our anniversary, a birthday party, and fun summer days

Last Wednesday was our 3 year anniversary. Brett took the day off, and we all went to the park for a picnic. Aubrey had a great time playing and was upset when we had to go. Her little cheeks were getting so red, but we got some cute videos of her swinging. Aubrey went to stay with Brett's mom that night, and Brett and I got to run some errands that afternoon. It is rare that we get to do that at our own pace instead of having to hurry before Aubrey gets bored. =) Later that night, we went to dinner and rented some movies. I missed Aubrey that night, though. I'm going to have to grow some tougher skin before we go to Jamaica for a week without her in July.
Friday, Aubrey and I had a great day! We went on a walk that morning, and I realized how out of shape I am. Then, we spent some time in our backyard with her Fun Flow Play Sink (a gift from her grandmother). After she got completely soaked and couldn't stop laughing, it was lunch time and then nap time. She is growing up so fast, and I have loved being home with her this summer.
Saturday, we got to go to Mason's 2nd birthday party. It was so good for Aubrey to be around some other kids. She is getting better with sharing.
We are continuing to enjoy the summer. I'm sure we will have more fun times to share soon!

great week

I spent last week in Birmingham with my mom teaching swimming lessons. Although I didn't get to see everyone I wanted to, I did get to meet Zack's fiancee and see his family. I also got to catch up with my friend Christy and her beautiful baby girl. And my mom had her best friend, her best friend's daughters and their sons over to swim. Aubrey had a great time swimming with the boys. She was worn out after that. We were both very glad to get back home and spend time with Brett.
Yesterday, we relaxed pretty much the whole day, except for a trip to Wal-Mart. Today, we started a One Prayer series at church, and our message was incredible! It definitely challenged me to reach out more to people and show them the love of Jesus. Youth tonight was awesome too. We only had guys there tonight, but they really encouraged one another and showed one another a lot of compassion.
3 days until my 3 year anniversary!

-Lauren

our incredible family and milestones in May

We have the best family! This past weekend we started to put up a privacy fence in our backyard. Due to the rain, we didn't quite get finished. However, my parents, Brett's parents, my grandparents, and my brother all came to help us. My dad came up with the fence design and helped us map it all out. On Saturday, my dad, my mom, Brett, Brett's dad, and my grandfather all worked in the rain and mud to dig holes for the posts. My grandmother came to watch Aubrey, and when Brett's mom came to help watch her, I was able to go outside and help. My grandmother also brought lunch on Saturday-- including a bag of ice, paper plates, and plastic cups and utensils, so I wouldn't have to worry about anything! On Sunday afternoon my brother came and joined in the fun. He had worked for a fencing company one summer, so he had experience to add. Alan even spent the night and stayed on Monday as well. Brett and I are so incredibly blessed to have such a great, giving, generous family. If he and I had been putting up a fence ourselves, it probably would have all fallen over already.

May has been a busy month for all of us, but it has been full of a lot of great things:
1. Relay for Life (check out our last post for more info about it)
2. my 2nd Mother's Day-- Brett and Aubrey got me an iPod. I'm still learning how to use it, but I'm getting there.
3. Alan's graduation-- Alan graduated from Cumberland Law School on May 16th. We are all so proud of him. Also, since he was president of his class, he had to give a speech. I had nothing to be critical about with the speech-- it was great!
4. end of school-- I wrapped up my 4th year of teaching this year. My class was very sweet, and I am going to miss them. As always, I have done a lot of self evaluation in regards to my teaching, and I'm excited about some new ideas I'm going to try next year to make it even better. On a sad note, I had to say goodbye to 2 of my teaching friends. Let's just say that this summer I'm going to have to set aside time to go walking with Jana and Brett and I may have to take a vacation to Texas sometime soon! (I miss you already, Kristen!)
5. Aubrey's new bed-- this past weekend I converted Aubrey's bed to a toddler bed. The first day was not the smoothest transition, but last night and today's nap have been wonderful! I laid her down after reading a few books, and she stayed in her bed until she fell asleep. She did all this with no pacifier! Our goal was to get her off the pacifier completely sometime this summer. Hopefully, it's coming sooner than we thought.

I'm sure many more milestones will come this summer, and I will do my best to keep you all updated. She's close to counting to 10 by herself. As of right now, I just have to say one, three, four, and sometimes seven. She fills in the rest of the numbers by herself. Keep checking in for more updates!

-Lauren

Relay for Life

Last night we participated in Relay for Life. Relay for Life is an annual event to help raise money for the American Cancer Society. This money goes to cancer research and to provide health screenings and mammograms for those who cannot afford them. Brett, Aubrey, and I walked in memory of my grandfather who passed away last May. Poppy was a wonderful man who truly left a legacy of generosity.

Please consider participating in the fight against cancer by joining a local Relay for Life team or by donating to one of the following:
1. Relay for Life-- Lee County's Relay for Life website is http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?pg=entry&fr_id=15747
2. the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center-- http://www3.ccc.uab.edu/getinvolved/donate.html
3. Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Capitol of Texas Triathlon-- http://www.captextri.com/

Please continue praying for the many people who have cancer. Chances are that each of you know at least one person who is affected by cancer. Pray also for the doctors and researchers who are working to find a cure for this disease.

Snow day!

The Weather Channel said for several days that we would get snow, but I didn't believe them. I was proved wrong Sunday morning. We got a call from Brett's parents about 7:00 am telling us to look outside our windows. It was snowing pretty well, and it was sticking, so we decided to get up a little earlier than normal and take Aubrey outside before church. She enjoyed the snow and even fussed when we had to get her out of it and leave. When we got home from church, we had gotten another inch or so of snow, so I took Aubrey out again Sunday afternoon after her nap. She was so bundled up, she couldn't wait to get outside. At that point, there was about 3 inches of snow in our yard, so Aubrey wasn't too sure about it. When I put her feet down, she could barely walk. She got the hang of it though, and had a good time enjoying her first snow!

We made it through the week!

This past week I had to go back to work. It was so hard to not be with Aubrey every day. It doesn't help that Brett is working nights two days a week until they hire someone at the gym. But, thankfully, we made it through the week. We were all pretty tired and didn't get very much done this weekend. It was great to not have any plans and relax though.
Tonight, we went to our church's youth meeting. We're starting to help with that this semester. It was great to see all the youth there and to hear their enthusiasm. This coming weekend, we're going with some of the youth to a conference. We will be off our schedules somewhat, but I know it will be worth it. Brett and I are so excited about what the Lord is going to do in the lives of these students. Please be praying for us as we travel and for everyone to be focused on the Lord.

-Lauren

My little brother is married!

Yesterday, my brother Alan got married. I am so proud of him and the godly man he has become. He is going to make a great husband, and eventually a wonderful father. This weekend was really fun, but very tiring. I forgot how much is involved in a wedding. Aubrey did pretty well- much better than I expected. Of course she got off schedule big time though. Brett was sitting with her on the back row at the wedding last night. I was in the front because I read a scripture during the ceremony. Aubrey was doing so well until I started talking. She is such a Mommy's girl! She started crying and then tried to talk to me. Brett had to take her out in the foyer, and she calmed down. After all the pictures from the rehearsal dinner and wedding, being passed around a lot, and sitting still for part of the ceremony, she still did pretty well. Aubrey even let my cousin Rick carry her around for about 20 minutes at the reception.
We decided to drive back last night so we could get Aubrey back on schedule. She fell asleep about 10:30. During church this morning then, she started getting fussy. She'll get there though. Tomorrow we get back into our normal schedule because I go back to work. The break flew by way too fast! Hopefully the next one will go slower.
-Lauren