Our Christmas season

This Christmas season has been incredibly fulfilling.  It's been a fast season, and at times hasn't seemed to be filled with the Christmas spirit, but it has nonetheless been meaningful.

Our time in The Woodlands with the Woodyards was nice, but lonely.  We all missed Bob more than can be expressed.  I think all of us quoted him at one time or other throughout the days.  We were all together on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  He would have been happy.  He's still there, very present in each one the kids and Teddy.  It is clear to me.

Our time is Austin was equally nice.  We were blessed to be surrounded by my entire immediate family, including my dad.  It was me, Michelle, Mark, mom, Kyle and my dad.  It was the first time that any of us can remember that we've spent Christmas day with our dad in a house.  It was surprisingly comfortable, which makes me happy and relieved.  It was, as my mom said, what Christmas is supposed to be about - grace, redemption and love.  My sister is now engaged (thanks to Damon Knight), so it was even sweeter. 

Life is good.  We are certainly blessed.

Check out our videos

It's not just the one video, it's a whole channel:  http://www.youtube.com/ploppintoopy

The Juice - A Cearley Short

Starring Max.  Nick, Gracie and dad round out the supporting cast.

http://www.youtube.com/user/ploppintoopy

Let's start Christmas

Bass Pro Shops. The Cearley 5. Santa Clause. Fun times.

I think Steph and I were the most excited out of the bunch.

And what a perfect Santa Clause, right?

What everyone loves right now

Max loves tractors.  And trucks.

Nick loves balls.  And watching football.

Gracie loves talking.  And singing.

Story time at Gracie's school

I read to Gracie's school this morning. I was under the impression that I'd just be reading to her class, but it was the entire school - maybe 40 students. It was all good. I welcomed the larger audience :)

Gracie picked out the story last night - I Love it When You Smile. It's about a little kangaroo was wakes up in a grumpy mood and everything his mom does to make him smile doesn't work. They go out to breakfast and on the way, while hopping side to side, Roo's mom slips and they both wind up in a muddy pool at the bottom of the hill. Roo can't do anything else other than smile. :)

The kids loved it and Gracie was so proud and happy. I enjoyed being there for Gracie. These are the moments that I can never replace and certainly never have back.

I felt the story wasn't long enough, but Steph assured me that if they wanted me to read more, they would have asked me to.

Mr. Mom

Long time, no talk. I apologize for the lapse in communication. The work transition has kept us busy, needless to say.

I have been playing Mr. Mom since Wednesday afternoon. Stephanie is teaching at the State thespian conference in Corpus and has been planned for months now, I'm taking the reigns.

Busy and fed - as in, keep them busy and keep them fed - has been my strategy and so far, it has worked. Wednesday after we dropped Steph off at the airport, we went to Target (after our hour drive back to Wylie) and rolled around there for awhile. I had multiple snacks at my disposal and even though they might have curbed the kids' appetite for dinner, they got us through.

Yesterday, we did the Ikea trip. While Gracie played in the playland there, the boys were enthralled with the store and the new environment. Again, snacks in hand got us through.

Yesterday afternoon, we went to the choo-choo train park at Firewheel where they could run and play. And they did. Then I fed them.

In between each one of these outings, they get fed some more and put down for bed. While all that's going on, I try to squeeze in as much work as I can.

My mom is coming today (YAY!) and while I don't think I need the help, it will certainly be welcome. It honestly hasn't been as challenging as I thought it would be. To do this day in and day out, that might be a different story. God bless Stephanie (and all the other stay-at-home moms & dads out there) for doing this everyday.

Pictures

Some recent pics of the kids (from October 2009)

Our (sick) day at the "Festival"

Gracie and I were the only non-sickly Cearleys so we decided to lug everyone down to the Festival. They loved it. Especially Steph. :)

The flu of swine

The swine flu has infected one of us. Max - poor guy - got it, really out of nowhere. Ironically, we thought Nick and Gracie might have it, but the doctor cleared both of them. At the time, Max, too, had a clean bill of health. Overnight, it changed.

His breathing has been the most concerning, but today, a day into taking medicines, he sounds much better. It's weird, he's not even showing signs of the 'flu.' No fever, no tummy issues. i don't know if his body aches, but by his demeanor, he's just normal ol' Max.

