Layne is 4 today. His birth story is pretty boring (compared to Anna's). I went in for a scheduled c-section on Tuesday, Dec. 30 and had him around 8:30 that morning. He was 8 pounds, 8 ounces. We came home on Thursday, New Years Day. He is such a sweet, tender-hearted little boy. He loves playing with his sister, anything from CARS movie, and playing football in the living room. His favorite food is cheese dip and chips. He would survive off of just that if we let him!! We love you Layne and are very blessed to have you as a son and brother!!

We are back from our trip to Arkansas. Our trip started on Friday. We went to my mom and dads in Rison, Arkansas. On Saturday, my sister, brother, and their families all came into town. There were a total of 15 of us there. 8 adults and 7 kids. It is getting scary b/c the kids are about to outnumber the adults!! Everyone stayed until Monday morning and then it was just our family with mom and dad Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. They enjoyed helping us play "Santa". On Christmas day we traveled to Little Rock to my brother's home (Russ & Tenille). They were so sweet to invite all of us b/c she has a 2 week old baby (who is just precious!!). They had a feast! We came back to Texas on Wednesday. We will have Christmas with Ken's mom this weekend. We had an awesome time and thanks to everyone for all of the thoughtful gifts. We are so blessed.

MyHeritage: Celebrity Collage - Pedigree chart

I thought this was interesting. I know that Anna looks alot like me (just look at pics of me when I was her age), but I don't normally gets comments about Layne. Ken is demanding DNA tests!! This is the kind of stuff I do when I get overwhelmed with lots of things to do around the house. We are leaving tomorrow for Arkansas and I have a million things to do, but look at me. I am messing with a "look-a-like meter"!!
MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy - Celebrities - Collage - Morph

Anna had her kindergarten music program on Friday. She was very excited about it because she loves to sing. I think they have been working on it since the first day of school because we have been singing the songs around the house for a very long time. The theme was "Christmas Around the World". They sung traditional Christian songs as well as songs about Hanukkah and Kwanza. Anna wanted to know why we were not celebrating Hanukkah. I had to explain to her that we were not Jewish.

She had her last YMCA basketball game on Saturday. Poor thing...a little boy tried to pass the ball to her and do you know what she did? She ducked her head and put her hands over her eyes. She acted as if he was throwing a snowball at her. She really had no clue during the entire basketball run, but SHE HAD FUN and that's all that matters!!! It was very entertaining to say the least. I have a feeling that one of these days she is going to look back on the videos of her early basketball days and get a real kick out of it. The last picture is of the kids after church on Sunday. I always have to get a shot in front of the tree.

I took this to a Christmas party the other night and several wanted the recipe. Thought I would share with the blog world.

2 cans shoepeg corn, drained
1 can rotel, drained
8 oz cream cheese
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. garlic salt

Place corn, rotel, and cream cheese in microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 3 minutes or until cheese is melted. Stir in spices. Serve warm or room temperature. I like it with Fritos.

Here's the kids Christmas lists:

Anna:
Baby Born doll
Musical Keyboard
Island Princess Barbie doll
Art stuff

Layne:
CARS Mack Trailer Play Set
Football
Cranky the Crane (Thomas the Train)
Remote Controlled Lightning McQueen

Tonight we are going as a family to Dollar Tree. The kids are going to pick out a gift for each other and me and Ken. They are so excited about it. Anna is really looking forward to wrapping her gifts. Here's a couple of recent photos.

My brother and his wife (Russ & Tenille) just had their second baby on Friday. Her middle name is after my sweet grandmother. She weighed 5'3". They just came home today and updated their blog with pictures. You can check them out here. That makes 7 grandkids for my mom and dad (Anna who is 6, is the oldest...lots of little ones!). Congrats Russ, Tenille, & Lexi!!

Anna's tooth was very loose before we left on our trip to Nebraska. Wouldn't you know that she lost her first tooth while we were away! She was so excited because lots of her friends are beginning to lose their teeth. The tooth fairy was very generous to her (she was at grandma's house) and left her $10. Of course I told her that the tooth fairy always leaves more money for the first tooth than any of the others. :) Now, another one of her bottom teeth is loose. I am surprised it has not popped out as much as she messes with it!!

I love how God sends you messages just when you need them. Yesterday I was kindof pouting around because Ken had recruits in town and I really needed his help with the kids. I started to get frustrated when I realized he has not had one day off since Aug. 7. Yes, that's correct. NOT ONE DAY OFF IN 117 DAYS.

