Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Flirty, Frisky, Faithful February

How's that for a title? It's the love month. I wanted to write a post on a weekly basis about our family adventures...but as the weeks went on I decided it was more realistic to update monthly...then as the months went on I thought "OK. really? I will NOT be a quarterly poster." So, while I'm a month behind, I am sticking to this format...just a little late! And my March post will be easy, as it's fresh in my mind ;) I have forgotten most of February but there are a few things I'd like to mention:

Dillon turned 7 months old. On that day he sat up on his own and began crawling. Yep, in one day. He had been mobile for weeks prior - which made it difficult to answer that popular question "is he crawling yet?". He is a very determined little boy; if he wanted to get somewhere, he was going to get there - rolling, inching, scooching, whatever it took! And many of you are aware of my 'crawling prevention intervention' - I was kindly encouraged to "let him grow". I did, and he took off. 

Drew experienced his 3rd real snow of the year. Between the snow and various ice days, it became clear that he is my child. Snow is real fun the first and second time..any more thereafter is just a nuisance. We like the warm sun :) 

 I'll let the video tell the rest...







"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."
1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Our life today:

Today, specifically, we are lazy. We have nothing going on because, like the rest of the country, it's too stinkin cold. Wednesday's are one of our busier days but our activities have been canceled (except for GNO!) so we'll just use today as a day of rest :)

Generally speaking, our lives today are filled with so much excitement! At home, as Queen of the Household, I have been trying to clear our "marginal space" to allow for more downtime - time to go freely about as a family, flex time. This actually increases the excitement around this place. It's pretty cool to step back and look at what I have going inside this little haven we call home.

Robbie is in his 5th year at Ozarka, and loving it every bit of it. Duck season just came to an end, but there's determination to extend the overall hunt season - I see this through all the conversation on Sandhill Crane. Last week Rob started back at the school routine. This was something I was dreading, but it's actually working out quite nicely! He is making some additional sacrifices in order to be here more - and for that, I am SO thankful :) And so is Drew. Robbie is also discovering that he's been mislead on the all the "great" things about "cold weather." His desire to live in the Northeast - "where it's so cold all the time!"- is slowly fading as we get a glimpse of what it's really like up there. We have the mild portion of the blizzard, yet its TOO COLD for us!

Danielle is keeping busy with all sorts of things. I really dislike talking in third person so I'll switch gears. I have been SO incredibly blessed to have the best of both worlds taking place in my life. I am a stay at home mommy all the while having an out-of-the-house job :)  I've opened my own enterprise here on Chilton street. There are goals, there is a mission statement (or 5), we are a brand, I could create a logo (hmm, maybe I'll will), it is work, and it's full of rewards...I call it Crain & Co. As far as I'm concerned, it's the best job there is. I am really enjoying my time staying connected in the "Mom World". Currently, it is with Mop's, a Bible Study, and playdates. I hope to get back to the sewing class this semester, we'll just have to see. There's another little world I play in, usually during nap time or once the boys are asleep: I have re-entered the legal scene! I have been doing contract legal work for an attorney here (who, he and his family, have become very special and important to Crain & Co.!). I have always been "weird" in the sense that I like work. I like all the pens, binderclips, colored tabbies, pink post-its, etc, but it goes beyond that, so I am feeling VERY happy about this setup.

Dillon is almost 7 months old. Although just months old, he has accomplished a lot in his young-buck age. He has been working right along side me in the office for a few months now. I am sure, if he could speak, he'd be able to tell you the difference between pleadings and discovery. He is beginning to crawl, although can't quite sit on his own. In this month, he has tried a lot of new foods: squash, zucchini, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, prunes and peas. He loves all of them except peas. When he eats peas, his faces squishes up tight and in a matter of seconds they are pushed out of his mouth. He loves to play, and everything he get's his hands on goes strait to his mouth. His absolute favorite thing in the world, and it couldn't be more obvious, is his brother.

Drew is a busy one himself. He is in a part-time preschool at our church, which is home away from home for the whole family. The program and it's people are something special to us. At "school" he plays with his friends, enjoys music class, chapel and LOVES the days he goes to Kids in Motion. In the next two weeks he and his friends will go on their first field trip (I'm sure the bus ride will be the best part of all), they will have "Special Friends Day" (where a special friend comes to play with them at school), they'll have a costume day (where he'll dress up as what he wants to be when he grows up), and a Valentine's party. Outside of school, Drew goes to KidsPraise (or choir) once a week. At the end of the semester they will have a show. If I can figure it out, I'll post the video from last semester. Every week, Drew looks forward to his Sunday School class...especially now that he's joined a new one - one that some of his school friends are in. At home, he loves to "play trains", read, make up stories, boss his stuffed animals around, work outside with daddy, cook in the kitchen with mommy and hold baby brother.

I am grateful to the Lord and all he has given me and my 3 boys. I am proud to wake up to the responsibilities I have and I am grateful for all we've accomplished when I go to sleep.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Oh my!