Last night, Nick started running a fever, but we've been able to control it with Tylenol and Motrin.

Stephanie has a twinge in her throat. Most of all, she's got a serious case of cabin fever. Woo-sah, baby, woo-sah.

Another new chapter

Man, once things get away from you, time flies by. I have not written here for quite awhile. We are alive!!!!

Boys are boys and that is probably the biggest reason for little written communication via this friendly blog. The boys, it seems, have leaped right into the terrible 2's phase and are giving us a run for the money. I don't know how Stephanie is able to keep it together some days. Max can probably knock the door down, if he really tried. He's already figured out how to open it, and when he doesn't get what he wants, after asking in his baby-talk way, he just keeps on and on. Persistent little man. Nick is right there with him, but he lets big brother lead the way and rope him into all sorts of mischief. His hair is finally growing in and in a way, he looks like a little, skinny Max.

Gracie is Miss Smarty-pants and quite the performer. We catch her singing to herself, mostly made-up songs. Sometimes we'll hear a rif from The Little Mermaid or The Lion King. She dances, too. And loves to act out plays. I think she mostly likes to dress up and then "put on plays" which really consist of a song and a courtsey. It's the cutest thing ever.

Steph and I are trying to ride the wave of transition in our lives right now. I accepted another job with another company, which I start next Wednesday. It is a really good opportunity for me and one that I'm really excited about. I'm sad, too, because I've been at imc2 for 4 years now. Made lots of friends. Done lots of really good work. But it is time to move on.

Our friends, Melissa and Scott Thrasher, have moved out of their house and are living back home in Alabama. Melissa was such an incredible friend to Stephanie. It's a huge loss to not have her right across the street anymore.

A new chapter in our lives has definitely begun. Hopefully, I will do a better job documenting this one than I did the last.

Boys 18 mos. appt

Max is 26 lbs. Nick is 20 lbs. Max does NOT like the doctor, even when he is just checking his breathing. Nick doesn't mind. Max wanted to get out of there ASAP. So did Nick.

July Catch Up

So, we had such an insanely busy July, we didn't do it justice on our blog. Mike does the best he can, but I (Stephanie) should contribute a bit more. Thus, my first blog!

July 5-11 Whirlwind trip to Austin, New Braunfels/Schlitterbahn for Cearley/Key family reunion, San Antonio for Virginia's wedding. Had a GREAT time. Lots of bonding time, water sports, bbq-ing, and Wii competition. Gracie's birthday was celebrated there for the first time. Her actual birthday is July 17th, so we made cupcakes at home for that.

July 26 - 27 We had the family (my side included, this time) in town the next weekend for her Pool Party. What a great time - she had her cousins and friends all around her. The plan was to have her leave that afternoon with my sister, Uncle Matt, and the cousins to go to The Woodlands for 5 days. It was to be the longest she's ever been away from us, but, we knew how good it would be for her, my mom and us. Well, the time came to leave and she was having NONE of that, screaming, crying, etc. This really equalled the excitment of the whole day, her exhaustion and it being past her naptime. She slept a SOLID 2 1/2 hours (all the while, my brother was stuck at the car dealer - another long story..)and was ready to blaze to Houston upon waking!

The week was very difficult for Mike and I, missing her so much. But, she LOVED it! She swam almost every day in Yiayia's pool, played with her cousins, went to her very first movie in the theatre with Amalia and Yiayia - UP! Meanwhile, I was just counting the days, as believe it or not, it was very quiet around the house without her. We left bright and early Friday morning for The Woodlands, as I was planning a surprise "Diaper Shower" for my sister. I was brave and attempted making a diaper cake and it came out so cute! We told Ange that the gathering at mom's house was for her birthday (which was the next day) and managed to pull off a surprise for her. As nice as it was, it's still a bitter-sweet thing to have a gathering and my dad not be there. We all had moments of disbelief that he wasn't there. I think Andrea really enjoyed the Shower and better yet, the 4th baby Balfour will be set for at least 6 months with diapers! After all the hooplah of food, cake (provided so generously by Athena) and presents, we all spent the afternoon swimming. Gracie had improved her swimming so much over that week. We were all amazed that she didn't need her floaties at all! Papou would have been proud.

