A week to be thankful for

We had a great Thanksgiving week!

I had to work on Monday and part of the day on Tuesday, so the boys got to spend a lot of time with Grandma Libby since they didn't have school. She took them to the park to ride bikes and to get out some of their energy. They love spending time with their grandparents, so it was a blast for them to spend this time with her.

Caleb and Trevor both have great imaginations. We had a random empty box, so they would each take turns being the dog while the other threw food to the dog in the box. Trevor was first and Caleb fed him hot dogs.

Caleb was whining for his food.

We got to break out the winter jammies on one of our cold nights.


BIG news....we closed on our house!! Tuesday, November 25th we signed a ton of papers, wrote a large check, and ate dinner to celebrate. We drove over to the house, hung out for awhile, then stayed the night on a pile of blankets. It wasn't the best sleep I've ever had, especially being 30 weeks pregnant, but we felt we had to! Caleb took the picture of Michael and I below....we were tired, but super happy. Michael even carried me across the threshold.

Caleb was sooooo excited about his new house!



The boys enjoyed playing soccer inside the empty living area.




I took some "before" pictures because Michael has already started demolishing the things we didn't like. Below is the wet bar that we felt was wasted space for us. Michael already tore this whole area down. Now, we just have to figure out what to do with the plumbing that is still standing in it's place.

This is our second living area. Notice the wall closer to the ceiling. It was cedar wood diagonally placed on the wall. Michael ripped all of this down to make room for the sheet rock we are going to put in it's place. The wall of cabinets we are going to paint a creamy color to brighten the room.

This is going to be Caleb and Trevor's room. Of course, we plan to paint and take the princess ceiling fan down. When Caleb first saw it, he said, "Yuck, look at all this girl stuff."

Caleb is such a helpful big brother. Sometimes too helpful, and Trevor yells at him and says, "I can do it myself!" When Trevor asked for help with his jammies, Caleb naturally offered his assistance.

I really wanted to do the Dallas YMCA turkey trot this year, so Michael reluctantly agreed. It is not his ideal relaxing holiday experience, but he wanted to do it for me. The boys were both excited, so we got up early Thankgiving day and headed to Dallas to walk our 3 miles. After walking about 1/2 a mile to get to the actual race, we started almost immediately. I knew this was going to be a big event, but I was not prepared for the crowd! After 10 minutes of barely moving (and starting to feel very claustrophobic) we saw an opportunity to escape and we took it! It was a little disappointing, but I got over it after we walked the other 1/2 mile back to the car.

These are our family pics. on our way to the race.

The boys running to get to the race on time.

Making our way to the start.

After we left Dallas, we headed to east Texas to my grandma's house. She always makes a yummy Thanksgiving feast. We all ate too much, but got to enjoy time together before coming back home.

Here is Trevor getting tickled by Daddy.

Uncle Dustin took care of tickling Caleb.

We drove back to Irving to the Meierhofer Thanksgiving. I cooked a yummy apple pie, sweet potato casserole, and a small ham. Libby cooked a turkey, stuffing, mash potatoes, gravy, and some pies. Amy brought pumpkin pecan pie and green bean casserole. We had way more food than any of us could eat, but it was great. We spent the evening hanging out and going to bed early.

Michael wanted to get a lot done at the house over the weekend since he doesn't get a lot of free time to do stuff like that, so we spent most of our time after Thanksgiving over there. My mom and I did the crazy Black Friday morning shopping. We started at Kohl's at 4:00 in the morning and ended at Home Depot by 8:00. I was exhausted, but got lots of good gifts!

While Daddy worked at the new house, Caleb got to eat lunch on the fire place due to our lack of seating.

You can see all the cedar wood laying on the floor in front of Caleb. Michael also pulled up the carpet in the living areas and hallway so we can put down hardwood floors in a few weeks.

We could barely keep Trevor off of the ladder. He also loved wearing Daddy's flashlight on his head.

Michael is making progress!!