Well, today this article was in the Dallas Morning News. It is about Ken's quarterback and his story. When I read it I knew God was telling me that this is what it is all about. We are in football to change mens lives...and winning is good too. :) So as I write this, Ken is with his recruits, but I know he is making an impact on their lives in so many ways. Here's the article:

Billy Don Malone doesn't introduce himself with the three-pronged version of his name anymore, so when he hears it, he can tell how long you've known him. If you'd seen him playing football in Paris, under the lip of Oklahoma, you'd have sworn Billy Don was headed for the big time. Everybody wanted him coming out of high school, and why not? He passed for 3,500 yards and 33 touchdowns his last two seasons. A big,strong country kid, the next Billy Joe Tolliver, he committed to Texas in the fall of 2001. But so did a quarterback named Vince Young. Malone suddenly developed second thoughts.

He considered several options before settling on Tulane, where his brother, Gary, a wide receiver, would accompany him. But Malone never played a down for the Green Wave. After a redshirt season behind J.P. Losman, Malone, thinking he had acid reflux, underwent a stress test that turned up a kink in an artery. Doctors told him he not only couldn't play anymore, he shouldn't even jog.

Devastated, Malone left New Orleans and went back home to Paris. Hung out on a dairy farm. Cut hay and fixed fences and de-horned cows. And he figured he'd never play football again. "If I saw anybody playing, I'd say, 'Look at a bunch of kids playing with a ball,' " he said. "I was just trying to make fun of it, because I thought I couldn't do it anymore."

He got married and had a kid. Enrolled at Texas A&M-Commerce. Just getting on with his life when a former coach called from West Texas. Told him to get his tail out to Abilene Christian, an NCAA Division II school. "All right," Malone said.

He looked a little rusty his first season, which can happen after laying out of football for four years. But he sure warmed up. Last year, he passed for more yards than any ACU quarterback since Clint Longley and led the Wildcats to their first postseason appearance in 30 years. This season -- which just ended in the second round with an improbable 76-73 triple-overtime loss to Chadron State in Nebraska -- he trashed the record books.

Under third-year coach Chris Thomsen and offensive coordinator Ken Collums, the Wildcats set or tied 82 NCAA, Lone Star Conference and ACU records, including the score of their last game. ACU also became the first school in NCAA history to field a 3,500-yard passer, 2,000-yard rusher and a pair of 1,000-yard receivers, all in one season. Get this: All four will be back next season, including Malone, who, at 6-3, 235 pounds, turns 25 in April.

The blip on his stress test at Tulane? He's had two more tests since, and neither revealed any problems. But he's not bitter about what happened. Had he stayed at Tulane, he figures he wouldn't be who he is now.

"When Coach Collums called me about playing here, I was talking about going to the NFL," Malone said, "and he told me the most important thing was relationships." He had no idea what his new coach was talking about. But he found out it wasn't just football. "These guys changed me," he said. "They're the best guys I've ever been around in my life."

Billy Malone, as they know him in Abilene, might be different from what the locals remember back in Paris. He may or may not be headed for the big time anymore. Either way, nothing matters to him as much as how he'll get there. In his case, it was the long road. "This," he said, "is way better."

Well, we lost in a heartbreaker. 3 overtimes, 76-73. I still can't believe it. What a weekend. It started on Friday. We left Abilene Friday afternoon and flew into Rapid City, SD. Me and three other coach's wives rented a car (which ended up being upgraded to a truck-thank goodness. I don't think we could have put all of our luggage into the trunk of a car). We drove about 30 miles to Mt. Rushmore. It was really beautiful. We went on a short walking trail and by the time we were finished, it was dark. It got dark there around 4:30. Since our stomachs thought it was 5:30 (time change), we went off to find something for dinner. There was really only one place open in the little tourist town. It was a pizza joint and it was very good.

We left Keystone and headed to Chadron, NE. It was a two-hour drive with literally nothing in between. We got turned around once and ended up in a small town. While we were driving through the downtown area, a huge buck deer crossed the road. We couldn't believe it. I tried to get a picture, but I couldn't figure out how to take a photo of a moving animal in the dark.

We got to Chadron around 8:30. We got up the next morning and decided we would leave for the game around 10:30. The game didn't start until noon, but we didn't want to get there before 11:30 b/c we thought we would be freezing. We left the hotel and drove around the town and decided to check out the stadium. We drove by at 10:45 and that place was packed!! We decided to just park and eat at the game. I ended up having way too many layers on and took off several before the game even started. It was a beautiful afternoon. The weather there was actually better than in Abilene. I am not even going to post about the game except to say that it sucked!!!