On our way back to Wylie, Mike and I both agreed we needed some non-travelling R&R time. Unfortunately, the R&R turned into a month of home improvements - as you'll see in Mike's blogs.

Mike's birthday is July 31st and our anniversary is the 28th of July. For whatever reason, those two dates get sorely overlooked every year. We did have a "date night" to celebrate our anniversary, though. He is such a hard working husband, father and provider. I need to take more time to plan better to celebrate him. They say "Everything happens for a reason." Well, our opportunity to go to Austin City Limits Festival this year and go backstage to meet our all-time (mine:) favorite Dave Matthews Band was taken away. We're very sad, but are still planning on going to Austin the same weekend and Terri has agreed to babysit while we go camping. This will be his birthday party - just he and I. First time in 5 years. Happy Birthday, love!

Another project finished

The screened in patio project is finished. Technically, it needs another coat of white all the way around. Steph thinks it could use another coat of green, too. But I am calling it quits. For now. We need to do the floor, but it will wait.

1st Day of School

Gracie's first day of pre-K is today. She'll be going to First Baptist Wylie every Monday, Wednesday & Friday from 8 - 12 NOON. She doesn't know anyone in her class (unlike last year), so it will be interesting to see how she assimilates. She was very excited this morning when she woke up.

Our prayer for her is that she continues to find joy in learning and that she will grow mentally, emotionally and socially.

We love you, Gracie.

Meet the teacher

The Cearley 5 went to Gracie's Meet the Teacher night last night at FBS. I was impressed with the whole operation. It's going to be a good, healthy environment for Gracie to develop. She'll be going 3 days a week (M, W, F) from 8 - NOON. Since she went 2 days a week last year, this will be the perfect transition since she'll go all 5 days a week next year (full days no less). Kindergarten, wow. Getting ahead of myself...

They've got a really good curriculum. She'll be exposed more to music and PE, plus she'll start learning on a computer. I try to teach her things on the computer at home, and she gets the fact that typing on the keys produces letters on the screen. But beyond that, I don't think she understands how it works. She'll learn, which I am happy about.

I feel like she's going to be in a good place, developmentally, this year. Last year's exposure to a classroom setting and everything she learned should really help her. Steph's work with her can't go unnoticed, either.

Although it's tough to come to terms with her growing up, it's comforting to know that she is growing up good.

Gracie's check up

Gracie had her 4-year old, pre-school well visit yesterday. She weighs 34 lbs, is 3'5" tall and has a little bit of her dad's eye genes. The eye test where she had to cover her eyes produced slight concern (20/50 in her left eye). We'll get her checked out by the same eye doctor who took care of (and operated on) Max's cyst. Then, we had the shots, which didn't go well at all. She had to get 4 and after trying to reason with a 4-year old about shots, I learned very quickly that the best way to have those administered is to hold her down with the help of the nurse and just do it. She didn't like it (which is a kind way to put it), but by the time she was on the way home, sucking on that sucker, I think she was over it. The swine flu vaccine is coming up at the end of October and that is 2 shots. I don't expect it to go much better.

These boys

Ah, boys. Growing boys to be exact. Our boys have, overnight it seems, turned into 2 Tazmanian Devils. They destroy anything in their path and sometimes each other and/or themselves. They climb. They fall. They hit. They break stuff. They run. Everything's a game, even they know it shouldn't be. And they know. These are smart boys. I suppose not all boys are smart at this age, but the Cearley boys, they're smart. The phase of sweet, little, fairly calm boys has now passed and as far as calm goes, I don't expect it to return. Oy vei.

Pics of the kids

Backyard Project Pics

Gracie

Gracie loves to peel the wrapper off of colors. She's liked since she could actually grip the paper.

Backyard Project 6

The backyard project is finished. May 22 - August 8. Awesome.

Dad's last day

My dad is leaving today. Off to Santa Fe. It is bittersweet, for sure. I'm happy for him because I know he needed a job and it was pretty time sensitive. Aside from providing a living for him, it sounds like a good opportunity, too. It's just so far away. I don't know how long/much we'll see him and that bums me out. For the last three years, we could pretty much see him whenever we wanted. He's been a big part of the kids life and for me, it's been great to have him so close. We will miss Saturday morning breakfasts with him. Next time he sees the kids, they'll be one step closer to talking and kindergarten. Sadness.

