Girl after Daddy's own heart!

The pictures say it all!!!

Goodbye Shadow!

Last week was a terrible week for us as far as mechanical things went! On Tuesday, I started the dishwasher and it didn't do anything! It has been really loud for a while now. I guess we now know why! So, we had to buy a new dishwasher. The bad thing was that I had planned to go out that same day to get a Wii so I could get WiiFitPlus to lose a little more weight before having surgery in December. Needless to say, I didn't get my Wii! We did some research and couldn't find anything that would last a long time without spending a LOT of money. We went with a Bosch by the recommendation of the repair guy. We went to look at dishwashers on Tuesday and ordered it on Wednesday. Then Thursday when I was picking up Jesstine after I worked, I got a call from Stephen saying that his car wouldn't start. So, Jesstine and I went to pick him up. It was really cold the next day, so we decided to let it sit for a day and see if it would start when it warmed up on Saturday. No luck. We left it over the weekend and Stephen tried to start it again on Monday. Still no luck, so he had it towed. Just after lunch, he phoned to tell me that it was bad news. It turns out the fuel pump was going out. We then started our car search. We had talked about it all weekend and decided that we would either get a cheep car for him to take to work, a nicer car that would last him a while to take him to work but would double as a family car if needed, or just go all out and get a bigger family car that I would drive and he would drive my current car. After doing research and discussing it, we decided upon the third option. The search began. On Tuesday we stopped by CarMax and checked out a few possibilities narrowing it down to two. We had also seen a used minivan at another dealership with very little miles. We decided to go and check that out as well. We LOVED it! We decided to go talk to our bank to get some financing. After doing so, we went on Thursday to haggle. They wouldn't budge past $450 on the van! We walked out to look at the other two options at CarMax. We started walking toward the one we had in mind to test drive and beside it was a similar van that had just come in. We decided to look at it first because we liked the color better! Little did we know, we had hit the jackpot! It turned out to be what we were looking for and more! Just to make sure, we test drove it and the other car we had in mind (which was identical to the car we tried to haggle on at the other dealership). So, we came home with this:

Already has the Cowboys tag and a WSU decal!

It is a Chrysler Town and Country Touring Special Edition. It has a dark blue exterior color and a gray interior. The seats are all leather with the front seats being electric and heated. It has a DVD player with a 6 disc changer. It has power sliding doors and tailgate. It essentially has all of the bells and whistles. We were willing to give up all of the bells and whistles on our first choice if the price were right. For the same price we were willing to pay for that one, we got this one WITH the bells and whistles! We unfortunately have already had our first mishap. Just bad luck I guess. On the way home from the dealership, it was hit by a large rock and the windshield was damaged.

Stephen's car, affectionately named Shadow, was able to give us one last little benefit though. CarMax was able to give us $500 to trade Shadow in.

This post is dedicated to the memory of a car that had a good long life! Stephen will miss you Shadow! Welcome to the family Blue!

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

P.S. If you are ever in need of a used car, check out CarMax! We had great service there! They are honest, efficient and easy to work with! It was a very smooth car buying experience. They even take care of the registration for you!!!! If you live in Wichita, Neal is a good salesman to work with! He is also a childhood friend. It isn't very often that you can walk into a dealership and hug your car salesman! It isn't very often that I don't have to spell my name out for someone! I still think it would have been a pleasant experience with out knowing him. Check out CarMax!

Trick-or-Treat!

I didn't think that I would be doing much for Halloween this year. Jesstine is only 14 months old and can't really eat much of the candy given out. I tried hard to find a simple costume that didn't cost too much. Stephen is not a big fan of Halloween, so I didn't feel right spending a lot of money on a costume for her especially since she is too young to really care....or so I THOUGHT! This kid (like most) LOVES candy! It quickly became apparent that she really liked getting dressed up and getting candy from people so she could put it in her bucket. It also quickly became apparent that I wasn't going to get many good pictures of her because she is SO wiggly! Here is what we came up with. She was as cute as a bug!

This was right before our first Trick-or-Treat event. When I was a kid, we went trick-or-treating ON Halloween. Not several times the week of Halloween! Well, I guess it is kind of a good thing that we had more than one opportunity since her costume was so cute! She decided to read a little before we left.

More reading.

Our first activity was with the Maize Parents As Teachers (PAT) group. We went to a local (3 mins. from our house) nursing home for some storytime, singing, and of course candy! The residents handed out candy after the stories and singing. This is her friend Remi. I think she is 2. We see her in music class each week.

Listening to a story.

My mom graciously watched Jesstine a LOT this week while we were trying to find a vehicle to replace Stephen's car (see later post). Jesstine picked out a thank you balloon for her. I think Jesstine liked it so much that Mom left it for Jesstine. We found a fun way to put it on her push toy. She wouldn't stand still in the Ladybug costume, but she is a ham in this picture.

