushed hard a couple times and we started to question whether or not they were even open, then we realized there was door knob that just needed a little twist. We were laughing before we even made it to our table.

Because I want to remember them, here's a couple more funny moments (probably only funny if you were there):

1) Ashleigh's talking really fast (because she does that), looks at me, and says, "Your pupils are huge!"

2) Mom, Dad, and Ashleigh are enjoying their salads and the waiter comes by to check on them, he asks, "How are your salads?" I (who does not have a salad) responds, "very good." I think I was actually crying from laughing so hard when we all realized what I said.

Good times. Congratulations on your new car purchase, Ashleigh! Welcome to the world of car payments and insurance. And, congratulations on your boat purchase, Dad! Welcome to the world of, you know I'm not really sure what world that falls into! :)

Football has 4 Quarters

Today I got the opportunity to travel with some good friends (Aggie fans) to College Station, TX to enjoy a little football game. The day started out early, we officially hit the road at about 8, and arrived in Aggieland at about 11:15. This was my second time to attend a game at Kyle Field and I'll give the Aggies credit, 83,000 fans makes the game very exciting. I was pleasantly surprised by the way the Baylor defense was totally hanging tough and keeping us in the game. The offense, unfortunately, only showed up to play about one quarter. It was ridiculous, 70 yards of total offense and 5 completed passes at the end of the third quarter. And, honestly, it wasn't like A&M was just playing amazing defense, we were just stinking it up that bad. I believe the time of possession looked something like; Baylor 9 minutes and A&M 51 minutes. Which brings me to my point, you can't win a football game in 9 minutes, you have to play the whole game, all 4 quarters. So, surprise surprise, Baylor lost again. The final score was 34-10. At least Texas and OU lost too so it will totally take the attention away from Baylor. :)

Here are a few pictures from the game:

This was our view for most of the 1st Quarter, this guy and his sombrero just would not sit down.

This was our view once the guy and his sombrero sat down, much better!

This is how Deneise enjoys an A&M Football game! I was impressed she could read with all that noise! :)
It really was a great day. We had lots of fun and laughed way too much. I am even sportin' a new sunburn, I like to call it "half-baked," because really only one side of my face is red. Thank you so much Deneise, Shellee, and Kelly for taking me along and tolerating my gold shirt. :)

It was nice.

Tonight was the big ribbon-cutting/meet the teacher night at my school. I'm guessing the fact that it was raining and most of us have already met all of our student's parents was the reason for the low turnout. There were still lots of people there, just not as many as usual. Well, the highlight of the evening for me was when all my former students came to my room to say hello. The cool thing was they didn't just come say hello, they came in and got comfortable, like they belonged there. At one point there were 6 kids from last year in there at one time, all just talking, relaxing, and maybe having a little too much fun. I loved that they felt so comfortable and wanted to stay awhile. It was nice.

So long sweet summer

It is officially 12 hours until I must return to work. I spent my last day of freedom getting myself ready, I even got a haircut, which is something I really dislike doing. It looks good now but I'm sure when I have to fix it myself in the morning it will be a whole different story.

Since the summer is officially about to end, I thought now would be a good time to give a quick recap of all the things that filled my summer:

Many of my summer days were spent at the pool with great friends. I survived a couple sunburns and can happily report that I am more tan than when the summer began. I also got the opportunity to watch a lot of good little league baseball. If you're still playing ball into July that really means something and the games got more and more exciting. For two weeks in the evenings I was a "coach" at my church's Basketball Camps. I had a lot of fun hanging out with lots of kids.

My first big adventure of the summer was a mission trip to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in June. Vancouver is really just on the other side of the United States/Canada border but, it feels like it's on the other side of the world. I saw lots of things that I have never seen before in my life. It was an eye-opening experience for sure and I left with a greater burden for people who are left hurting from all kinds of abuse. It has caused me to pray that God would open my eyes to the people here at home that need me to be Jesus to them.

My next big adventure was to be a sponsor at Kid's Camp at the end of July. It was really the first time I have been to camp as an adult and not a kid. Somedays you may not have been able to tell that I was an adult. :) We had lots of fun doing all sorts of stuff. The most meaningful thing for me though was getting to talk with a girl about her decision to become a Christian. It was cool because I could really feel God getting 'me' out of the way so He could do the talking.

There were lots of other exciting things that happened but I'll spare you the details. Mostly, I'm thankful for this summer because I believe it is leaving me as a better person, better friend, and a better believer.

My night

I had the opportunity to watch Will and Allie tonight. It was the first time I've watched both of them, at the same time, by myself. They were great as always, and they even went to bed without any trouble. I think Will is really smart and he is always saying funny stuff but, tonight we had a write-it-down-and-remind-him-in-15 years kind of conversation. It went like this:

Will: Say Hi to my kangaroo!
Me: Does your kangaroo have a name?
Will: Yeah, it's Charlie the Bunny!

I'm not joking either, he seriously said that. Also, Charlie the Bunny does look like a kangaroo!

Will with Charlie the Bunny

Allie has learned to "hug" you when you pick her up and it is just the sweetest thing. I picked her up after putting her in her pajamas and I think I could have held her all night. Then I realized she just wanted me to hold her and not put her in the crib. Either way it was a nice moment.

Allie in the cutest outfit ever