Kind-hearted Nick

Nick is so kind-hearted. I spied him yesterday trying to make Max happy. He loves to share with Max.

This particular moment - Max was crying. He was tired of being in his room and he just wanted attention. Nick was just doing his thing, exploring, playing. After a couple of minutes of Max crying, Nick scoots his riding car over to Max and pushes it right in front of him. He starts talking to him in sounds, then points to the seat, as if to say, "here, brother, sit on the car and you'll have a fun time. You won't have to cry anymore."

Max cried and cried and Nick tried and tried. It was awesome.

Regardless of how tough and gruff Max continues to be, he is going to be so grateful to have a brother like Nick.

Gracie is 4

July seems to be one long celebration month so I haven't really taken the time to call any of them out. We've celebrated Gracie's birthday so many times already that when the day actually came and passed (July 17), I didn't really think anything of it. Silly me.

Gracie Jane turned 4 years old this year. It's hard to believe that 4 years have passed. She is at the age where she can comprehend and communicate incredibly well. She has lots of questions, of course, but answers make sense to her and even spark multiple trains of thought. She LOVES to talk, which is probably attributed to the Stephanie in her more than the age :) She loves to dance and sing and read books. Her favorite movie, of late, is Bolt. She is still very headstrong and we're continually working on her attitude. She is a rock star and she knows it a little, so she's got that going for her. She's smart. She's rough with her baby brothers. She's learning to swim and how to ride a bike. She still has problems saying her "R"'s and when she doesn't hear/understand something, she still says, "what you said?" I hope that never goes away. She's great at coloring and getting great at writing her name.

To me and Steph, she is heaven.

We love you, Gracie.

Summer Vacation pics

All pics can be found here.

Enjoy. It was an awesome time.

Summer Vacation - Day 7

We left Austin at 4:30 AM and pulled into our driveway at 8:30. It was a wonderful moment.

We had a great time the entire week, but it was tough to be gone for that long. Max has started doing this thing called screaming. He screams loud. He does it when he's bored, tired, irritated, or hungry. It seems like he's been doing it non-stop for the last few days. Woosah.

Despite the prolonged time, the week was wonderful. Two full days in New Braunfels was the right amount of time. Whatever we do next year, we'll mirror the itinerary. We spent lots of nice, quality time together. I think we all caught ourselves at various times throughout the stay just being, soaking up the moment of three kids running around, siblings and significant others conversing, people doing their own things. It was as things were supposed to be.

We got to know Damon better which was both good and reassuring. He and Michelle are really good together.

The San Antonio trip with Gracie was special. It was one of the first times, if not the first, that we were able to spend longer than 2 hours of time devoted totally on her since the boys were born.

Mom, kudos for organizing everything.

Summer Vacation - Day 6

Man, are we ready to get home. We've had a great day with Gracie in San Antonio so far, but the wedding can't come soon enough. I don't think we're going to stay for the reception. Instead, we'll drive back to Austin and see how we feel. Hopefully, we'll be rested enough that we can drive back home tonight. If all that happens, we'll get home around midnight. Midnight is better than 10-11 tomorrow morning, though. We just want home sweet home.

S'mores in San Antone

Gracie thought it was too hot but she loved the s'mores. (Those are Steph's hands in the pic).

Summer Vacation - Day 5

Eat at Herberts Taco Hut - check
Have a successful outlet mall outing - check
Make it to San Antonio for Virginia's (college friend) wedding - check
Spend the afternoon swimming with Gracie at the hotel pool - check
Watch whatever Gracie wants to watch on TV at night - check
Have Family Color Night instead of Family Movie Night - check

It's been a busy day.

Summer Vacation - Day 4

It is HOT to TROT. 106 at 5 PM. Downright miserable.

We stopped by the outlet mall on our way back to Austin. What a mistake. Actually, not being prepared was the mistake. Gracie got a dress and sandals for the wedding. Steph wanted to get a number of things, but the boys prevented us from staying any longer than we did.