After the game, we took off to Rapid City to catch our plane back to Abilene. Wouldn't you know that because of bad weather in Abilene, the plane could not land here, so we had to land in Dallas-Love Field. Charter buses meet us at the airport and were going to take us back to Abilene (2 1/2 hr bus ride). We left the airport around 11:30 and our bus driver was absolutely horrible. He had no idea how to work the defrost (Ken had to stand beside him and wipe off the windshield every 30 sec) and a compartment on the bus kept flying open. He even tried to get it to stay down with tape!! I was a nervous wreck on that bus. There were cars dodging us left and right. The AD on the bus decided that this driver and the bus we were on were not going to be able to get us to Abilene safely, so we stayed the night in Weatherford. I got into my hotel room Sunday morning at 2:15am. We left a few hours later at 10. We finally got back into Abilene around noon and guess what? Snowing again in Abilene.

Jackie (Ken's mom) still had the kids and we had to meet her that afternoon to pick them up. The snow was much worse north of Abilene (where we met) and we did not get back into town until 6 pm. I was so glad to be back home and really glad when I slept in my own bed last night. Football season is over...wow.

Well, tomorrow I am meeting my mother in law, Jackie, and she will be keeping the kids until Sunday. I am getting to ride the charter plane with the team to the playoff game. We will leave around 3 on Thursday and arrive in Rapid City, SD. We will spend the night there and then head to Nebraska on Friday. It is around a two hour drive and we will see Mt. Rushmore on the way! Me and three other coach's wives will be renting a car so we can do our own thing. You may listen to the game via this website. Kickoff is at 12 noon (1:00 our time) on Saturday. We will arrive back in Abilene late Saturday night. Please pray for safe travel.

We beat Mesa State today 56-12. So, next week we play Chadron State in Chadron, NE. We are in the sweet sixteen! I just looked at the forecast for Chadron and the high on Saturday is 41. I need to start looking for all of my warm clothes (and maybe even buy some new things :)

We just found out that ACU made it to the NCAA Division 2 Playoffs. We ended up being ranked #4 in our region, so that means we will HOST THE GAME!!! I am really excited about that part because I would have had to find childcare for my kids if it was a road game. We won our game yesterday 42-41. It was one of those nailbiters. I can't handle too many more of those! You can read more about yesterdays game here.

That's the name of Anna's basketball team. She had her first YMCA game yesterday. I didn't even know they had a league for kids her age, and even if I did I probably would not have signed her up. But, a mom of a little boy in her class called me and asked if Anna would be on her team (she is the coach). She was trying to get a team together of kids at their school and in their class. The team consists of 11 children (6 boys and 5 girls). Six of the kids are in her kindergarten class. Can I just say that the game yesterday was one of the most entertaining events I have witnessed in awhile. Imagine 5 and 6 year olds playing basketball without really any rules. There were some boys actually tackling others to get the basketball. Poor Anna never had a chance. Each time she touched the ball (twice) a little boy would just come over and grab it out of her hands. I told Ken that we really need to explain the game a little bit to her, b/c she basically stayed at the half court mark and jumped around with her hands up in the air. It was the cutest thing ever!! After the game she said she was playing defense. Some of the little boys were pretty good. You can tell they have played on the playground or have attended basketball camps. Only 5 more games to go!! Anna is #4.

I got a phone call yesterday while I was at work. Layne's teacher called and said he was sick. She said he threw up at snack time. Those of you that know Layne know that he is one of those kids who vomits all of the time. He has reflux along with a very sensitive gag reflex, so throw up is pretty normal around our house. So, as I was going to get him, I thought this was just another one of his episodes. Well, when I got to his preschool, he was asleep on a restmat while all of the other kids were on the playground. His teacher told me about his vomiting incident and also said that he had hit his head during their chapel time. Apparently him and another little boy got a little rough and this boy knocked Layne to the floor. She said that she didn't see him fall, but heard the "thump". This was immediately before snack time. My first thought was concussion. He had one in the spring (another story) and I knew what to look for. I went to wake him up and as soon as I did, he threw up again. I then asked him where he hurt and he replied "my head hurts".