The boys have already spent many hours in our new back yard. They raked leaves and jumped in them, picked up sticks, played in the new big shed. It is one of my favorite parts of the house.

I took the boys back to Grandma and Grandpa's so Michael could get some work done without distractions. Caleb couldn't wait to help Grandma decorate the tree. He loved using the ladder and getting to choose where to put the decorations.

We are definitely thankful for all of our blessings. Mostly for God and His love, but also for our wonderful family and friends. I asked Caleb what he is thankful for and he said toys, food, and his family. Trevor said he is thankful for mommy, daddy, and Caleb. I am so thankful for my kids, they have brought such joy to my life and the lives of those around them. My husband is amazing. He is kind and generous, hard-working and loving. I am thankful my mom is trying to change her life, and only hope that she can be successful with this try at her recovery. I am thankful for the chance to stay home with my boys when little Luke arrives. So much to be thankful for...

We hope to move into our house soon after we finish the renovations, paint all the rooms, and install the new flooring. I would really like to spend Christmas in the house, but don't want to pressure my hubby too much.

We hope everyone has something to be thankful for and can remeber what matters most. It seems I have heard many sermons on what matters most, and that monetary gain and material things are temporary, and what we need to focus on is our relationship with God and spreading His word and His love throughout the world. My prayer is that we all can remember that.

Why can't mommy be the hero?

Do you ever feel like you do so much for your family and sometimes it just goes unnoticed?? I know my boys love me and appreciate me, but they are BOYS. God made man and woman so differently.

I went on my mini vacation to Austin, and had a lot of fun. When I got there I met my friend Nicole out for dinner at the Kona Grill. Nicole and I worked together for six years and we have kiddos around the same age (she has two girls), so we had a great time catching up since we haven't really gotten a chance to see much of each other since she moved to Austin this past summer. I headed over to Kristi's house afterwards. Kristi is my wonderful friend that I lived with in high school. We've known each other since sixth grade. She's been living in Austin the past several years, so we don't see each other as often as I'd like. We stayed up way past our normal bed-times, since we are both pregnant and lacking energy to catch up on everything. Saturday morning Kristi was sweet enough to cook us french toast before we headed into Georgetown for massages and pedicures. AMAZING is the word that comes to mind. Definitely the best massage of my life. One of the best parts was getting to actually lay down on my belly while nestled into all the pillows. We had a quick lunch, went shopping, then headed back to Kristi's house. We had a great time, but I wanted to get back on the road before it got late. We had our Meierhofer family pictures (all 14 of us) in the morning and I wanted to see the boys before they went to bed.

By the time I got home it was 7:00. Michael had kept the boys up late the night before and they were cranky and barely said hello. I was pretty exhausted from all the driving and feeling very emotional (hormonal). It's a little different coming home anyway where both Grandparents are there and Aunt Sarah is coming over with her cool friends. I was so sad, so Michael took me to dinner and even offered to let me shop to make me feel better. The boys rarely get a chance to miss me because I hardly leave their sides, but now I know they are fine without me and I need to make more time for myself. Michael says they (including himself) need me and our family wouldn't be the same if I didn't do all the little things that mommies are supposed to do. I know this, but sometimes I want to be the hero like daddy. EVERYTIME he walks in the door they cheer and scream for him....I guess that is not my role in our family, but every once in awhile I wish it was. When I really think about it though, I am happy just the way things are!

I did catch some quality time with the boys over the weekend! Caleb got to bring Teddy home from school, which is one of the things his reading teacher does to promote literacy. Every child in the class gets to take Teddy home, take pictures, and write about what they did with him. The first thing Caleb wanted to do was put one of his shirts and a pair of his underwear on Teddy!

Trevor running around the house in Daddy's hard hat.


Caleb is changing Trevor's diaper. We are preparing him for all the diaper changes he claims he is going to assist me with when the baby arrives.



Trevor putting his socks on his hands. He loves to do this and then sing songs.

Caleb reading magazines with Grandma Sandra. He is really getting attached to her.