Summer Vacation - Day 3

Kyle had to leave early. Unfortunately, a close family friend passed away earlier in the week and he needed to go to Louisiana for the funeral. It was a bummer to see him go. I know my mom was sad and disappointed, but what are you going to do. Just bad timing.

Despite his absence, we had another great day as a family. We went to the NB Children's Museum, which all the kids loved. Everyone was on their schedule, so they ate and took naps at the regular time. And then, we went to Landa Park - all for $15 btw - and enjoyed the sun and water for another couple of hours.

Fajitas, margaritas and Wii took up the rest of the night. Steph had a little too much teq-kill-ya. She's still sleeping. I can't imagine what her head feels like right now.

Wii was too fun. We all laughed hard.

Summer Vacation - Day 2

The sun came out and didn't go away the rest of the day. We stayed at the water park all day long. Nick LOVED the water. He would go down the baby slides all by himself and thought it was just the best. Max wouldn't go down 1 slide by himself. In fact, every time he looked down the slide from the top, he would back down the steps. He's a big boy with a little threshold for risk, especially as it pertains to heights. He also does not like anything over his head - like an umbrella or a tent or even a hat. It seems to make him go crazy. Gracie was solid. She had a blast. She went down 2 big slides - loved 1 and hated the other. She floated and swam. She loves the water and is not afraid, just like her brother Nick.

Forecast for the water park

Doesn't look too good. We are hopeful though.

Summer Vacation pics 3

Gracie on the front porch swing. The house is sweet.

Summer Vacation pics 2

While we wait for the keys to the house.

Summer Vacation pics

Max eats dirt for the first known time.

Summer Vacation - Day 1

We're waiting for Papaw right now. Actually, he's not holding us up, per se, but we're not going to get everything packed until he gets home. It should be in the next 15 minutes. The kids are sleeping right now. Gracie might be awake. I hear rustling in there. The girl doesn't ever like to sleep. She doesn't want to miss anything. It makes ME tired just thinking about it.

Today, we'll get settled into the house (the bigger house this year) and go to Clear Springs for dinner. It will definitely be the highlight of the day.

I have been TESTY since yesterday morning. It can be mostly attributed to the little sleep I got night before last. The attitude and impatience just hasn't stopped. Sigh. I will continue breathing.

All will be good. Woosah.

Backyard Project 5

Patio is finished. Next up is the flowerbed. Goal is to have it finished by end of July. Thanks for all your help, dad!

Backyard Project 4

The goal for the weekend was to lay the flagstone and create the patio. Goal accomplished. At least for the most part. We still have to put the border in and pour in crushed granite to act as the mortar, but a huge part of it is done. We are both so happy with it. Sneak peak at first photos here.

To my dad and all the dad's out there, here's to you. Being a dad is the best.

Backyard Project 3

The mid-week torrential thunderstorms were a devastating blow to the gut of the backyard project. I didn't cover the hole and it became one giant pool. I spent yesterday doing my best to drain it, but it took forever and still wasn't drained by last night.

This morning began a new day, though. With the new day came new hope. New determination. I bought about 40 bags of dirt (40lbs each) and started to fill the hole back up to a nice, solid, level foundation. I still need more dirt. I need to bring everything up a couple inches.

Patience.

More Chicago Pics

Mini-vacation in Chicago Pics

We had an awesome time in Chicago. We got to see a couple of shows (Jersey Boys & The Second City - I know I'm using it wrong), hang out with one of our college friends (Joy, who HOOKED us up with the tickets for Jersey Boys), spend nice time outside (the weather was perfect), eat at a Chicago Institution (Gino's East), stand in line outside a restaurant for the first time (Gino's East), and experienced the tourist trap known as the Navy Pier.

It was a great time for me and Steph. It felt like it was the first time that we've had to actually focus entirely on the other person for any length of time since the boys were born. I think it is. God bless my mom (for watching the kids).

Pics continued...Mother's Day in June

I experimented with the smaller pictures thinking I could load more into 1 post. Wrong.

Pics - Mother's Day...in June

Not really. These are pics from the real Mother's Day where we spent great time in The Woodlands with YiaYia and all the cousins and Uncle Nick and Thea and Uncle Matt. We surprised YiaYia :) It was emotional for everyone on many levels. It's just so nice being around family, especially moms.