Ben's 1st Hunt

Ben went on his first hunting trip over the Labor Day weekend. Randy hosted some family and co-workers for a dove hunt at one of the family ranches in Yancey, Texas. Ben was SO excited to go! Randy got him camo to wear and Gran gave him a BB gun! (Well, let him borrow his 1st BB gun. The BB gun was given to Gran when he was 6 years old!) Ben had a great time. Randy said he talked the whole time while hunting (no surprise there!), but had a great time. Since then, Randy and Ben have been watching hunting shows on Saturday and Sunday morning. Ben is looking forward to deer season! :-)

Playdate with Leslie and boys

I hosted another DS playdate on August 31st. Stephanie and Mary Ann were supposed to attend also, but at the last minute they were both unable to attend for various reasons. Leslie and I had a great time together. I was able to meet her newest little boy, David Wallace Eden. He is such a good baby! Happy, content, sweet, and beautiful. Ben, Tyler and Logan had a good time playing together. I had two different inflatable pools set up, a slip-n-slide, and a splash rocket for them to play with. While the kids played, Leslie and I got to catch up on the news of our families. Leslie is a kindred spirit, and when we get together, our conversation is easy and comforting. I loved having her and her sweet boys at our home. I hope we get to see each other again very soon!

Brotherly Love

With 2 boys, every day is different.

You never know if they will love each other, or pick on each other.

On this day, it was love.

First Day of School

Two weeks ago, Ben and Logan started their new school year at Parkhills Baptist Preschool. Logan is in the toddler room and Ben is in one of the Pre-K classes. Both boys are doing great. They love their new rooms, teachers, friends, etc. Ben is so confident, walks into his classroom without a hitch, puts his things away...all the while I am still at the door, wanting him to come back and give me a kiss! Such a big boy now... And last week, Logan didn't even cry when I dropped him off at his room. His teachers have told me that he is the most agreeable, friendly, fun kid! :-) Here is a cute picture before leaving for school, on the first day.

Playroom Mural

When Randy and I were trying to figure out a theme for the boys' playroom mural, we asked ourselves, "what do Logan and Ben love to play with?". Dinosaurs and Trains, of course! So the playroom now has a "Dinosaur Train" theme. For those mothers out there, whose children love to watch the PBS show, Dinosaur Train, we did not copy, nor did I want the playroom to look like the TV show---nothing wrong with the show; my kids love watching that show; we just wanted something authentic from Kimberly. And she did an awesome job!!! The boys love their new playroom and we have gotten so many compliments from friends, family, etc. Kimberly went above and beyond and really did this room right! It's fabulous!

Every train has to have a station, right?


Kimberly was so creative. The playroom has a large window ledge, and she incorporated the ledge into the mountain range, making a train tunnel! Love it!

The "main" wall of the playroom, that has always stayed pretty empty (of storage bins, etc), and was used to really incorporate a lot of dinosaurs and train-related aspects of the mural. This wall was painted all the way to the floor and will remain open so the kids can enjoy the mural.

Of course, there had to be a Spinosaurus---Ben's favorite dinosaur!And some pteranodons flying throughout the room...And a stegosaurus...Kimberly even had the creative idea to paint the plain black clock that was hung in the playroom and incorporate it into the "sun" for the mural. Great idea!

A completed look at the playroom! (If it only stayed this clean...)

Here is Kimberly with her muses. :-) The boys and I loved having her stay with us for a week. Kimberly and I had wonderful conversation and got to catch up on everything in our lives. We talked of old times: happy, sad, and the in-between. Kimberly and I hadn't seen each other in about 4 years, but it seemed no time had past at all. We grew up as sisters, and still feel that way today. Thanks for coming Kimberly and we hope you can come down to San Antonio again real soon! (But this time, you have to bring Steve with you, okay?) :-) We love you and love all the murals! You did a fantastic job!

Nursery Mural

Here are the long-awaited photos of the murals that were painted by my cousin Kimberly in nursery. I am so happy with how everything turned out. By the little information I gave her about what I wanted, she painted exactly what I envisioned!

She painted some grasses and cute bugs under Logan's big window seat. Cute little grasshopper...
And buzzy bee...
And sweet ladybug!

There is even a whimiscal "itsy bitsy" spider in his window!

Then around his book rack, there is a butterfly, a "bookworm" inching his way up the book rack, and some friendly ants and their ant mound underneath. So cute!


By far, the main attraction to the room, is the large tree she painted by Logan's crib. It is the perfect color, size, shape, etc---exactly what I wanted! The tree is sprawling, and really beautiful. I smile every time I go into Logan's room.
I told Kimberly that I wanted a single blue bird in the tree. Yes, I know it is not representative of a real blue bird, because it does not have a red colored breast---but I wanted a sweet, quiet, blue bird---and she did it! Everything is perfect---and we are so happy with the way the nursery turned out. Logan loves looking and pointed at his bugs, worm, and bird (he even does the sign for bird when pointing at the bird now!). Thank you Kimberly! We love it!!

Labor Day Reunion

For Labor Day, the Rees family reunited for a weekend bar-b-que at my parent's house. My cousin Kimberly was in town all week---to visit, and to paint some fabulous murals in the kids' playroom and in the nursery. (Pictures of the murals to follow in a subsequent post!) So, when word got out that Kimberly was in town, the family flocked to San Antonio to see her! We had a good 'ole Texas bar-b-que to welcome her back to Texas (she has lived in Atlanta for several years now). We all had a great time visiting, talking of old times, and sharing our lives with each other. Here are some photos of the wonderful day.

The Big Group shot:
(back row: Jenny, Kimberly, Uncle Dick, Aunt Melinda, Michael, Randy, Kristen
middle row: Ryan, Deanna, baby James, Bill, Ben; front row: Jack, Becca, Logan)


The Rees cousins!---Kimberly, myself, Ryan, and Michael
(We were missing: Laura Lea, Win, Heather, Kelley, Kara, and Angela)

My parents with all of their grandbabies:

Becca (5), Logan (22 mos), Ben (4 1/2), James (5 mos), and Jack (8).

Me, getting some "sweet baby" lovin'. (Doesn't he look thrilled that I am smothering him with smooches?) ;-)

My sweet baby and his corny smile.

Jack and Logan, crawling through the window (aka. doggie door) at Mimi and Gran's.

Kimberly, myself and Becca