Note's From The Edge Of Texas

three little minions playing in the tub...

2012-01-22T19:07:00.000-08:00

This just cracks me up...We have a shot of Jake hugging on Brock in the bathtub when Brock was Holt's age...now we have a great memory of all three at the same age as before...but wow...three little boys in the bathtub....it ROCKS!

Christmas...

2012-01-19T18:27:00.000-08:00

WAS AWESOME! Jake and Brock were sooooo into it...it was AWESOME!

Joe and the boys made cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve-eve...he came to visit us then and give us our stocking goodies at our house.
They put the cookies out at the fireplace and Jake made sure to take down all the stockings and open the flu and glass doors so that he could get in.

Santa came...delivered stocking goodies and then we packed up and made it down to Friendswood to do Christmas Eve with my brother's family and my parents.
Church, presents & our Hornberger tradition of breakfast for dinner on Christmas eve was perfect-o.

Then we spent the rest of Christmas with Mimi & Papi, Santa came to their house this year...we played, ran, walked dogs and did anything little boys like to do.
Holt was such a trooper and eventhough he STILL is not walking...he kept up, in the freezing weather and never complained in order to get to be out with his brothers.
It was another magical Christmas that we are so thankful for.

our little (or big) 4 year old

2012-01-12T08:32:00.000-08:00

This kids is growing like a weed.

All three of our boys are in the 80% and above in height and average in weight. This means they all were highwaters because the next size up in pants SWALLOWS them in the waist.
Joe told me the other day...
"you know...we need to really start to make more of an effort to make sure Jake looks good...I know we don't care if his pants are highwater, or his pant fall down to show his butt crack when he sits...but kids are MEAN, and we should at least try to help him out a little bit"
TRUTH.
So...if any of you have any ideas...because this boy's pants just don't fit.

Anywho...off of that tangent...
He is really starting to show his education and it is so fun.
He LOVES to put together puzzles...like LOVES!
He even has begun to take on the task of helping Brock do them too.
He LOVE to help with anything and everything now...and he is actually helping.
He loves to cook, help unpack, dress himself, buckle his own seatbelt, take a shower, unload the car, help in the yard, help with Holt, even trying to "carry him" but "he's so heavy, mom"
Ya, that's the other thing...with this independence...comes...well...independence...
He doesn't like to hold our hands much anymore.
He is starting to call me "mom" not "mommy" or "mama"
It is so bitter sweet.

He loves to talk. He counts all the buses that we pass. He tells me what he sees. He tells me how he feels. We have real awesome conversations about God and Jesus. I LOVE IT! I no longer feel like I am talking just to talk.
Pretty much, this kids, just like all of them, ROCKS!
I am soooo thankful God gave him to us as an older brother.
He is timid and insecure (to be expected) but when he does things he commits to them whole heartedly and does them all with such ease. It is awesome.
The prayers I have for this little man is to learn to be confident.
To be a leader.
To be brave, to know that God doesn't care what any other kids says or how they act, but it is him who decides how to respond.
To be strong...to work his hardest at all that he does, so that he doesn't have regrets.
And to be gentle and caring. To love those around us, even our enemies...something that I need to show a better example of myself.

What an amazing calling to be a parent. Never have I been so stretched, pushed, frustrated, rewarded, loved and humbled all at once in my whole entire life.
And I take advantage of this fact all the time...my prayer for me:
to remember how God GAVE us these boys because He thought we would do a good job raising them...sheesh...for real?
No pressure...
Thank you, Jesus for these lives...please protect them and raise them up to be old, old men who live a life of service, compassion, amazing examples of Christ's love and undying faith.

our little 1 year old

2012-01-03T17:30:00.001-08:00

It's official. We no longer have babies in our house. Our last little man, Holt, is growing up right before our eyes. Gosh what an amazing thing to get to raise up three boys. Every day I am just blown away by God giving me and Joe this task...and blown away even more whenever we mess up and these boys still love us and look up to us.

This year has been the hardest, by far. It's weird...the dynamic of going from two to three was not hard in our head because we already knew what to expect. But when it came down to it...the two to three is what definitely tipped the scales. Everything was running smooth until Holt became mobile...ever since then Joe and I have been running around with dark circle embedded under our eyes and the stress of the marriage has increased substantially within a years time...BUT...we would not trade any of it for anything...EVER.

Holt is amazing. He has been the most incredible baby, not only because of who he is, but by teaching his mom and dad so much more sacrifice and selflessness than I feel we have ever had to over come before.
Now that we are a year into his sweet life we can see so many incredible blessings that this year has brought as well as a "light" at the end of the tunnel.
A light that leads to Saturday AM cartoons, super fun exploratory trips and family vacations, bathing and dressing themselves, making their own meals...the list goes on and on...they say bigger kids, bigger problems...all I can say at this point is...BRING IT ON!

So here's some updates on the Holt-ster:
He is the chillest kid...even when it comes to getting up and walking.
He has no desire to do it...end of story.
So, he's either chill or really smart...get mom and dad and brothers to bring me everything...and I move so much better when crawling, so why not?
He walks around furniture like speedy Gonzales, but ask him to venture out...forget it.
However just within the past two days he has made some MAJOR strides in looking like he WANTS to try before dropping to his knees and racing off.
This kid can eat. He out eats both of his brothers combined at times. The problem we have had with the past two is making them eat....the problem we are having with Holt is that he won't stop...this should be interesting.
We have officially put away the bottles and the baby formula is off the grocery bills. However our refrigerator looks like a dairy locker. (whatever that is) Joe and I are trying to figure out where to fit a fridge in the garage so that we can actually keep these boys feed.
Turns out college can not be a concern for us...we just need to focus on getting them feed to actually live to see it.
He loves to "talk" And he's LOUD! It's awesome how he is trying to really interact with all of us...especially his brothers.
He LOVES to wrestle with the boys...he is all head too...head butts from Holt are a norm...the kid is FEARLESS!
He loves playing with his brothers in the sandbox or anywhere outside.
He loves balls and fetch...seriously...I feel bad sounding like he's a dog when I talk to him sometimes...but it's true.
He has a blankey that he ADORES. The smile on his face everytime he sees it is priceless!
So pretty much Holt ROCKS!!! We ADORE him! He is THE PERFECT fit to our family and we could not be any more thankful for his sweet little life.

huntin' for a Christmas tree

2011-12-28T19:04:00.000-08:00

It was another awesome year of Christmas tree farmin'. The only thing we were missing was Auntie...FOR SURE next year!!

Happy Birthday

2011-12-27T21:26:00.000-08:00

WOW! I understand 100% why the saying is:
Invite the number of kids for the number of years your kid is to their birthday party.
We blew that theory out of the water this year with INSANITY at The Hornberger House.
It was cold and rainy, which meant we could not be outside...booo...which meant about 20 kids INSIDE what I used to think was our big home. hahaha...
Jake and Holt had an amazing time. A bunch of kids from Jake's class came as well as some friends and neighbors, and we had lots of pizza, cake and some trucker fun.
All in all, it was a success. We are so thankful for the Rice kiddos and their help, Papi's homemade race cars and lots off awesome smiles and joy throughout it all!
It was TOTAL CHAIOS...Joe got swarmed by kids at the present opening...Holt had THE BEST look on his face while everyone was staring at him singing...and Jake's current "crush" Evie showed up to party with him...what could have topped this night?

Jake's trucker crack...

1 & 4

2011-12-19T23:21:00.000-08:00

I cannot even believe we have a 4 year old and that Holt is already one.

CRAZY!
It was a fun AM around here on December 2nd as we were actually able to get up to their rooms before they came out to sing and do the cupcake candle. Holt loved it...and Jake was pretty pumped about it too.
More to come on their party and their "isms" soon!

brock-isms

2011-12-05T20:33:00.000-08:00

This kid cracks us up EVERY SINGLE DAY.

This is Brock:

Leave it to him to put stocking on the way they are SUPPOSED to be put on.
He is such a character these days.
Sometimes he can be sooooo frustrating. He does not listen well...he likes to "take his own time". And totally does not ever understand how frustrated we are, nor does he care...he likes to take things nice and easy...sometimes I wonder if God is just trying to teach me to slow down from him? Who knows...
He is so serious...like his dad.
He is so silly...like his mom.
What a great mix he is...and what an amazing little boy he develops more and more into every day.
Some of the things he says lately:
"birbay cake": birthday cake (this is my favorite saying of his right now)
"crash and burn" (he learned this one from one of our football players)
"to the rescue": whenever he is in superhero mode.
He gives THE best hugs and kisses now.
He loves echoing Jake (and copying)
He is OBSESSED with all things "Thor, Ironman, The Hulk & Capan Merica (captain america)
He carries around about 8 of the figurines with him everywhere he goes.
Joe even found him this AM on the top of the stairs at 6:45 in his Thor outfit...
He knows that there are TWO DIFFERENT batman's (in SLIGHTLY different positions) and if he loses one...oh no!
He still loves his blah-blah's
He is a BRUT with Holt (poor kid)
He loves to put his finger in his nose.
He is the ONLY one of our boys that will fall asleep in the car...well anywhere for that matter.
He LOVES to play with his brothers
He LOVES all things sports
He runs with his elbows out and twists at his waist, and it is THE cutest run I have ever seen.
He loves to just walk around in his own world just shrugging his shoulders...
He pretty much just LOVES to be in his own world...he ROCKS!

1 little indian

2011-11-22T22:54:00.000-08:00

I was so excited to be able to make it to Jake's first Thanksgiving feast at school. They did their first ever little "program" and then the parents got to each lunch with their kids afterwards. It was so fun! One of my most vivid memories when I was growing up was having my parents come to eat lunch with me. I LOVED showing them off...and they would alway bring some goodies with them too!! Not sure Jake really cared, like I did when I was little, but it was still so fun to see him in his element. He has some really cute friends this year...his birthday party should be interesting :-).