This is how Trevor chose to watch Veggietales the other night. He had on Caleb's socks and bike helmet along with his pajama pants. Priceless.

I love my boys (that includes Michael). I am a lucky woman and God had blessed me with an amazing gift to be their mom/wife. I pray that I can treasure every second of it, even the difficult one's.

Busy week

This past week has been such a busy week. Last Saturday I drove out to Wills Point for my good friend Amanda's baby shower. She is a friend from high school, and she is due January 24th with her first baby...a boy that she plans to name Gavin. It was a quiet drive, and good to have some alone time just to think. I drove back and met the boys and Michael at Sarah's soccer game. It is always intense because they want to run around and play soccer too, but we all had fun. On Sunday we met up with the boys' friend Baylie and her parent's Kellie and Jared to see Madagascar 2. It was a cute movie, and it was very nice because all of the kids sat still and quiet the entire time. We got to be lazy and just enjoy family time the rest of the day.
Monday's are always crazy around our house because the boys both go to school, it is one of the two days that I work, and Michael always works really long hours after enjoying the weekend with us. The boys love their school, so it is always an exciting day for them. Although I am so ready to be able to stay home full-time, work isn't too bad since I only work the two days the boys are in school and a few hours from home. Michael surprised us by coming home early on Monday...that's always a great surprise.
On Tuesday we took Caleb to his reading class, played at the playground, and came home for lunch. The boys both took a nap! This rarely happens anymore because Caleb is too stubborn and getting kind of old for a nap, but he was tired this day so I got to relax while they slept. When they woke up, we headed over to our friends' Brad and Kristen's house. The boys love playing with Kennedy, and even spending time with Kylie. We had a pre-Thankgiving meal with ham, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, pumkin cheesecake, and apple pie. It was yummy. We stayed the night after eating way too much food.
Wednesday--Kristen was sweet enough to watch the boys while I got my hair cut. I cut more than I thought I would, especially with my growing body! I love it though. I really need something different. When I got back to Kristen's we went to Stonebriar mall and I picked out new bedding for the boys from Pottery Barn Kids. They had a great sale (I spent what I was going to at Target, but got something I liked way better). We let the kid play on the carousel, the indoor playground, and ate lunch at Chick fil a. They all had fun, but everyone was very tired by the time we left.
Thursday is the boys other school day and my other work day, so that pretty much took up most of our day. They are always worn out by the time we get home, so the evening is usually pretty laid back. Caleb looked at magazine with Grandma Sandra while Trevor played with Grandma Libby and watched t.v.
Today, Michael let me sleep in. That means so much to me because it hardly ever happens and I feel like I need it more and more these days. Once I got up we went to eat at IHOP. It was yummy. We got home, Michael went to work and the boys and I played outside for awhile. We went to the bank and sang songs the whole way. The boys both love music so much. We ate a simple lunch and laid Trevor down for a nap. I am about to leave for my first girls trip in forever. I am going to visit my friends' Kristi and Nicole in Austin. Kristi is also pregnant so we are going to the spa in the morning to have prenatal massages. I am excited, but dreading the drive by myself. Sorry if this bores anyone reading this. I decided I want to keep up with what happens in our lives on a daily basis better so the boys can look back on this and remember what life was like when they were little.

The Trevor quiz

What is something mommy always says to you? Sorry
What makes mommy happy? God
What makes mommy sad? cry
How does your mommy make you laugh? smile
What was your mommy like as a child? bigger
How old is your mommy? 21
How tall is your mommy? bigger
What is her favorite thing to do? puzzle
What does your mommy do when you are not around? go home
If mommy becomes famous, what will it be for? swimming
What is your mommy good at? jumping
What is mommy not good at? Mommy can do everything
What does your mommy do for her job? write
What is your mommy's favorite thing to eat? cinnamon toast
What makes you proud of your mommy? cutie-pie
If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? duckie
What do you and your mommy do together? play
How are you and your mommy the same? We're two
How are you and your mommy different? No
How do you know your mommy loves you? kisses

It is awesome to see the different perspectives between a five year old and a two year old. Some of the questions Trevor didn't quite understand, but he gave an answer that somewhat made sense anyway. I love my boys!