I've wanted to post on this blog since I moved back to Tyler. I, actually, will post the entry that was started two months after we moved back... but never hit "publish" on. This blog was started almost almost 4 years ago! It was created to journal the Crain family and our adventures (since we had started so many in such a short amount of time);  it was a view inside the action (!) that goes on - to keep family and those dear friends we left back in Austin up to date.
Once we returned back to Austin, life was so busy that it prevented any sort of blogging. And, of course, our move back to Tyler kept us so busy with new things that I never made the time to post here...I was posting somewhere else :) http://amothersfindings.blogspot.com/. I wish I had made the time. We've definitely been on a journey, one with more blessings than I can count. I read some of my previous postings on this blog and it has brought back some really happy memories - I want to be able to look back in another few years and feel the same way. So here we go!

I think it is so funny and so cool to see some of the names mentioned in the posts from "long ago." I have remained friends with some, others I get to see from time to time, some I know very well now but didn't realize we had crossed certain paths previously (I'm sure they will get a kick out of this one)...and there is one in particular that I wish so badly would move back!


It will take several posts to get our readers up to date, but it will happen :)



Welcome to The Days Journey!

If you choose to read prior posts, I beg you to keep this in mind:
This blog was started 3+ years ago.
We've grown - a lot :)
I'm, now, quite embarrassed at how open I was!

Though it may not appear this way,  http://amothersfindings.blogspot.com/ is still active.
It is my creative outlet, which will be more abundant in weeks to come.


"She's back!.....and ready to attack!"

Hopefully you don't know where this quote comes from! Though I'm pretty confident most of you do;)















So I'm back. I'm back to Tyler, I'm back in my own home, I'm back to the stay-at-home-mommy world, I'm back to blogging, I'm back to my lesser chaotic life.



























My favorite story I tell of this move describes a 2 year old and his conception of "moving":
During the weeks of packing up our house in Austin, we tried to prepare Drew by explaining what moving meant. We knew the hardest preparation was the distance between him and his Nannie, Grammy and Uncle Will. With that in mind we hyped up the idea of moving to the Tyler house. With the "Tyler house" came a new big room, new park, new pool, new friends and he'd be able to spend the day with mom!
Apparently he didn't grasp the full concept of moving back to the Tyler house. When we arrived, Drew was extremely disappointed when "Tyler" was not in the house. For days the poor guy asked for Tyler. All this explaining and this is what he takes of it - "we're moving to Tyler's house".
We've been here almost 7 weeks now and he still refers to our home as "Tyler's house".
"Mommy, I like Tyler's house."
"Mommy, I want to go back to Tyler's house."
"Mommy, I sleep at Tyler's house?"
I still have moments where I feel it cant be true. We made it through that journey ;) Here's to a new one!









Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Caught Up


I skipped yoga again this morning. I skipped all studying today. I skipped the intern hunt today. I skipped an interview today. But I caught up on all things I've skipped out of since the new semester began.

I woke up this morning and decided I needed to break the mundane routine I've had for 5 weeks now. I needed me some family time. I took Drew up to Nannie's office so he could get some good flirt time in. We were introduced to millions of ladies! A few of them have toddlers Drew's age. They seemed very content being at the office and away from their babies. Will I be that way? Or will my constant thinking about my kiddo prevent me from getting the job done?
Nannie took us to Fudruckers for lunch. I was playing kickball for Northwest Little League the last time I ate there (15 years ago?!).

We spent the rest of the afternoon at Grammy's and what a special afternoon it turned out to be. She inspires me in so many ways. I take so much with me when I leave her. And not just homemade cinnamon rolls (they are truly the most delicious thing ever - and made with walnut extract). She's been a great supporter of this "going back to school" deal. She's a talented seamstress who insists on making everything on her own, but still knows the importance of having a few pairs of Italian leather wedge heel Ferragamos sitting in the closet. Too bad they're size 5! She understands every aspect of my studies and it blows my mind. But she's fully aware of the grueling work that goes behind the scenes and has let me know this side of her thoughts. For the first time, I left her house more confused on my feelings than ever! However, I figured out where my "read a magazine from the last page forward" gene came from.

~Energy and persistence conquer all things~
Benjamin Franklin

Monday, September 15, 2008

Sunday, August 24, 2008




The condo is officially done. I hope my hard work pays well. Its just funny this whole condo thing. Immediately flash backs come about of all the years I've known this place. It was 8 or 9 yrs ago when I was first introduced to this place, and Robbie as well. But the most significant memories happened between 2004 and 2006. The first renovation happened when we were parting ways from our 4 other roommates off Duval. One night two of our dear friends decided to give us their input: our stairs would look "really cool" if the handrail was removed. Shortly after, the handrail was absent. Then it was decided that carpeted stairs were ugly, so that had to go as well. I'd give anything to have pictures of this night - it takes too many words to tell the whole story. 4 years later here I am prepping and staining the latest addition to the condo - a custom made hand rail. I laugh the entire time I do this.
Today we wrapped it up, photo's and all. We even showed it to 3 inquirers.
Reminded that our condo days are over (or not?) we drove around campus and reminded each other of stories associated with almost every block in the neighborhood. We even make a trip over to Washington street, the most beautiful and widest street in Austin. There you will also find Rob's favorite house - the Alamo house. Oh and the new zen center! Unfortunately, I'm not so pleased driving around the area. All the new construction is cool - admit - but it's quite sad when you see so many Austin/campus traditions being taken under.


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