Happy Thanksgiving y'all!!

an update of sorts...

2011-11-17T18:04:00.000-08:00

shoot...it's been too long...so here's a little update on what's been happening around here.

Jake is almost 4.
Holt is almost 1!
BOY time has flown by this year!
Brock is talking up a storm and using his hands a lot...it is soooo cute.
Jake and Brock LOVE to play with eachother...they are so cute...the play, they fight, then they play again..it's quite comical.
We just love listening to their conversations with eachother.
Jake has about 5 girlfriends at school.
Brock has about 3.
NO LIE!
It's hilarios to see the differences in boys vs. girls at this age. All of the mom's of these girls come up to me at MDO and tell me how their little girls talk about these boys ALL THE TIME.
I have to say..."oh so cute...what is your little girl's name?" (then lie about how I have heard her name around our house too)
YA RIGHT!
Our conversation home in the car:
me" "boys...how was school??"
them: "good"
And that's it! (of cousre I eventually ask more...but not sure how much of it is truth and how much of it is forced. BOYS.

Holt is LOVING his brothers too. He now SPLASHES in the tub with them...cracks up when they wrestle with him. Loves to try and play with EVERYTHING that they are playing with.
SO CUTE!

We are just loving the life of all boys. So entertaining. So chaotic. So fun.
Just last night I found Brock was a little busy bee, moving ALL of his bedding down from his top bunk to Jake's bottom bunk, along with some HUGE toys, to fall asleep ON TOP of Jake.
Needless to say, Joe and I could not stop cracking up.

happy halloween

2011-11-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

What a fun Halloween it was this year.

Jake and Brock were TOTALLY into it. Holt was just happy to be outside...but ready for bed at the same time.
Holt wore the three times used (and LAST time used) Shark costume. What a cutie.
Jake and Brock were Ironman! We asked what they wanted to be...and the anwswer was "IRONMAN!" At least it was the day that I asked them and they had just gotten done watching an avengers...the next day it was "CAPTAIN AMERICA" and the next it was"SUPERMAN"...and the next "BATMAN"....well...whatever...we got the idea at least.
Jake's fit him like a champ...Brock's gave him a cameltoe and capri's....but he didn't care....he was all over it!
We went to all our amazing neighbors...we had a great time.
We collected lots of great loot, which daddy showed them how to tally up afterwards. We even let them hand out some candy...really trying to emphasis giving...it was a great night...only to get better with age...I can only image what they will want to be next year!!

soccer time

2011-10-27T22:19:00.000-07:00

Well after only about5 weeks of kicking a screaming (just like the movie) Jake FINALLY decided to show off his MAD (:-)) soccer skilz.

I could not have been any moreproud. All the parents were sooo excited when he got out there...it was awesome.
So, Of course, I had the camera...and boy am I soooooo glad I did...
he kicked the ball off and took it all the way down the field kicking it JUST outside the goal...ALMOST...how awesome and funny would it have been if he scored on his first time on the field?!?!
Anywho...he LOVES it now...we're pumped...
This seems to be a pattern to his personality right now...he needs some friends...then he is a rockstar.

oh imagine...

2011-10-20T13:16:00.000-07:00

These boys like to play...just check out the paintcan/2x4 fort concoction I came out to find yesterday after only 15 mins of playing alone. Love their little imaginations.

batman, batman, batman...

2011-10-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

Joe has turned the minions into a bunch of super-hero LOVING FREAKS!!!! Thank you Auntie for the cute PJ's...obsessed!!

chivalry is not going to be lost in this house...

2011-09-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

Today after picking up the boys from MDO we came out the parking lot to find that one of the other mom's had had her car broken into and purse stolen. She used my phone and got things"settled" but our boys overheard the entire conversation. Afterwards Jake could not seem to get over why "bad men would take her purse" He promptly said "when I get bigger and a bad man takes another purse I'm gonna be big and strong and get the purse back"

This make my whole heart, mind and body smile all over. Not that I would want him chasing down a crappy purse stealer over just a purse, but the fact that he would want to protect a perfect stranger from danger, if he could.
The whole way home me, Jake and Brock talked through how they will be "superman, then ironman and then batman and catch the bad man"
We also had to touch on how Jesus is going to be very upset with the man someday to which Jake added "ya, he made Jesus very sad"
I love these little boy's hearts. I am so thankful to hear words like those after days and days of thinking that I have been raising them all wrong.
Those teachable moments rock my world...and take my breath away.
Just like Jake and Brock taking their own initiative to hold the door open for all the ladies behind me, and wanting to pray on the sidelines at soccer practice when Jake is "afraid" to go out on the field.

I guess that's why all the teacher's at school are already telling me to look out...all these boys are wanted men in their preschool world!
More to come on those stories later.

the stairmaster

2011-09-28T21:12:00.000-07:00

It's official...Holt did the stair (both down and up) all by himself today. He come to the top of the stairs, turned his little boo-tay around and slid down on his belly all the way down the stiars...with the help of mom clapping him on...he's been going up by himself for a while now...but it is a big deal in our house when the down is conquered...it's the little things in life. The boy could not wipe the smile off his face after he was done too. It was awesome!

soccer practice vs. soccer games

2011-09-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

Talk about a lesson in parenting...

Jake just started soccer this year. It has been so fun and frustrating all at the same time.
The team has practices on Wednesday nights. Two Wednesday nights ago was our first practice and he was a rockstar...totally speaking up when talked to...kicking the ball...running ALL over the field...even in circles...He was a wild-man...and I thought, for sure, he would have so much fun come gameday. I was also so proud of Brock who patiently waited so well on the sidelines...and even got to get out there a little too.

Gameday, however, did not go as planned. First off, I had to be out to town and so I could not even be there...ROCKSTAR Joe got all the boys out the door and down to the field, even meeting Mimi, Papi, cousin Clay and Auntie just in time...
Jake was a BUST. He wanted nothing to do with going out on the field. He HATED the uniform shirt (which has THE SAME smell as all of my uniforms growing up), he just hung out on the sideline throwing a fit. Joe was a trooper and was disappointed as any parent would be, but loved on him so well. I am so thankful that Jake has him as a dad.

Then this past week we did well again at practice...but come gameday...we pitched a snot throwing fit...a fit of "I.'m too tired. I'm bi-polar. I don't want to play. I don't want to go home. I don't want to watch the game. I don't, I don't, I don't"
Oh joy!
What a lesson in parenting. Not sure YET what exactly it might be...but we are learning as we go. Jake seems to grow into things...just like gymnastics this summer...but by the end of the summer he was scaling everything and so pumped to go. I hope that this might turn out the same way only because I know he would have a great time running around out there, and nothing more. In the meantime, we get to enjoy some "laughs" as parents on the sidelines when our child actually DOES make it out on the field and decides to just lay down and cry...capturing attention of another kid who decides to "join in" on the fun.

Thank you to all his sweet supporters...even driving all the way up to the WAY too early games. Better luck next week?!?

our little 9 month old

2011-09-09T13:56:00.000-07:00

He's so stinkin' cute! What a fun baby he has been. All of them have been fun, but I am really savoring Holt knowing that this should be the last time for us through the baby-stages of life (unless God has other plans than our own)

He is pulling up like no big thing.
He wants to walk after his brothers sooooo bad.
He knows his name.
He is learning "NO" (and, of course, not liking it one bit)
He is eating most little pieces of table food
He is starting to drink from a sippy-cup (cannot wait to get rid of those bottles)
He is saying "MAMAMAMAMA" & "DADADADADA" & lots of other gibberish.
We are leaning to wave.
He is a smile-a-holic....he has such a great smile.
He is loving music and dancing
He ADORES his brothers. He is already getting into little brother status...ruining all their Lego creations or trampling their blocks.
He is so easily entertained. You can put him down in a new room and he could be in there by himself for an hour.
He is already enrolled in MDO. I was so torn on this one...since I kept the other two boys out until they were at least a year...but when it came down to it, I felt like the right thing to do at our stage of life is to get him interacting with others and letting the sweet ladies up there love on him too...he seems to get so bored with me all by myself...pathetic, I know.
We are learning how to give each of them alone time...it is soooo hard to juggle...but Joe has been amazing with all his help and we can totally see the benefit each of them has when they get a parent all to themselves...Holt LOVES it.
He is still in the 75% and above on all his measurements. So we are thankful for an amazingly healthy boy.
I cannot wait to see when he gets himself to start walking...watch-out world...The Hornberger boys are here! (we are already known as such around town)

it's that time of the year...

2011-09-06T10:19:00.000-07:00

the time where I get to take the boys back to school for their amazing teachers to do some awesome lovin' on them and them to make some great new friends. The boys were all smiles and excitement this AM when I dropped off ALL THREE! YES.....ALL THREE!!! Holy cow...it has been a REALLY long time that I have been looking forward to these hours of solitude. Don't get me wrong...those boys ROCK MY WORLD...but it is soooooooo needed to get some time at home getting to FINALLY do all the cleaning, working and to-do's that this house has so badly been screaming for since the first day of summer. Summer-time is cruel for parents of kids 5 and under. Just cruel.

But I was so glad they were so happy to go. They all looked to cute...Jake and Brock were pumped for their new batman back packs that are as big as them and their dinosaur cut-out sandwiches. And Holt...oh sweet, sweet Holt...he was all smiles, as usual...and went into his room of open armed ladies who just want to be there to love on little babies.
It has been amazing. I have gotten to go for a run, ALL BY MYSELF, have some quiet time and Claire and I have gotten a lot of things knocked off the list of KHP to-do's. Pretty much an amazing morning.
And...when 2pm rolls around I cannot wait to pick up those amazing minions with their huge smiles. Nothing can stand in my way after this awesome time of rejuvenation.

a week in the life

2011-09-05T19:31:00.000-07:00

They are still all 4 and under and already there is NEVER a dull moment around here. I tell all our friends to just give me a call anytime they need a good laugh to brighten their day, because I can almost 100% guarantee I will have a story from the day of one of the boys doing/saying something crazy or funny that can cheer them up.