When we left, I called our doctor's office and they told me to bring him in. Of course, on our way, Layne threw up again. Our doc looked at him and didn't think he needed a CT scan at this point. This was around noon and he said to call him back in a few hours with a report of how he was doing. On the way home he has another vomiting episode. We get home and he falls asleep. He sleeps for about 2 hours then I have to wake him up to go pick up Anna. He wakes up okay and I think he is over it. Well, wouldn't you know he throws up again. It's like he pukes everytime he moves around a little bit. This is around 3:00 and I leave a message for my doctor giving him an update. He calls back around 3:45 and says he is going to call a neurosurgeon and get his opinion on what to do. He calls me back around 4:15 and says they are in agreement that Layne needs a CT scan. They feel that he should not be showing symptoms four hours later. Layne was still just laying on the couch at this point. Not acting his normal self at all. I tell him it had been over an hour since he last vomited, but he really wanted to make sure everything was okay. The only way to do so was with the CT scan.

So, we have to go to the ER for this b/c of the time of day. By the time I figured out what to do with Anna, we got to the ER at 5:15. We didn't wait long at all in the waiting room, but the whole ordeal lasted 3 hours. Didn't get home until after 8 last night. The CT scan was clear (which we all thought it would be, be you never know for sure). I asked the ER doc why he has had two concussions is 6 months. Of course he didn't even answer my question. He replied with "you need to make sure he wears a helmet when on his bike and roller skates". I stated "that's not the problem, the problem is in everyday play!". By this point (around 7:30) I was too tired to argue and figured we would need to speak with a specialist anyway. He just reminded me that some kids are more sensitive to head trauma than others and once you have a concussion, you are more likely to have others. We are going to talk to our regular doc and see if this is something that needs to be addressed. Looks like no football for Layne in the future!!

As I mentioned in a previous post, we had Anna's birthday party last Friday night. We had lots of family come from Arkansas to Texas for the big event. The fun started on Tuesday when my parents arrived. On Thursday, my sister Rhonda, her husband, Scott, and their three children, Abigail (5), Brady (3), and Jackson (6 months) arrived just in time for lunch. Then that night, my sister-in-law, Tenille (my brother's wife), and my niece, Lexi, arrived at the airport. So, you guessed it, we had 13 people in the house! We had a great time. It was crazy and chaotic at times (especially with 6 kids) but barrels of fun. Oh, and Tenille is 32 weeks pregnant. Isn't she a trooper?!? Ken's mom and my niece, Jaci, drove in from Vernon for the tea party too. We were very busy with Anna's b-day party and the ACU game on Saturday.

Baby Jackson

Lexi, Abigail, Anna, & Jaci

The whole gang!! That's Brady with the blue cap on. I didn't get any pictures of the boys this weekend. What was I thinking? I just had my mind on tea parties!!

We had Anna's Birthday Party Friday night. It was a princess tea party and it was so cute!!! I was given a lady's name from a friend and she did such a great job with all of the decorations and food. We had 12 girls at the party!! They looked so adorable. They had finger sandwiches, fruit, veggies and dip, and party mix. They also had pink cupcakes. If you look closely, there is a small tiara on top of each one. She even brought a small pitcher or "tea pot" and Anna got to serve the girls their "tea". I had a high school girl, Kathleen, come and pretend to be a Barbie princess. She did awesome!! She facilitated a game like pin the tail on the donkey, but it was place the slipper on Cinderella's foot. At the end of the party all of the girls booked it to the backyard to play in all of their pretty dresses. It was so much fun!! Be sure and view the slideshow with the sound turned on, it has the perfect song to go with the theme!! Oh, I don't just have an empty room. That is normally the kids play area. We cleared everything out for the party. I still haven't put everything back in. I am going to organize as I put things back up. I need to thank all of my family who came and helped out so much. I could not have pulled it off without them. I'll post more later about who all stayed at the house (13 of us in all!!) It was a great birthday weekend!!

On Monday, I brought cupcakes to Anna's class to celebrate her special day (see previous post). The kids were so sweet and polite. Layne was excited b/c he got to sit at one of the big kid tables. Mrs. P even allowed the kids to sing "Happy Birthday" to Anna. She made it really special for her. Since it was Anna's birthday, she got to pick where she wanted to go for dinner Monday night. Of course she picked Chuck E Cheese. When we checked in I told them it was her birthday. They gave her a balloon, crown, and some tokens. While we were eating, Chuckie came over and sang "Happy Birthday" and they gave her an ice cream sandwich with a candle to blow out. When we got home, we had some of the cake that I made Anna. We were all on a sugar high!! We had a great day, but the "real" party is next week. I'll post more about it later.