The Caleb quiz

I stole this from Rebecca's blog. Caleb had some interesting things to say!

What is something mommy always says to you? I love you
What make mommy happy? taking pictures
What makes mommy sad? when Caleb gets in trouble
How does your mommy make you laugh? by telling jokes
What was your mommy like as a child? silly
How old is your mommy? 29
How tall is your mommy? 50 ft.
What is her favorite thing to do? go outside and play
What does your mommy do when you are not around? clean dishes
If your mommy becomes famous, what will it be for? because she is so helpful
What is your mommy really good at? playing games
What is your mommy not very good at? building stuff
What does your mommy do for her job? work at school
What is your mommy's favorite food? steak, chicken wings, cherries
What makes you proud of your mommy? doing things that I want you to do
If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? Daphney on Scooby Doo
What do you and your mommy do together? clean
How are you and your mommy the same? if we were both girls
How are you and your mommy different? because you are a girl and I am a boy
How do you know your mommy loves you? because you are my snuggle bug and you love me so much

Hunting with Daddy and Grandpa

Last Thursday Michael decided it was time to take Caleb hunting with Grandpa. I was nervous for safety reasons, but I knew Caleb would have a great time and Michael would be careful with our boy. As soon as Caleb woke up Thursday morning all he could talk about was going hunting. He told all of his teachers and friends at school he was going hunting later that day. When we got home we packed him up and the boys were on the road. They got there late Thursday evening, but got to hunt all day Friday. Michael and Grandpa said Caleb wanted to do EVERYTHING they did. He had no fear, and Grandpa said he even pulled the feathers off of a dead bird and then started cleaning the guts out as well. Nice! Even though some of the grass was as tall as Caleb, it didn't slow him down. Daddy and Grandpa were impressed with Caleb's already growing love for hunting. Michael let Caleb use the bb gun, and even the bigger gun that Caleb called a push back gun (Michael helped him hold it under his arm while Caleb shot). Our hunter boy and his dead bird.

Taking a break with Dad.
Daddy, Caleb, and Grandpa (hunting buds).

This was a special trip for the guys. It makes me feel like Caleb is growing up too fast, but so happy to see him bonding with his Dad and Grandpa in a way that we will never have. Michael said Caleb was talking about how he looked cute in his hunting clothes--now that's from Mommy. Caleb can't wait for his next hunting trip!!

25 weeks

I am now 27 and 1/2 weeks pregnant, but I took this picture a couple of weeks ago. I have to say this has been a wonderful pregnancy. Many times I haven't felt pregnant, but now that I am heading into the third trimest I am getting bigger and feeling more and more pregnant. It is officially a boy! We are 90% sure that his name will be Lucas Joseph Meierhofer and that we will probably call him Luke. I have gained 20 pounds so far, and my doctor says I am measuring a little small, but that is typical for someone with a small frame like mine (I love my doctor)! I feel healthy and am just looking forward to Feb. 5 when we get to meet the newest addition to our growing family!!

Fall fun

We have had a fun filled couple of weeks. In the middle of the past few weeks I got a virus, so didn't feel up to blogging so this is my catch up blog!! We started Halloween week off by going to the pumpkin patch. We went to the Argyle Pumpkin Express. It was a lot of fun. They have a train that takes you around the whole pumpkin patch to get you started. Trevor (Mr. Sensitive) needed Daddy to hold him, while Caleb (Mr. Independent) had to sit by himself.Once inside the patch we went straight to the hot dog stand to eat lunch.

Caleb is my picture taker. He'll say, "Mom, we need to take a picture." Then, he will pose while he waits for me to snap away. I am sure this will change, but it is nice to have one kid be willing to let me take pictures of him.


Trevor wasn't too excited at first....