Last week sticks out a little more than most though...for the following reasons:
1. Jake and Brock SOMEHOW managed to get the lid off a paint can that I (stupidly) left in the backyard and in about 5 minutes time managed to almost completely cover Jake in paint, get a little on Brock (he doesn't like to get dirty, more on that later) and begin to paint some of the patio tiling, the patio furniture, some of the screen door...AWESOME!

2. Then that same afternoon we were working more with Brock on the potty training. So it smelled (yes, gross) like he needed to go potty...so I took him in the bathroom and set him on the toilet...took off his undies...and went to put them into the dirty clothes hamper...I THOUGHT he hadn't gone poop in his pants...but I was wrong and must have drop the "terds" (yes I said it) on the floor as I walked out of the bathroom.
Then on my way back to check on Brock:
Hello Holt...seems you decided to find the poop I dropped on the floor and start chewing on it, because you HAVE to put everything in your mouth....SICK!!!!!!! I yelled, freaked Holt out, and thankfully Joe was home so he could help me scrape the poop out of Holt's mouth while laughing and helping to totally help me realize how funny this will all be someday...OH JOY!
Brock can no longer force Holt to do anything more than that...Holt has literally eaten Brock's Shi%^*

3. Then the next day our friend Traci came to hang out for the day...and while she was here she got to experience the chaos that three dependent kids brings as well as MASSIVE dog poop on my office rug while I was putting the boys to bed. Mom instinct went into hyper mode...I only dry-heaved twice...I was quite impressed being that it was THE WORST poop mess I have ever smelled or seen in my life...AWFUL!

WOW! What a week. Needless to say Joe and I REALLY enjoyed some time in Dallas ALONE this past weekend (thanks to the amazing time Mimi and Papi offered up) and I am quite excited to get the boys back in school starting tomorrow.

Man I love these kids...but what a week!!!

disaster?? Only time will tell...

2011-08-30T22:16:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official...Jake and Brock are bunked in the same room. Joe and I moved the beds into the same room about 2 weeks ago...and boy are they lovin' it. They seemed to keep creeping into eachother's beds every night or falling asleep in the upstairs hallway floor, so we thought we would just give them a room they can "boy-out" all they want...well maybe someday. Right now it is a pretty stinkin' cool room. (Jake's old room at the end of the hall way) I need to take some more pics of the room...but here is some fun video of the crazy boys having too much fun before nap time one day, in our bed...these guys crack us up! We cannot wait to cram Holt in there with them soon...and believe me...he is ready for it too!!

working on a project

2011-08-23T23:28:00.000-07:00

around here we really like to go off all by ourselves and "work on a project"

this takes a lot of effort and focus...so much that when I walk up and ask the boys what they are doing they get started and embarrassed...I love it!
It also happens around "30-o'clock"...Jake's favorite time phrase of the moment.

However...when asked to clean their "project" up...I do not dig this cleanup technique:

brock-isms

2011-08-16T20:16:00.000-07:00

So there are plenty of Brock-isms that are happening these days. Just to name a few:

Birbay cake: for birthday cake (it is soooo cute to hear this one)
Drake: for Jake
He copies everything Jake says.
And he thinks he's Superman! NO LIE! Send over anything striped...this boy wants to wear his "superman pants" ALL THE TIME...no matter the temperature outside.

ALL THE TIME!

He likes to sing the Superman song...and run around the house in a shirt that I got both him and Jake with a detachable cape. It rocks...

And...how could I almost forget...we are 90% potty-trained...we still sleep in a diaper...but we are big boy pottying all up in here! PRAISE JESUS.
Now enjoy the pics and videos of Superman and his Side-kick, Jake.

jake-isms

2011-08-04T20:39:00.001-07:00

So it's been a little while...but that just means I have lots of them:

"You're driving me nervous" - supposed to be you driving me crazy
"up-side-over" - supposed to be upside down
"oh...that's beautiful" When we see something cool
"you're cwazy"
He LOVES making Holt Laugh...it is awesome
He loves to sing now...he even whips out my guitar (yes I have a guitar) and likes to strum and make up his own songs
He loves to tell me how he wants to teach people about Jesus...make my heart melt please!
And finally...he keeps talking about some baby sister...not sure what he is thinking about that one...but that will NEVER happen...sorry kid! :-)

when uncle gary comes to town

2011-07-26T21:54:00.000-07:00

He does an awesome job of entertaining.

While the boys run around in their "nothing-ness"

and...

2011-07-24T10:20:00.001-07:00

He's crawling (even already pulling up and cruising a little around furniture)...we are officially off to the races around here...

some backyard drumming

2011-07-14T23:10:00.001-07:00

Oh the imaginations. These boys have so much fun together! (warning...long video...but it just makes me smile)

It cracks me up now to listen to their little conversations:
Jake: Hey Brock, got get ___
Brock: Ok, Jake (goes and gets it...bring s it back to Jake) Here you go Jake
Jake: Thank you, Brock
Brock: You're welcome Jake
(well, actually it's "DAKE"...in Brock's world)

our little 7 month old

2011-07-05T08:45:00.000-07:00

Is growing like a weed.

He is almost officially crawling. He can do a slow backwards crawl and it really trying to figure out how to get to his wrestling brothers by raising up on his feet and hands in a downward facing dog position (for all you yoga-ers)
He is soooo stinking close, and is sooooo stinkin' frustrated because of it. But he is so sweet in trying. He doesn't put up too much of a stink....just a really awesome face of concentration.
He has the two teeth on bottom and just this past week the top two poked through...man...that has been no fun. I am soooo glad all the front ones are now in...I hate having to watch him suffer through those.
He "talks" up a storm. And laughs ALL the time at his brothers. It's awesome.
So far...just an awesomely easy, sweet baby. Like his brothers. We are so blessed by all these awesome boys!

our little gymnasts

2011-06-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

Not that I feel we need to continue this sport nessecarily throughout life (unless they like it) but I figured that taking some gymnastics this summer would be a ton of fun for Jake and Brock. I still remember doing gymnastics as a child...the smell of the gym, the cool stuff we got to do...and now I know why my mom took us. A break. Holt is still by my side, but it sure is nice to only have one and get to crack up laughing at the other two down below.
At first both were very hesitant about it all. We are in week 4 and we are JUST now REALLY liking it. Brock took to it a lot quicker than Jake, but Brock was and still is also in his own little world out there. Sometimes I wonder what is going on in that little brain of his.
Jake kicked a screamed the first couple of weeks, even would just sit and watch the whole class, but I wanted to stick it out for a least a month and I can so glad I did. He now loves it. He listens to to teacher really well, and seems to be doing all the exercises with lots of ease. Makes me so happy!!
Brock has been a little charmer. He loves to sit right next to the teacher. He doesn't listen so well. And if anything involves a ball he is THERE! But, he too is getting really good at it all with time. I love watching the both of them and seeing their different and awesome personalities and watching them excel in their own ways. So cool how God creates such distinct personalities in each of us.
So...here are some pics...iPhone, of course and a couple videos. Sorry for the crappy quality and the tininess....but they are pics, non the less.

Jake in the innertube:

Brock on the bars:

Brock schmoozing with the teacher:

Where's Brock?? He's all over the place!

Jake workin' it:

dinner time

2011-06-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

Lately we are getting older (obviously). We are also getting more fun to have dinner as a family with. We have heard from so many people and read so many statistics which point to the cause of ill-behaving children having to do with not having dinner together as a family at the dinner table. Well, man...if that is one of the steps to sweet boys, then sign us up. Now that we are finally having fun and not having to just survive at dinner time to MAKE them eat or having to feed them ourselves. WOW...so this is what the light at the end of the tunnel is going to possibly look like someday :-)

holt is baptized

2011-06-23T21:36:00.000-07:00

Praise the Lord! Earlier this month we get to stand up as a family of 5 and baptize our sweet Holt. It was so sweet and perfect. Total chaos in controlling Brock and entertaining Jake while Holt got doused. But great. Tina, Nick, Sam and Clay were all able to make it. It is so sweet to have a little crew there in support. Thank you all! It was also so fun to get to explain to Jake, who is really starting to get the concept of it all, what we were going and doing. He began telling us by the end of the night how he wants to tell people about Jesus and how Holt was getting baptized so that he would know and love Jesus someday. Baby steps for us all...but amazing ones that I am so thankful for!

seaside...destin...whatever...

2011-06-21T00:00:00.000-07:00

it all runs together to me...but we did get to make a trip to Destin/Seaside a couple months ago. I got to photograph my old roomie, Ashley's, sweet wedding, so we decided to make a family trip out of it. We also invited Sitte and Mimi along for the ride...and seriously...we could not have done it without them. THANK YOU BOTH! I know that by the end of our trip we were all wanting to ring eachother's necks...but who wouldn't?? :-)

Joe and I got to relax a little....the "grandma's" totally woke up with our minions every morning. SAVIORS.
Then we spent a ton of time playing, kite flying (Holt sleeping) and running around on the beach. It was an awesome condo situation within a tiny complex right on the water, so if any of you need a good recommendation for that, let us know. It was perfect.
So here are some pics from the trip. Enjoy.