She has really improved on her walking. It looks so effortless behind this toy! She had so much fun with that balloon!

This was taken at our church's trunk-or-treat. She had recently finished some chocolate. The necklace was a treat from one of the trunks that was decorated as a treasure chest. Can you tell she liked all of the hubbub?

Yes, that is a roll of toilet paper in my dad's hands! My folks had a fake outhouse in the back of their truck. The kids had to throw a roll of toilet paper (do a trick) to get their treats. No doubt one of the best pictures of the evening!

That is until we got this one. It would look pretty common place if Jesstine were a REAL ladybug! Such a cute picture! A good conversation piece for when boys try to date her!

After the church event, we decided to hit a few houses on the cul-de-sac. The next day was daylight savings time, so we tried to stretch her bedtime to try and adjust it to take care of the time change. This is one of our beloved neighbors! They have made it to Jesstine's birthday and have been SO supportive and loving to Jesstine. The little boy is a little guy that they adopted and has autism. He is so sweet! This was right before he asked Jesstine, "Do you know my name?" It was so cute!

This was the last house we went to. Just a really cute photo opportunity! I had to call out to Stephen to get a picture.

Overall it was a fun holiday for a girl who really could care less about Halloween! She was such a trooper all week while Mommy and Daddy were car shopping. I think she was just so happy to be spending time with us for a while without interruptions.

Be looking for the car post next!

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

Walking Tall!

Well, we reached a milestone at the end of last week. Jesstine now walks on a daily basis. Several times a day in fact! She still prefers crawling as her main mode of transportation, but she will at least try to walk first. She can take at least 8 steps at one time. She is just growing so fast! Here are a few pictures from the last few weeks and some captions to go with them!

So, before it got REALLY cold out, Jesstine and I spent a lot of time using her chariot (otherwise known as the bike trailer). We were getting ready to go out for a ride one day and she decided that she needed to look pretty. She tried as hard as she could to put her bracelet on, so I helped her. Then she tried to put her hat on. I helped her with that too! This was her bike riding attire for that day!

Humm, I don't remember leaving the bathroom like this. I usually don't have to worry about letting her loose in the bathroom. This day was different. When Daddy went to get her bath ready, this is what he found.

She confessed rather quickly! People keep saying that I don't REALLY want her to walk because she will be into everything! HA! She is so tall and was so mobile before she started walking. It didn't matter. She was STILL into everything! It is fun though!

Her new favorite game! She is tall enough and has learned to climb enough that she has discovered every child's favorite toy: a laundry basket!!! This one is on wheels.

Here she is with yet ANOTHER laundry basket (or in this case two). Hike that leg up there!

She made it!

And of course, there is the toy basket too! She discovered toys that she hadn't played with in a long time. They are now ALL on the floor waiting for Mommy to pick them up!

My sister gave me the idea to get bells for Jesstine's shoes since she has started walking now. When my niece started walking, my sister got some and she was proficient at walking not to much later. So, I thought I would give it a try! She loves them! She still can't figure out what makes the sound. She tries to pull them off, but luckily they are constructed so that she hasn't been successful yet! I don't even have to untie her shoes to put them on. They are great! We will see how long it takes her to be proficient now!

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

Ponytails, Playdates and more new toys! That's what THIS little girl is made of!

I know I just posted a week ago, but we have had a terrific week of photo opportunities to share with our friends and family! Jesstine is such a joy. I know that the saying is "sugar and spice and everything nice," but to fit our week the title above is more appropriate! See the pictures for further details!

Okay, so I know it looks like she has no hair most of the time. This is my proof that she has a tail in the back! It isn't too long, but it is certainly progress. Yes, that is an Elmo toy beside her!
We have recently been playing with a little girl that we met through a friend at church. Meet Vivi. As you can tell, her and Jesstine look NOTHING alike! They are very close in age though and LOVE each other's toys!

After they played, it seemed like a great day for a walk. So we loaded them up in Jesstine's chariot! It gave me a chance to see what it would be like to have two kids in the bike trailer at once! Vivi wasn't quite sure about this. The book in her lap helped though! No, we didn't do that to her eye. She fell a week ago! Still getting the hang of walking!

Now on to our toys! Jesstine has had this since her birthday, but never showed much interest in it. Lately, I showed her that it converted into a car. Now she LOVES it! She feels a sense of accomplishment by being able to climb onto ride on toys and then back off of them again!

I think she got stuck and is trying to figure out how to get away from the TV. She has mastered the art of going backwards, but forward is yet to come!

She decided that Dumpty would be a great passenger! It is a good thing she is a pillow and used to being squished! That does NOT look comfortable!