He had a few meltdowns (hence the name Mr. Sensitive).

He eventually warmed up. He kept saying everything was "spooky."





Caleb loved every minute of it.



The boys took a picture with Mommy and their future little brother.

They had this really neat maze made of hay. Caleb went through it about 10 times before we had to drag him out to head home.

Here the boys are imitating the silly pumpkin.

Caleb had to take one last picture with all the pumkins.

This is the boys at Aunt Sarah's soccer game. Since we've been staying with Mike and Libby we've kept up with Sarah's schedule well enough to make it to many of her games. The boys love watching her play and so do we!

One night before bed we carved pumpkins with Daddy.

Trevor is concentrating very hard on drawing his pumkin's face. He actually just draws lines and circles right now, but he loves to draw.

Caleb spends a lot of his time drawing, coloring, and doing his "homework" (he calls any writing that he does his homework). He made a great jack-o-lantern.

After the boys were all done with their drawing Daddy carved them and we put them outside.

The boys both got to wear their costumes to school. They chose to be Batman and Robin. I thought they were adorable!

On Halloween night we went trick-or-treating with Ava and Elizabeth. They had such a great time trick-or-treating with their cousins who dressed up as Allison in Wonderland and the Chesire cat (so cute). We ate dinner at a yummy pizza place in their neighborhood together before heading out to get tons of candy.

Allison, Batman, Cheshire cat, and Robin

Trevor was so excited at first. He was chasing the big kids as fast as he could go.

They were all being so polite saying, "trick-or-treat," "thank you," and "happy halloween."

Then, Trevor took a nose dive into the pavement and had to take a break.

Batman got hot and sweaty, so he had to take off his mask for a little while.

Grandma was sweet to push Elizabeth and Trevor around in the stroller.

Trevor decided it was time for his second round so we took a break to tie his shoes.

All four of the kiddos...they were having so much fun.

Batman and Robin to the rescue. Caleb can be such a sweet brother (when he wants to be).

Aren't they cute?

Last house of the night for treats--Uncle Adam and Aunt Brandy's house.

Grandma with all the kiddos. It was a really great Halloween. We are so glad we got to share it with our neices, Adam, Brandy, and Grandma. Thank you to Adam and Brandy for inviting us to share in your holiday fun!

Miss Debby was sweet enough to invite us to her new home in Gainesville. It has only been a few months since Miss Debby quit keeping the boys on a weekly basis. They both love her and miss seeing her all the time. We went to her house and met up with Baylie (she was at Miss Debby's the entire time that Caleb was), her parents, and Miss Debby and her daughter Sarah. From there, we took off for the local zoo.

Here Miss Debby is helping Trevor feed some of the animals.

This was definitely one of Caleb and Trevor's favorite parts of the day.

They had a little train that the kids rode on with their Daddy's. Caleb was so excited!

Trevor had to sit with Daddy before the train took off. He is our cautious boy! He loves to give Daddy fives as hard as he can.

Trevor is also known as "crazy hair." He is playing on the playground outside the zoo area. It was huge! I think it was one of the neatest play areas I have ever seen.

It has been a great start to fall for us. Family and friends are the most important part of our lives after God, and we feel so lucky to spend so much time with the people we care about. One day last week we even went with Daddy to work....the boys and I can never get enough time with Daddy. He works so hard, so we decided to make a road trip with him to Waco. We drove down there, went to Home Depot, ate lunch, and dropped Daddy off. The boys and I went shopping for a little while, drove down by the lake, got some ice cream, and went back while Caleb played Daddy's helper and Trevor and I sang songs in the car. We were exhausted, but stopped off for dinner and then headed home. We were so glad to have that time with Michael. It was such a simple, but special day. We also put an offer on a house. With a few counter-offers between us and the seller, we now have a closing date on a house in Colleyville. We are so excited and plan to close Dec. 1st and do about a weeks worth of work before we move in sometime the second week in December!! I will post before and after pictures when the house becomes OURS. We are so blessed, and so thankful for everything!