Then the boys let got of the kite: and Joe had to SPRINT to catch it:
Brock was so upset:
But, Joe and Jake rescued it and brought it back:

And everynight...they fell asleep laying on eachother....I only wish I was able to catch it...this will just have to do:
AMAZING trip. We are so excited to see the possibility of family trips in the near future. I cannot wait to see what the next adventure might be that we take the boys on!!

our minions who don't sleep

2011-06-20T21:46:00.000-07:00

It's gotten a little interesting around here lately with the sleeping. I think something is in our water, because neither Jake nor Brock like to sleep. Forget Jake taking any more naps. Brock still needs them, but if I try and put Jake in his room, for some quiet time, while Brock naps in his there is no napping going on. Only mom yelling for 2 hours straight to get back into their rooms, the pitter-patter of feet back to their rooms followed by giggling in the hallway about 5 mins later...and repeat.

Yes, as I sit here typing this now...it sure is cute...but wow...my blood pressure goes through the room during those two precious hours of the day that are slowly slipping away from me.
Then to top it all off...night time has become interesting too. Turns out Jake doesn't need sleep AT ALL...and would much rather creep out of his room into Brock's and then both of them make their way onto the stairs, where 90% of the nights now, we find them asleep together.
NOW THIS, I find insanely cute. I know that this is what they will always have a memory of. What kid doesn't have the memory of listing to their parent's and their parent's friends late into the night from the top of the stairs or down the hallway?? I love it. Seriously.
It is also quite humorous at times sticking around in the hallway to watch their "escape tactics". Sometimes Jake bails out Brock. But now that Brock can open his own door we will see him crack it, and his little hand will appear repeatedly dropping toys out into the hallway for when he KNOWS it is safe to come out. OMG...these boys CRACK US UP! What awesome boys we have been blessed with!!

our little 6 month old

2011-06-15T22:32:00.001-07:00

Look at me!! I'm 6 months...and counting...
This kid has got to be the easiest little munchkin on earth. Literally NOTHING fazes him. He loves his brothers already wrestling with him. In fact, I think it drives him nuts not being able to move the way he wants yet to wrestle back. He still LOVES to laugh. I was able to catch a little on video for yall to enjoy. This is not his all out laugh, but this was just me looking away and then looking back at him and he was laughing at it so hard. He has this cute little laugh when he is not all out laughing...it cracks me up. He talks like crazy. He loves to growl and let you know that he is still there. He has 2 teeth on the bottom and I see a couple trying to come in up top now too! He just started pushing up onto his knees and hands yesterday...I was so pumped for him. He is coming right along...it is flying by...too bad this is my favorite stage.

brock-isms

2011-06-15T12:54:00.000-07:00

A few new things from Brock land:

1. He is sleeping without a rail totally in a big boy bed. We have been doing that for a couple of months now.
2. He is starting to wear underwear. WOOHOO!! We are almost there!
3. He has been talking up a storm. He is literally now able to verbalize everything he is thinking. It is so cute!
Just this morning I had one of my first, of I am sure many, Brock-isms:
Brock: "mommy, wanna go outside with me?"
Me: "Brock, can we go to the pool after nap times? It's so hot right now"
Brock: "It's hot outside, mama?"
Me: "yes, very hot"
Brock: "We blow on it??"
Me: CRACKING UP LAUGHING "that sure does make sense, doesn't it Brock?"

I love it...why not, we like to "blow on out food when it's hot"...so smart, so smart.

what was he thinking here?!?

2011-06-07T08:19:00.001-07:00

So I know Jake is going to KILL me one day, but I had to put it all into one place for the purposes of turning this blog into a diary for each boy in the near future...not sure why this happened...but this is what I did stumble upon in the back yard the other afternoon.

summertime...

2011-06-02T20:21:00.001-07:00

so far this is what we have done a lot of to keep the boys entertained during the day, lots of shirt-less-ness. we are gearing up for fun things like the pool, summer camps, gymnastics and play dates...praise the lord!

ranch day

2011-05-31T17:55:00.001-07:00

so a couple months ago we got to head out to a sweet friend's ranch in Chappell Hill for an afternoon and the boys had a blast. We ran all over the place, explored, saw tractors and kicked around the soccer ball an. The lack of Holt pics has to do with the fact that he fell asleep on the dog bed. literally. It was an awesome day out in the sun!

a bike

2011-05-25T18:33:00.001-07:00

so he has one...but riding it is more of another story. He definitely has to be "in the mood" for it :-) But, I know we'll get there someday. I think it's time to head down to Landon's to play and ride together since he is a pro at it!!

let's go fly a kite

2011-05-24T18:10:00.001-07:00

So, before we hit the beach last week we attempted our kite flying skilz on a "windy" day down at the football fields earlier this summer...um...total fail...but hey...we got some fun pics out of it! And I am happy to say that we got the kite up AWESOMELY in Florida...more pics to come soon on that trip too!

our little 5 month old for real

2011-05-19T08:34:00.000-07:00

So, I know I already did a post on this, but it wasn't accompanied by a very good picture...poor Holt. So, here we go...with a little update.
He is almost 100% sitting up on his own now! What a free feeling that will be! Ahhh the blissful time of his sitting but still not being able to move anywhere. I am going to relish in this for AS LONG AS I CAN! Here we go...
because whenever we put him in tummy time he is moving around like crazy. He rolls and even is beginning to scoot. It is so stinking cute. So sad to think that I have already forgotten what it was like with the other two. Hopefully my mommy brain cells will start to replenish now that we are coasting onto all the toddler and older phases of life from here on out...:-)

brock's 2!!

2011-05-17T12:47:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe it has taken me a month to finally get these up...but party we did for our little man's second birthday. Here is the evidence. Get ready for a long post with a TON of pics, but these were all WAY TOO good not to show off. I have a TON more, and don't worry you all will get copies...

thank you all for the awesome party turn out. Brock had a BLAST and we are so thankful for all your love on him!!

silly string

2011-05-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

just one of the many ways we are trying to keep these minions entertained these days:

these boys and their pups

2011-05-05T21:10:00.000-07:00

Jake and Brock love their Rookie and Dirk. And sometimes Rookie and Dirk love them back.

our little 5 month old

2011-05-03T04:45:00.000-07:00

yes, Joe, Holt is only 5 months. I think I would know being that I GAVE BIRTH TO HIM. Can you tell that we might have had this discussion recently?? haha.

Anywho...our little man is getting so big. He sits on my hip like a big man and holds on to my arm...it is so nice. It is also soooo much more sturdy now...they boys are loving rolling him around and tackling him. It is so cute...Holt just cracks up.
He is also quite the pro at his stage 1 foods, the exersaucer and sitting up on his own...with much help...
He officially has two bottom teeth and I can see more coming in daily...both top and bottom. Just like the other two he is all or nothing...I cannot complain...let's getting this teething stuff over with!
Other than that...he is coasting right through and now I am soaking up every moment I actually can. He is precious...and I am so thankful for his sweet little personality.

holt's 1st's

2011-04-25T11:52:00.000-07:00

The Holtster is hitting lots of first milestones lately and I had to document.

First off...the hair cut. OMG was this much needed, YES! I was sick of my son being called a girl...not in this world...
So, our sweet Ms. Kate was over this weekend and we decided to just do the chop, and she got the honors. He looks like a completely different kid!

Other firsts:
first two teeth, on the bottom. SOOO glad those have finally broken through
first rolling overs. this has been happening for a little while, but he is getting really good at it now.
first with colored eyes! WOOHOO!. We'll see if they hold...but it is looking like he might have color to those round smiling eyes.

So far so good with this little guy. He is still happy as a clam. I can honestly say that I will forever and always miss this stage in raising our babies. This has got to be one of my favorite stages. All smiles, all love, lots of sleeping, no talking back...you know?!?

our little eater

2011-04-19T09:54:00.000-07:00

no, not an easter....did you look at that title and your mind automatically do it?? I know mine did...or maybe that is just because I am too tired:-).

Anywho...Holt is officially onto "whole" foods. I am so proud of how well he has picked it up. I can honestly say that I do not remember how long the process took with the other boys, but it seems easier...guess we are just pros by now...hahaha...
anywho...the cutie seems to like anything we are putting into his mouth so far. Here he is in action...and OF COURSE, smiling! He is so dang happy! I love it!

the joy's of pregnancy

2011-04-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

So now that I am at a place in life where I BETTER not be getting pregnant ever again, it is fun to get excited about the future. So foreign to me?!? After every pregnancy I have always had the goals of losing the weight and growing my hair back...but I guess you just forget...and at those times in life I knew it was only temporary.

This time...I get to really reflect on what really are the joy's of pregnancy.
This is what I have learned.
The actual pregnancy was soooo great compared to what you have to go through after.
-Losing weight-
**Depression after stepping on that scale after working so hard all week, and the number not adjusting AT ALL. Blah!!!**
-Fitting into clothes-
**it is always interesting to me to see WHERE the body has shifted to?!? Blah!!**
-hair loss-
**no joke....EVERY one of these boys has given me bald spots....check it out!!! Blah!!**

I am SURE there are a ton more...but...oh ya...
-memory loss-
**what?!? Blah!!**
Good thing these minions are so cute!!! :-)

the holt-ster

2011-04-14T12:15:00.000-07:00

This little guy is sooooo stinkin' cute!!! I love spending time with him, whenever I actually can without his brother's bombarding me.
He is soooooo happy and soooooo giggle-y. We are so blessed everyday by his presence.
Just thought I would brighten your days with some fun video.

a park day

2011-04-12T20:48:00.000-07:00

So, Texas has THE most amazing winters that turn into springs...and I LOVE taking advantage of the sweet weather that will probably end in about a week. The park has gotten a ton of use from us lately. So, the other week I thought we would try something different and go into town to Hermann Park one afternoon after picking the boys up from school. It was so fun...such a great change of pace and allowed mom to meet up with an old Rice girl...Traci. Joe and I are so stinkin; thankful for the relationships that we have through FCA...and it is so hard these days for me to get to meet up with any of these girls. Even meeting up at the park with Traci was hopeless in the realm of actually getting to have a "real" conversation...but at least I got to see her, hear about life and get lots of good laughs in...because she cracks me up.

This actually leads me to a prayer request from all you readers out there. WE have amazing kids that we are so honored to get to pour ourselves into...but it is so lost living 45 minutes (one way) away from them. We have had some of these amazing friends come out to us, but it is so hard really pouring into a ministry which we KNOW God has put on our hearts when we live so far away. So, we have recently been 100% convicted that we need to move closer, and hopefully that means into town.
We desire to have an open home...one that any of these kids can come to SO EASILY whenever they need it. We know that we need to be in town so that we can still put our family first and actually put Rice FCA second without wasting hours upon hours in the car or having to tell people "no" because we cannot get there to be with them in time.
I know that God does not NEED us in any way, but why not pray for movement so that we can be a part of what He is doing on that campus through those kids as a helper in His end goal.
Will you join us? We would be so honored!
We cannot wait to see what God has in store for our little family next!

our little 4 month old!

2011-04-06T13:07:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe he is 4 months. I know, I know, I say that EVERY month...but man time flies. We had his 4 month check up on Monday and he is a strong healthy little boy. Thanks be to God.

He is in 75% in both height and weight, however I feel like he is a mutant everytime we are around his cousin Clay and the fact that he can fit into 12 month onesies already.
He is rolling over like a mad man. He loves to sleep on his belly and then push himself over and play in the mornings in his crib.
He is loving his tummy time. He sits up in his bumbo like a champ and we are starting to put him into the exersaucer to play.
Gosh he is such a sweet and happy baby. He has to be, though, to keep up with the schedules of his brothers. He still pretty much HATES the car. I dread running errands because I know he is going to cry...oh well...he is learning to suck it up early on, I guess.
He has been "teething" for about a month now...which is just cruel punishment for parents, since I bet we won't see anything for another month or two.
He CRACKS up at his brothers. If I ask Brock or Jake to come over and make Holt laugh they come and sit in front of him and just start laughing in his face....this CRACKS Holt up. It is AWESOME!

Things are going well going from two to three. It has not been easy, AT ALL, but we are getting by with awesome help from amazing friends and family. I am so thankful for the flexibility of our jobs. There is NO way I could have done this on my own. Joe has been my amazing strength. People keep asking if we are going for any more...well here I am to set the record straight: NO! WE ARE DONE! Unless God has other plans for us we are sooooo done and sooooo happy with 3 amazing boys!
So, there you go (period)

100% potty time

2011-03-31T11:09:00.000-07:00

Seriously could not be any more proud of The Jakester right now. Last night he made it through his first night in underwear! Not saying accidents won't happen, but it seems to me we might officially have one big boy completely out of diapers! He got up in the middle of the night to go on the potty and went back to bed. Then this AM he was SO PROUD...Joe gave him a treat of M&M's for breakfast...I mean seriously...this kid deserves it! (and we could always stand to pack some more meat on his bones)
Next up...Brock...he has definetly made the effort of attempting the potty. But we are not really understanding the WHOLE concept just yet. Totally in his own time...no rush here.

mud...you complete me

2011-03-29T15:57:00.001-07:00

Never would I have thought that I would love the mud so much. But I do, and it is not because I like it, but because the boys LOVE it. Endless entertainment...well, at least for about 30mins to an hour...but hey, I'll take it!

jake-isms

2011-03-27T11:47:00.001-07:00

The other night when I was putting Jake to bed we got to talking more about Jesus and why we can't see Him. Uh...how they heck to explain that one to a 3 year old. Well...I was honest...and told him a little about how we cannot see Him now but we will get to see Him when we go to heaven.
"What" Jake replied
"He is with us all the time now, like when you are scared and ask Him to be with you, but you just cannot see him."
"Why"
Me: "uh-well, because he died on the cross for you and for me and now He is up in heaven and we get to see Him when we go there"
Jake: "I wanna go to Heaven"
"I know, you and me both...we will soon"
Jake: "I wanna go, but after nap time"

Melt my heart and trying not to laugh: "Ok, Jake...you got it!"
Jake: "Love you mama...(blow a kiss)"

Definitely one tuck-in I hope to never forget!

boys and bugs

2011-03-21T21:39:00.001-07:00

I always tend to forget how entertaining a bug can be for a little boy:

it's rodeo time

2011-03-17T09:45:00.000-07:00

I am so glad we were able to squeeze in a quick trip to the rodeo this year. It was a little too short and a little too hectic, but I wouldn't expect anything different with the three boys at the age they are at right now on top of "kids get in free night"...opps...didn't get that memo...

Mimi and Papi were able to join us after work, which was a HUGE help. Jake and Brock both did the pony ride this year...last year Jake was WAY too tired and WAY too hesitant. The most brutal part was the waiting in line....attention span of zero...

We saw lots of animals...Brock was actually way more into them than Jake. And Holt was an amazing trooper the whole time. He stayed awake with Papi the whole time and then crashed in the baby Bjorn walking back to the car. The weather was PERFECT...thank the Lord...and all in all the boys had a fantastic time.

hello Joe look alike:

little giggles

2011-03-10T07:27:00.000-08:00

Holt is SUCH a giggly baby...he LOVES to laugh at us...and he has a MAJOR tickle spot under his neck. It's awesome.

Just the other night I was able to catch him laughing at Jake and just this morning he was giving us the biggest belly laughs...love these moments.

well hello

2011-03-09T12:50:00.000-08:00

check out what we found waiting for us at the top of the stairs when Joe went up to do our late night checks on the boys:

How that was comfortable is beyond me...he takes after his daddy who can fall asleep anywhere. It's a Hornberger thing.

the babies

2011-03-08T21:32:00.000-08:00

I have been meaning to get these pics up for a while now...baby Holt and his cousin baby Clay.

What fun all these guys will have growing up together! This was about a month ago...my they have both changed so much already!

And one of Mimi and Papi and their crew of grandsons!

adios winter

2011-03-03T20:30:00.000-08:00

as the coldness (or something like that) leaves us we say good-bye to the sweet fires and cute sweaters and boots...ah hem...I mean handsome sweaters and boots...so, I just had to post these pics as a farewell to the winter.

And a sweet side note that I always want to cherish:
tonight as I was getting the boys ready for bed I over heard them all playing in Brock's room and talking to eachother. One of the things that I was so blessed to hear as I walked back into the room was Jake telling Holt "Holt...you're my best friend"
Then the major embarrassment that set in as soon as he looked up and saw me standing in the doorway with the biggest smile on my face. May I never forget these moments.

our little 3 month old

2011-03-02T20:52:00.000-08:00

12 weeks...can you believe it? WOW!

This boy rocks...just like his brother's. He is totally sleeping through the night. We eats around7:30pm and wakes up around 7:30am. ahhhhh...bliss!
He is smiling and cooing like CRAZY! It is hilarious. We get a bunch of giggles from him too. I love it...sure does make things so much more worth it...I hate to say it, but it's true!
He loves it when his brother's are around. He gets so bored when it is just me...true story.
He is sitting up well in his Bumbo for about 10 mins at a time...and starting to hold his head up like a champ.
He is a big boy with lots of hair. He gets called a girl all the time...hahaha...but I am too scared to cut it, since I cut Brock's and his head ended up growing and his hairline (that I cut) did not...it was awful!
To sum it all up we are all in love.

brotherly love

2011-02-28T20:18:00.000-08:00

these boys fight...but man they also love...it is incredible and I am so thankful for how sweet they can be to eachother. Jake has always totally watched over his brother, Brock. Whenever Jake and Brock go to the kidsclub, Jake was such a hawk over him with the other kids. Now that Brock is almost the same size they do such an awesome job of really looking out for eachother. I cannot wait to see the both of them "hawk" over Holt once we start really taking him out with other kids around.

jake-isms

2011-02-25T19:21:00.000-08:00

He is going to KILL me someday for this one...but it was too priceless not to post.

This past week this has been Jake's saying of choice:
"You driving me nervous" (translated: you're driving me crazy)
Not sure where he got it...I think I tell him he's driving me crazy too much...but I can honestly say I don't know where the nervous came from?!?

Also recently:
"That"s COOL" (said with such determination in his voice
"that's crazy" (with his sly cute smile)
"Momma, dada, I can't hear you" (when singing to the music in the car)
Apparently I have to be audible now, no more lip-syncing for momma! Hide your ears!

brock-isms

2011-02-21T19:05:00.000-08:00

Brock is AWESOME! He cracks me up...such a free spirit of a kiddo.

We call him the piddler...he is soooo slow. Well, ok, so he is on his own time and doesn't really care AT ALL if you are in a hurry. Everything is slow and steady, and if he gets one distraction of any sort...forget what he was originally on track to do...ESPECIALLY if it is a ball...it's O.V.E.R!
He is talking up a storm. Literally, he is repeating EVERYTHING...and you can understand it too. He says everything with such happy inflection in his voice. Still higher-pitched than Jake, but man, sometimes I cannot tell who said something, they are starting to sound sooooo much alike.

He LOVES to wrestle...head butting is his favorite....OUCH! I swear, if he stays on this track he is going to be one HELL of a football player and maybe even a wrestler or rugby player. He is a BRUTE!
He loves to follow Jake and do everything Jake does...typical little brother. Right now Jake is doing a lot of hopping and jumping...and Brock hasn't quite mastered that one:

He also loves to cuddle still...which Joe and I ADORE. He is also telling us that he loves us now...priceless!! Here is a sweet video of our little man from a couple weeks ago. I need to do another one soon because he is already talking so much more:

the weekend accident

2011-02-14T12:53:00.001-08:00

Well we were supposed to head to Austin this past weekend for Hallie's b-day party (as you saw in the previous post) BUT while I was loading up the car I allowed our sons to run around with funnels in their mouths...it was so stinking cute watching them do it the day before while playing with Dirk in the backyard, so I honestly did not think anything of it. I should have known...how many times growing up did my mom tell me not to run with things in my mouth?? (I am sure a lot) Anywho...while walking in the backdoor Brock fell on the funnel and busted up the roof of his mouth...I ran over to him, got blood all over my shirt and THEN realized that he was bleeding profusely. This mama doesn't do well with blood...God sure has a sense of humor in giving me all boys...so through the midst of wanting to pass out from my stomach hurting from the blood...I gave Brock some ice and the bleeding seemed to stop.

We then loading up the car, cause to be honest he was acting like nothing had even happened.
We got about 30 minutes down the road when Joe looked back and saw Brock drooling in his sleep the BIGGEST clot of blood....I immediately freaked out, climbed over all the seats to get to him and make sure he was conscience. He was fine...probably more ticked that I woke him from his nap. We decided to turn around, cancel our trip and take him to the emergency clinic, where the Dr. looked at him and acted like it was no biggie. Man it sure looks nasty in there though...ouch! Brock is one tough kid...he seriously amazes me...
And in Brock form...he is already back to 100%...I feel ridiculous, but you have no idea how thankful I am that it turned into nothing.

And here is some fun video of how cute the boys were pre-accident....Brock loves his Dirk...not sure if the feeling is mutual quite yet, but Dirk sure is coming around.
Needless to say...no more funnels around here!

a birthday message

2011-02-12T17:17:00.000-08:00

to the birthday girl:
-Ms. Hallie-

So sorry we couldn't be there due to a last minute mommy mistake of allowing my children to run around with funnels in their mouths while I was loading up...which then allowed Brock to trip and fall and bust open the roof of his mouth and send Joe with him to the emergency clinic.
What a day. I KNOW yours was MUCH better!!
We promise to see you soon! Take an extra helping of that birthday goodness I am sure your mom and dad hooked you up with for Jake, Brock and Holt...yes, that means three extra helpings all for yourself!

a typical day around here...

2011-02-11T12:36:00.001-08:00

So for starters we like to all wake up around 7:30...on a good day :-)

We eat breakfast in our pj's and get dressed afterwards, or else we have been known to be in our pj's until close to lunch time...as you can see in some of these pics here.
We watch movies or try to play with something.
We love to play with legos...making guns and shooting bad guys is the main attraction. Sometimes we branch out into trains, or airplanes...but nothing holds a candle to our love of guns. And if we don't make the "right" gun sounds, just ask Mimi...we are corrected!
However, if we make it out of the house it is all about errands, getting mom a treat of coffee or the kids club at the gym.
We eat lunch and then "fart around" until nap time.
Nap time!! aka...bliss.
Wake up, snack, and hopefully play time outside...we have a sweet sand box that Joe built or being monkey's around in the yard is fun too. I do have the hardest time keeping them out there for too long without me or Joe...these boys get bored WAY TOO EASILY
Then dinner, baths and bed...ahhh bed at 7:30...aka: bliss.
All the while Holt is just chillin' and going with the flow. He is such a sweet baby!

These boys ADORE eachother...it is soooo fun. Jake and Brock LOVE to play with eachother...almost makes me wonder what we did with only one...

Here is some fun video of our fun delirious boys:

a crew of cousins

2011-02-07T21:28:00.000-08:00

So yes...I am JUST now getting around to this one...but a little shout out to the Austin Hornberger's for coming into town last month with their two munchkins to have some fun together and allow Joe and me a date night. It was so sweet of them...and we were so thankful. Here are some pics Joe was able to get before we left Dave and Cat with ALL the kiddos! (they did excellently...makes me think that they will be great parents of 5! :-))

And fun video of some of the chaos:

jake-isms

2011-02-03T12:19:00.000-08:00

Love it...this kid is getting so fun with all the things he says. Try this one on for size:

The other afternoon I picked him and Brock up from MDO.
As we were driving home he was singing to ALL the songs on the radio (have to start being careful there)
Then he pauses and says
"I miss mimi and papi & sitte and berger"
To which I reply
"Well, I know they miss you too.
*pause*
Did you know that they are mommy and daddy's mommy and daddy?"
Jake: "huh?"
Me: "ya, Mimi and Papi are my mommy and daddy and Sitte and Berger are daddy's mommy and daddy"
Jake, with such A-dorable inflection in his voice: "that's cool"
*pause*
Jake: "why?"
Me: "I dunno, that's just had God made us"
Jake, with even more A-dorable inflection in his voice: "huh...that's cool"
Me: "ya, that is cool!"

It is so funny to hear him say things now...makes me realize how much we say things and how we say them. Things like "you hear me?" or "hey Mister" when talking to Holt. It is sooooo cute. I love this stage of him...and I hear it just gets better and better!

Some fun Brock-isms coming soon too!

our little 2 month old

2011-02-02T12:44:00.000-08:00

So today Holt has his 2 month check up and shots...yuck. He was a champ though...and turns out quite the bleeder...he bled all over me through the band-aid. Hooray!

He is a 100% healthy little man. 80% for weight, 60% height (which is so opposite of his bothers, but I think that might have to do with new standards or something because he seriously looks just like they did at their age...long and skinny)
As of this week he is sleeping through the night!! HALLELUJAH!! We are still waking up every once in a while around 4am, but he just falls back asleep after letting me know he is still there :-).
So we head to bed around 10pm and wake up around 6 or 7am. It is bliss. And as of last night we are wondering if we need to start putting him down after the 7pm feeding, seeing that he has fallen asleep right after it anyways and didn't really want much to do with his 10pm bottle. No complains here!
He is taking two naps a day now and really has fallen into a routine awesome-ly!! I am soooo thankful...can you tell??
To me he looks just like the other two, lots of hair and dark...I love it... But his eyes are still blue...and I am hoping they pull through, however I am not betting on it.
Other than that not too much to report. He is a happy little man with lots of smiles when you talk to him. A very content little guy...just like his brothers. We are so blessed!

ring around the rosie

2011-01-28T12:01:00.000-08:00

the boys LOVE to play ring around the rosie...or, excuse me, I mean "ring-roun"
Here some fun video of two out of the three:

nothing like a little Jesus to end the day

2011-01-26T21:18:00.000-08:00

So today went a little something like this:

woke up after hardly any sleep last night due to another restless night from Holt :-(
watched The Sword In The Stone with the boys and ate breakfast
went to the bathroom with Brock RIGHT at my side, commenting on what was IN the toilet and entertaining himself with the toilet paper rolls (one day I will be able to poop by myself again)

Came out of the bathroom to find Jake in the living room with shampoo in his hair...the shampoo he had to go all the way upstairs to get and come back down with. Awesome.

Tried to entertain two little boys outside, for God's sake, so that they will take good naps and I can have some sanity time.
Put the boys down or naps, and actually all three of them sleep about an hour...at least I had one hour.
Entertained two boys again outside, for God's sake, and find them covered in mud oh only about 5 minutes after asking them to play out there for a little while.
Bath-time.
Got out of the house and drove to Chick-fil-a for dinners...I needed SOMETHING to do!
Ate dinner
Put the boys down early and headed back downstairs to listen to Holt do his "fussy" hour. Oh fun.

HOWEVER...the day was crazy, and my patience was tested over and over, and I failed over and over...but nothing can stress me out anymore when I think about it all because it ended with prayer time with each one of my boys.
Usually we all pray together, when we can, but tonight I need to just put each of them down separately.
When we ask them to tell us what they are thankful for Jake answers "Jesus", amongst many other random things...ok, melt my heart...
Brock usually cannot sit still and it takes all we have to say a quick prayer and have him at least say "Amen" with us at the end. Tonight was different though. After yet another break down I went in to spend some time with Brock after Jake. I told him how sorry I was for the day and how much I loved him. I then asked him the question that I never expected to get an answer to: "Brock...what are you thankful for??" To which he soooo sweetly replied without a hitch "jesus". The first time any parent hears their sweet child say that word will always be remembered. I know I wrote on this blog about how Jake said it and it melted our hearts, and tonight was Brock's turn and I could not be any more thankful for the sweetness of his little heart that we are already starting to see. I love our little boys. One day soon I hope to be writing this same post about Holt...and it will be just as sweet as the last two. WOW! God. Is. Good!

Oh ya, and so is Uncle Paul...who, by the way, Jake says is stronger than the Dinosaurs...that's right...Uncle Paul and Jesus will be able to fight off any dinosaur that comes Jake's way!

christmas through pictures

2011-01-23T18:22:00.000-08:00

The weekend started out with some yummy pie making by Sitte and Brock:

Some sleeping from Berger and Holt:

Some cookie making by Mimi, Papi and the boys:

Some fish, peas and prunes eaten by my dad for the Martinek Christmas Eve tradition, and a new Hornberger tradition of breakfast for dinner eaten by all the rest of us who are not crazy:

Some incredibly blessed kiddos with amazing gifts from our sweet family:

Topped off with a beautiful table with an awesome meal cooked by amazing hands:

Merry Christmas, from these Hornbergers!

And a holiday would not be complete without just one temper tantrum...
(disclaimer: we are so blessed with great boys, but this was just too classic not to post)

christmas -the videos-

2011-01-19T20:08:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe I am just not getting to blog about Christmas. But here we go...here are a couple videos...one from the night before and one from the next morning (with my sexy voice because two little boys woke up WAY too early) And NO we do not "lock" our kids upstairs...we did it for a new tradition of not being able to come down to early and the anticipation for Christmas morning...oh the anticipation...

Sorry...they're kind of long...but so fun for us to have and look back on one day. Hope you enjoy.
Pictures to come next!

our little 6 week old

2011-01-14T13:07:00.000-08:00

Holt is FINALLY 6 weeks. I can honestly say that I feel like it has taken forever to get here. BUT, we are here, and for that I am thankful! He is smiling at us a ton now. Total voice recognition and totally making things worth it more and more. He is sleeping, on average, a 6 hour stint and then another 3 hours after that at night. This mama cannot complain there. He is holding up quite well with his brothers he LOVES it when they sit and play right next to him...it is so cute! His eyes are still blue-grey, but I saw a spot of brown in one of them...noooo...I would love for one boy to have colored eyes...but I bet I will have no such luck. Other than that, life is just a bunch of same-ol-same-ol! We have three healthy boys and we are so thankful!

the joy's of three - video time

2011-01-13T07:46:00.001-08:00

And because I forgot about how awesome this is yesterday...here is some fun video Joe got of our messy bedroom with our awesome boys...
disclaimer: no infants were hurt in the filming of this video (I swear)

the joy's of three

2011-01-12T13:32:00.000-08:00

Growing pains always come with incredible bitter sweet moments!

Just to show a few:

And Brock FINALLY holding his Holt:

boys will be boys

2011-01-04T18:05:00.001-08:00

So, it begins...the mischievous-ness that all mom's of boys tell us about whenever we tell them we have all boys.

Case in point:
The other afternoon I was sitting in the living room feeding Holt. Jake and Brock were at the back door playing in the laundry area. They had the door open and were going in and out as they pleased. I heard lots of laughing and yelling. Brock was cracking up quite loudly then all of a sudden I hear a muffled cry out for help. At first I totally assume Jake has shut the door in Brock's face, leaving him outside...however, I quickly come to realize that our son, Jake has closed our son, Brock in the dryer. Yes, the dryer. How Brock got into the dryer, I dunno. How Jake coerced him into the dryer, I dunno. Why it happened, I dunno and I will never know, but trust me, I have my theories floating around in my head...and everytime I think about it I crack up...
Oh, I cannot wait for the stunts they will pull!

And because I love pictures, here are some drawing on the window's little cuties! (I think we have chalk marks on anything they can find in our backyard)

our little one month old!

2010-12-30T19:04:00.000-08:00

Crazy that Holt is one month old today. He really is starting to turn into a little boy instead of just a fragile lump. His face is plumping out and he is starting to make efforts towards smiles when you kiss on him and talk to him...it is so sweet!

He has some lungs and enjoys using them when he is pissed! He screams so hard it seems as if he pushes out every breath in his body and I wonder if he will be able to actually take another breath. It is by far the most intense cry of all three boys. It is so funny how it hardly phases us this time around though. I actually enjoy the exercising if it means he will sleep better at night.
I just remember sweating bullets whenever Jake cried...my how times have changed :-) The intensity of his cried is such a contradiction to the rest of his temperament. He is such a GREAT baby. So content the rest of the time, it is awesome!
He also LOVES it when his brothers sit next to him and hang out. He just stares up at them. Jake and Brock love to pat on his belly...Brock a little too hard sometimes, but he is getting better and better!
He has begun little "talking" here and there. It is so cute. He lays on the floor and coos while kicking like a mad man.
He is eating like a beast! You can tell too, he has already gotten so much more substantial. He will eat up to 6 oz at a feeding...if he keeps this up we are going to need to buy bigger bottles.
He has his days and nights totally corrected now and it giving me, on average, 4-4.5 hours a night between feedings. So I am really only having to get up once now and then again at 7am, which is just a little earlier than Jake and Brock. So it gives us some quiet time to mentally prepare for the "hurricanes".
We go back at the beginning of February for his 2 month check up and shots and I am counting down the days until I can take him out in public. It will allow our life to resume normalcy and for me to be able to run errands again without scheduling everything with Joe.
The recovery process was brutal for me for about a week and a half, but now I am officially back to running almost every day. Talk about tiring...this mama is out of shape! I hate to say it, but the runs wear me out more than the middle of the night feedings and lack of sleep...haha...sad, but true!
All in all we have adapted quite nicely and I am really proud of us as a family. The boys LOVE Holt. Even the dogs love on him quite a bit. The late night wrestling with dada gets me so excited for Holt to be in the mix as well. It is going to be awesome raising up all boys. I seriously cannot wait!

Yes, that is shorts and short sleeves at the end of December. And yes, that is a totally popped fly collar, cause that's how we roll :-)

yummy spaghetti

2010-12-29T19:19:00.000-08:00

Boys are such a mess! Brock now knows the word mess and both him and Jake tell me when they are a "mess" and "all done" and wait to be wiped down before they get out of their chairs. This momma is proud! Their wives will thank me someday too!

another "typical" day

2010-12-24T06:44:00.000-08:00

If you're up for a blurry totally random video then here you go. Just some talking from Brock and some fun with the boys....you know...another "typical" day.

Hanging out from Kelly Hornberger on Vimeo.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

2010-12-17T13:14:00.000-08:00

I never got the chance to post these before Holt arrived, so here we go now. A couple of days before I went into labor we went to the local Christmas tree farm with Auntie and rode the tractor out to cut down a tree that we never cut down...oh well...we ended up just liking the pre-cut Noble Furs instead of the local pines that grow here. It was still loads of fun for the boys...here are a couple of pics from the "event".

a week in the life of the hornberger's these days

2010-12-14T12:44:00.000-08:00

Ground hog day has definitely set in. Every day pretty much looks the same, and I am just so thankful that Joe is willing to "get through" this season of life with me. Not that I am complaining about it, but it sure does seem to be never-ending being stuck in the middle of feedings every three hours, maybe four-five hours at night (when I'm lucky), entertaining two tireless toddlers and still trying to get our work done and keep a clean house. We have had our moments, but all in all it has been the easiest transition in bringing home each of the boys. Holt has been a total trooper. He is such a sweet baby so far, even allowing the dogs to trample him and Brock to sit on him. Jake has taken to him quite nicely and LOVES to hold and feed him. Brock is just now starting to come around, but is still WAY too rough for comfort...but I guess that's to be expected.

We have our days and nights corrected finally, so that makes the night feeding so much easier on me. Joe has been a saint in handling Jake and Brock 90% of the time. I have so much respect for mom's who do it on their own. Other than that everything is cruising along. Holt was already up past his birth weight at the 2 day check up...the kid can eat! More to come on that after tomorrow and his 2 week check up. For now here's a week in pictures:

Because every kid needs to wear his sunglasses while leggo-ing

And every once in a while we have awesome visitors

but mostly we just chill

the circus has begun - part III

2010-12-12T16:14:00.000-08:00

And then the awesome receiving party waiting for him when we got home:

And it wouldn't all be complete without an appearance of the breast pump in the form of a horn!

the circus has begun - part II

2010-12-09T15:23:00.000-08:00

Now to conclude the hospital stay and our sweet visitors. Sorry to break it up so much...but I only have so much time to upload stuff. Thank you to Brooke, Paul and Callie too, who we were bad about getting pictures with Holt when they came!

The visits would not be complete without a little more play time in the curtain:

And finally a trip home in the same outfit as both of our brothers.

For fun: video time!

the hospital hurricane from Kelly Hornberger on Vimeo.

the circus has begun - part I

2010-12-07T19:41:00.000-08:00

We had to introduce everyone to the new Holt in their life. So, let the pics of visitors and brothers begin.

pure chaos:

and a hospital visit wouldn't be complete without some play time in the curtains:

All while getting some good quite time with our little man and eachother.

holt allen hornberger

2010-12-06T19:40:00.000-08:00

Born: 12.2.2010

12:36pm
7lbs. 9oz.
21" long

The labor/delivery was perfect.
The morning was fast. At about 6am I woke up with INTENSE contractions that were anywhere from 8-10 minutes apart. Never have I seen Joe get out of bed so fast. We quickly loaded up our things, called family and our amazing neighbor to come bail us out with the boys and within minutes my contractions were down to every 3-5 minutes….
We were admitted pretty much as soon as we walked in the door, and within 6 hours from the first contraction a new baby boy came into the world.
The first thing that all the nurses had to say: look at his lashes!!
So, thank you for that one, Sitte!!

I wanted to just take some time to post some pics from the delivery. Hope you enjoy!

jake-isms

2010-11-30T19:58:00.000-08:00

Lately Jake has been saying some of the funniest stuff. I havd to just write some of them down for him to see someday.
The other night we were tucking him into bed and saying our prayers. Every night we ask Jake what he is thankful for. Most nights it comes down to relatives, our bed, mom and dad...ect...
so after his random list I asked him:
"ok, let's say thank you for all of those things"
to which Jake replied "thank you for all of those things"
He is usually really good at repeating lists back to us, but this time he just wanted to wrap it all up very simply. We all could not stop laughing!!
Then since we were cracking up, he starting laughing at himself too, with an awesome thrown back head and a huge belly laugh!

I cannot wait for the next thing funny enough to write down. These kids rock!

18mos....well, sorta

2010-11-22T12:16:00.000-08:00

Hello crappy mom alert. First off, I totally forgot all about the 15 mo. check up. Secondly, I am taking Brock in for his 18 mo. check up oh at 20 mos. But, hey...who's counting, right?!?

We are blessed beyond words...we have two incredibly healthy little men. I cannot be any more thankful. God is so good to us, why? Who knows, but I love that He has allowed us to raise these two, almost three, little men.
So, I took Brock to his "18 mo" check up this AM and we are so proud of where he is. Everything is right on track. He is back to the 50% for weight and 85% for height...we make um lean and mean around here...at least right now we do...who knows what these guys will grow into...but we cannot wait for the ride!
So, that's the happy Brock update. He is such a rockin' kid. He LOVES to smile. The only time he is unhappy is when he gets hurt (either self-inflicted or from his brother) or when we tell him "no". HAHA...it is quite funny...he is in the funny temper-tantrum stage, but I think we are nearing the end...praise Jesus!
He has a TON of teeth, he cleans his plates and he is really starting to talk up a storm...it is so cute to hear his little voice. So fun, so fun...we are just loving and trying to remember to enjoy everyday in this stage of life...no matter how hard it is right now!

kid heaven

2010-11-19T21:22:00.001-08:00

The other week I did a shoot in the garage at our house that required a giant white backdrop and some cake. (You'll see more on that on my photo blog soon) so we were almost wrapped up with the shoot by the time Joe got home with the boys from school. Naturally they were SO intrigued, and so at the end of all the work we did what any normal parent of two toddlers would do: let them eat cake, draw on and make a mess of the backdrop that would need to be trashed anyway. WOW! Did we have fun...maybe I should do this more often :-).

just because

2010-11-18T17:08:00.001-08:00

I thought we all should enjoy a good laugh today! How cute is this kid?!?

Jake's 3rd birthday party

2010-11-12T14:33:00.000-08:00

What an amazing turn out we had for Jake's birthday party. I was so honored and flattered at how many people and kiddos came over to share in his sweet afternoon. I know they say to invite the number of kids as the number on the birthday...oh well...we just have too many incredible friends with awesome kids!

Jake was so pumped the whole day. Which meant he didn't nap. Oh fun. But that didn't seem to phase him thankfully. But it did, however, rub off on his brother, and he decided not to nap too...that is another story. But all in all they did GREAT. Jake was so pumped to paint. Once all the kids arrived he kept calling everyone out into the yard to show off the painting supplies. We spread out the munchkins as much as we could and gave each of them a canvas and a paint brush and let them go to town with whatever color they wanted (or pretty much whatever color was closest to them)
It was so fun to see all the different personalities just through the painting.
Landon was very gentle and meticulous with his paint strokes
Andie was REALLY good... her's was the only one that actually looked like something
Scarlett was so sweet and gentle with hers...she also did a good enough job to where you could tell she was painting with a purpose
Pierce was also really gentle, like his sister. Another solid sheet of canvas...
Reed watched
The Wysocki's too did a great job on theirs, one of which Jake decided he would help out on, and ended up getting extremely embarrassed and sad when I ran over "loudly asking" for him to not paint on Owen's....oppps...
Brock painted everything BUT the canvas and just ended up playing the in water bowl the rest of the time
And Jake was all about texture, using leaves and grass and a solid mass paint mashing in all his colors together.

It was awesome...we all had so much fun watching them. And again, I am so thankful for amazing friends...and seriously...what other 3 year old boy gets to have a bunch of cute collegiate soccer gals at his birthday party?? and he has NO IDEA how cool that really is!

It was awesome...Jake requested and got his daddy's famous cookie cake and we had that and brownies and icecream to tap off the evening.
Then the next day we opened all the presents that he didn't open the night of and share them with his brother :-).

happy hallowen

2010-11-01T12:47:00.000-07:00

So I do apologize for the lack of quality in these pictures, but I had to get a couple up on the blog to show off our two cuties. This year we bought nothing. Jake was an orange crayon, which is a costume that Mimi made for me when I was his age...which now makes it totally vintage and majorly cool, right? And Brock was a banana...which is a hand-me-down from last year. It is perfect though, being that Banana is one of his new words (well kind of) and he loves them!

We made it around the block...and collected a good amount of candy!
It was WAY too hot, yet again this year, and Brock didn't want to let go of Jake's bug gun...As Joe put it "he is a piece of deadly fruit". But all in all we had a great time!

we miss our daddy

2010-10-22T18:24:00.000-07:00

so tonight I did a little recording so that he can hopefully see this while he is down in Costa Rica.

For those of you who don't know Joe is visiting a mission down there that our friend Paul has become very involved in lately. They are doing some "scoping out" for future mission trips and what we can help out with as well as some "fun" along the way.
Please keep his safe travel in your prayers, along with our sanity...thank the LORD he comes home on Sunday!
(Jake posed for the camera, Brock would not, so he doesn't have a sweet pic here like his bro)

Hi daddy! from Kelly Hornberger on Vimeo.

Running around like little crazy men! from Kelly Hornberger on Vimeo.

our little, big man

2010-10-19T19:01:00.000-07:00

Since I did a blog about Brock, I thought I would do one on the Jakester too. Plus I had some fun pics of him that I wanted to post as well.

Let's see...in the world of Jake we are 90% potty-trained. The only time we do not wear a diaper now is bed-time. We have had our minor and MAJOR accidents, but over all he is doing so awesome, and has done it all by himself...we have not had to prompt him at all. It has been incredible.
He is also upgrading to a bed without rails. We are going to be putting his "top bunk" into Brock's new room and then Jake will have the "bottom bunk" (of Joe's old beds) which is a totally big boy bed. The other night we decided to take them off for the night, and it turns out Jake is a champ...but Brock, not so much...a loud THUD was heard above our kitchen to which Joe ran upstairs and Brock was at the foot of the bed scared to death from falling out. opps. Didn't think about that one :-)
He is so cute with MDO out now. He has friends that he totally remembers and talks about missing. They both LOVE picking eachother up from the other's classroom. They are so delirious they run circles around the columns chasing eachother while we sign them out.
He repeats everything, and really does not hold back from trying any words. Quite the chatty Kathy!
He loves to watch movies now and loves getting under the covers with mommy while we do that.
He also has what I like to call "bi-polar-ness" these days. He seems to be expressing his independance and always has to do the opposite of what I ask...then I turn it around on him and get him to say what he really wants. I have to admit...it is incredibly frustrating, and I am praying for the terrible almost threes to be gone!

But, over all it has been so fun to watch him grow. I cannot wait to see what the next stage has in store for him.

Yes, that is Star Wars he is watching with Daddy. He loves it. Joe is so excited!

our little, little man

2010-10-18T15:50:00.000-07:00

Soon to be our little, middle man. This guy is growing like a weed. I seriously have to stop and really think about the fact that he has turned himself into such a little boy...no more baby, AT ALL. Just this week he started talking a TON...it is so cute to hear his little voice. This is our current vocabulary:

"apple"
"football" - Joe is so proud
"juice" - we have said for a while
"bro" - I think is means Jake

He also understands almost anything we say to him. He gets into bed when we ask him to. He "helps" out with getting things when we ask him to. It is so fun. The only thing we are constantly working on is "brock, come here" and he literally runs the other way...the game of chase is way too fun in his mind, and spankings after he is caught does not seem to do anything...oh joy!
He is such a super sweet little brother. He is sharing about 90% of the time...the other 10% we hear LOTS of screams. I am so thankful for how they treat eachother so far...praying that is continues!

He is a total ham-bone. He LOVES to dance. He loves to "entertain". He turns EVERY toy into a gun. He loves to pull all of the pillows off the couch and play in them. This means lay on them, play hide 'n seek in them or just throw them around. He cracks his brother up all the time. He will just start silly laughing at the dinner table or in the car and then he and Jake will just start cracking up at eachother. It is hilarious.

case in point...the boy makes a hat out of mommy's cosmetic bag...we are so easily entertained around here, it's awesome!!

an update

2010-10-06T14:05:00.000-07:00

it's been a little while since I just posted an update on what is happening with all of us...so here we go:

We are on day 3 now of Jake wearing his big boy underwear during nap time and no sign of an accident yet! We are still diapering at night, but I think the day of no more diapers for Jake is VERY soon!
Jake also has been to his first movie in the movie theater, Toy Story III, and has been to his first football game that he actually sat through with Daddy. He is getting to be at such a grown up stage that allows us little date nights here and there where we can actually do something without corralling him the whole time. The glimpse of what's in store there sure is nice!
He also turns three in just a couple of months...SO CRAZY! We are doing a painting party late October, so that we do not conflict with anything else and he is more into it this year than ever before!

Brock FINALLY has more teeth coming in. He has the bottom one that he has been missing for about a year that just broke through as well as some molars that are working their way out.
He is "talking" up a storm...every once in a while we actually think he is saying something we understand...it is so cute. He is quite the chatty-kathy when his brother is not around...it is so funny!
We are near completion of him getting his own room. Joe has moved his office from the middle room upstairs to a small corner of our bedroom and we are making the entire upstairs now the boys domain. Each of them will have their own room...which will allow them to play and sleep together, but also have their own space if they want it. I am hoping to get the painting done and get him all moved in within a week or two...so pics of the boys rooms will come soon!

And the little man growing inside my belly is coming along as well. We are down to dr.s appts. every two weeks, which means we are within a couple of months of meeting our little man. Everything is going great. I have been back to the specialist twice now and it looks like we are totally in the clear with any possible scares that we might have had before with the placenta. The only concern we face since the last dr.s visit (this week) is that he is breach...however the dr. says she is not worried about it yet and that he just might not have turned himself. Prayers sure would be great there...I sure am hoping to not have to have a c-section with this guy!

Other than that...Joe and I are chugging along as well. FCA is rocking! Joe is getting so many goals accomplished that he has dreamt up for that, including an alumni retreat that has never been done before happening early next year in New Braunfels. He is also been the most tremendous help for the boys with me being pregnant. I do not know how I would be surviving this season in our lives without him.
And...
I am trying not to realize that I am tired all the time and still getting my work done. We have three more wedding this fall before the baby comes, one being this weekend and the other two in Nov. Should be interesting...I am taking the entire month of Dec. off and really looking forward to it! But hey, who can complain in this economy to have so many blessings of work coming our way.
God has been so good to us!

Hope you all are getting the incredible weather that we are here...fall is good to us this year!

our cowboys

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how cute are these boot-wearin' men??

a little bit 'o football and soccer

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this is how we spend many of our fall weekends...

Cheering on Rice Owls at the fence, going to "watch soccerballs and footballs"

a morning with the hornberger boys

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Around here we entertain ourselves with just about anything.

Case in point:
Our little frog and bear

Our clean-freak boys:

And a little bit of horsey-time

And some fun videos to remember it all by!

Horsey-time from Kelly Hornberger on Vimeo.

Untitled from Kelly Hornberger on Vimeo.