And last but not least. This is our latest addition to our toys. Jesstine LOVES to swing! I have tried to take advantage of this great weather and walk to the park almost daily. It is hard to do when I work on my feet all day sometimes. Mom comes over and watches Jesstine on Wednesday mornings while I work. I thought it would be nice for her to enjoy the great weather with Jesstine as well. I also thought it may be too cold to walk all the way to the park and swing this winter. But, if we had a swing of our own, we could enjoy it here at home for those days that we can't make it to the park. I had seen these in the store, but wasn't trilled about the color. It is okay for a girl to ride in a blue swing, but a boy in a pink swing (if we have a boy in the future if we even have another child someday). Also, if you know me, I really didn't even tolerate pink until my first child was born! I decided it didn't matter! So, here it is! Stephen kindly installed some hooks for us in two places so we have the option to change the scenery. Jesstine also thought it would be nice to invite her favorite neighbor boys over to show it to them. (Jesstine has fallen in love with our new neighbor boys Brandon, 11, and Ryan, 8, and LOVES to have them go to the park with us! They really are such sweet boys! There aren't a lot of those around anymore, especially on our cul-de-sac!

God bless all of you!

Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

Latest in Jesstine's World

I was looking back at my blog and noticed it has been a while since I posted pictures of Jesstine! She IS 13 months old now! It is hard to believe! She is still not walking, but she loves pushing stuff around. She can crawl up and down the stairs. She has also recently taken an in video games! Although she only seems to want to play the controller that Mommy has! She is such a beautiful smart girl and I am reminded everyday how blessed I am to have her in my life. She laughs like Elmo on purpose! She grunts like me when she hears me grunt out of frustration (I noticed that my sister and my mom do this too). She is using inflection in her voice even if it is nonsense sounds. She is really excited about dogs and lots of other animals. It is just so fun to see what new things she does each day! Here are a few pictures that we have taken in the last month!

In case you didn't click the link to Stephen's NFL preview, here are the pictures of the beautiful girl that he included! These were actually difficult pictures to get!

This little outfit was a hand-me-down from Jesstine's cousin Lexi! It is SO cute. This picture doesn't do it justice! Thanks Grace for loaning it to us!

She still LOVES Sesame Street. Here she is watching Sesame Street in her Elmo chair!

As you can see, she is a MESS when she eats (much like most kids her age I am sure). I have started to introduce silverware to her in hopes she will soon learn how to use it. She sometimes tries it and other times she sticks the spoon or fork on the food and picks the food up with her fingers to put it in her mouth! It will come sooner or later! Oh, and notice that her utensil is in her left hand. We are really thinking she may be left sided. She seems to lead with her left foot and hand in everything she does! I know some people say that time will tell, and it will. I am excited to see if that will stay true! Stephen's got a left handed grandparent or great grandparent. I have a left handed sister and an uncle who was left handed but was forced to switch when he became school aged.

Yes, that is a Nintendo 64 controller you see in my hands. We are playing Mario Kart 64. It is so exciting!

I have been searching for a girly, cute Cowboys outfit for Jesstine since she recently outgrew her last one. I have really had a lot of trouble! Either I can't find one in her size or they are not seasonally appropriate. I don't know why I didn't think of it before, but I hopped on etsy and was able to find one very quickly! It is SO cute and I love it! I have recently asked the seller if she would be able to make a long sleeved shirt so I can continue to let her wear it in the winter. We will have to see how that goes!

We were wondering when the music gene would hit. It seemed to hit her sister in the womb, but not Jesstine. As of late, she is fascinated with the piano and LOVES to dance and clap to music! I am so excited! We will see where that takes her!

Oh, and she (like her cousin Noah before her, see below) likes to try new and exciting ways to play the keyboard as well.

Wow, notice the uncanny resemblance in the profile of these two cousins too!!!!

As always, we hope you are all doing well!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

Esther-It's Tough Being a Woman

Well, I have been in need of some spiritual food for quite some time. It has been almost a year since I actually got to attend a class on Wednesday nights at church. We have tried to goose Jesstine a long to get her to stay up that late and it always ends up being such a fight! So for the most part, we eat dinner at church then Jesstine and I would come home and commence the bath time/bedtime routine. Well, last night was the beginning of the Beth Moore series for the women at church. I made it very clear to Stephen that I will be taking this class one way or another. The nice thing is that the format is such that they discuss first and show the video last. It also starts WAY earlier than the other classes. It starts at 6:30. Now, we will have to make sure we are there in enough time to eat, but I think that is manageable. My plan is to come and eat, discuss things in the discussion part and then head home. Then later in the week I will borrow the video to view at home! We will see how that works! Regardless, it is nice to finally do something for myself! I am not saying that I haven't had times when I have been able to do things for myself. I just haven't had much of an opportunity to do something for my SPIRITUAL self!

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine