CHANGES

So, I know that it seems that I start out every post by talking about how busy us Anderson's have been.  And, you've probably enjoyed the reprieve of family pictures.  But, I'm back!  Back with tons of new things to share & a zillion photos. 
To make it even possible to get through this post that will cover almost 5 months (yes, 5 months!) I'm just going to give a small recap & then add some pics of each event.  In a nutshell... Rich got promoted; we sold our house; packed up; bought a new one; & moved in... all amidst the normal day to day life of raising a family.
As most of y'all know, I created this blog for my kids... so that each year I can print it out in book form & at the end of 18 years, have a wonderful, priceless collection to give them on their 18th b-days.  So, feel free to skip whatever you want... or, do as we do... & soak it all in!  These 2 little people are ever changing & just plain amazing!
JANUARY
We started the new year off with a few birthday parties.  One for our dear friend, Owen Strottner; one for the Twin's cousin, Morgan; & one for our friend & neighbor Amber.  Jett & Delilah always enjoy the opportunity to sing/scream the "Happy Birthday" song as well as chomp down on some cake.

  

 

Morgan, the birthday-girl!

 

 Amber's birthday bash was at the Little Gym!  TONS of fun!

 January also means the start-up of Little Gym.  The Twins couldn't wait to get back in the swing of things... walking on the balance beam; hanging from the bars & working on their somersaults.

 This year also marks the kids first visit to the dentist.  Boy!  Had I been dreading this.   I remember ALL too well just how much I despised going to the dentist as a child.  So, I prepared myself for the worst.  But, all the worry was unfounded.  They did AWESOME!!  No tears & better yet, no cavities!

 

 We spent one late afternoon/early evening at a really cool place called The Cove, with some of our favorite people, The Howard's & their twins, Sidney & Ryan.  There was live music, a play area for the kiddos; lots of beer & yummy burgers.

As mentioned in every post I write... we STILL love going to the park.   I find that Jett & Delilah are continuing to try new things; develop their coordination & motor skills & best of all... burn off some of that endless energy.  And, every now & then you can even catch me taking a turn on the slide.

 

 

One cool, crisp day, we spent the afternoon at the Botanical Gardens w/ Grandy.  Although there weren't too many flowers blooming yet, we got to see tons of leaves & their beautiful colors, take a nice walk; & feed the fish.  Then, we finished the trip off w/ lunch & a margarita (for the adults, of course:)

 

 

 

 Here are just some random pics taken throughout the month of January:

 

 

 

 

 FEBRUARY
For Valentines Day this year, since we were in the middle of showing our house & trying to buy a new one, I made simple treats.  I took pics of each of the kids with their arms held out straight... to look like they were holding something.  Then, made slits in the photo & slid a lollipop in each one.  They made the perfect Valentine for their friends at the Little Gym & our "family" at the Firehouse.  We celebrated the holiday by having a yummy, pancake breakfast with our favorite sweethearts!

 

 

 As we try to do once per month, we loaded up & hustled down to Galveston to see Grandaddy.  It was perfect weather for playing on the wiggle-wiggle bikes.

 

 

 Every once in a while the Twins, one at a time, have a special "Adventure Day" with Grandy.  She spends the whole day with them, spoiling them rotten & doing lots of fun things. 

 Believe it or not, it actually snowed in San Antonio in February!!!  It wasn't much & didn't really stick but the kids loved it, none the less.

 We had some very special visitors in February, The McLarnon's.  It was a wonderful visit & we always love an opportunity to introduce people to our favorite restaurant, El Mira Sol.

 Here are random pics taken throughout February:

 

 

 MARCH
We are soooo proud of Daddy/Rich!!!  Not that he's not always amazing... But, in March he received a promotion with SA Fire Department.  He is now an Engineer.  He has to go through 6 months of school-setting type classes; plus ride-arounds in the ambulances; plus rotations at the Emergency Room, all to become a paramedic.  But, just as he does with everything... he'll knock it out of the ballpark!!  CONGRATULATIONS, BABE!

 

 

We attended another birthday party in March.  Ava Ruston turned ONE year old & the Twins helped her celebrate her big day.  They also got their first try at whacking a pinata!!

 

 

 As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, we sold our house in March.  It was long process of packing up, etc. but, we finally closed on the new one & are so very happy in our new home!  (Pics to come, soon:)

Daddy's Little Helper helped just as long as he could

Saying good-bye to my house of 11 years.

 

 1st night in their big kid beds.

Still love breakfast in 'Momma's bed"

 

SETTLING IN JUST FINE

 

A HUGE thank-you to all of our friends & family that helped us along the way.  Whether it was during the transaction, watching the kids, letting us hang at your house while we showed ours or helped with fixing up the new one... we really appreciate each & every one of you!!!  We couldn't have done it without y'all!! 
Billy Stringer (Grandaddy), Christine Anderson (Grandy), Clarence & Milagros Stringer; Matt & Kathy Weffel, Priscilla Ruston, Wendy Burns, Angela Walker, Michelle & Patrick Strottner.
Before we left the old house on Horizon Way, for the last time, we took one more walk around the old 'hood & enjoyed a last afternoon on the patio.  We have such wonderful memories that were made in that house.  Our babies came home from the NICU to that house.  But, I'm confident that this new home will be the foundation of many more great times.

 

 I don't want to forget to post about Delilah's little escapade... She decided to cut her own hair.  Right. In. The. Front!  At about that same time Jett decided to take a blue marker to an ENTIRE wall in the gameroom (thank goodness I don't have a picture of that or he'd be grounded every time I looked at it).

After we got moved in & settled (for the most part:), we took a much needed trip to Galveston to unwind & relax.  We visited the train museum in Texas City, played at the park, chased bubbles in the backyard & ate some yummy Mexican food.  It was a great trip!

 

 Some random pics from March:

If his sister does it, he HAS to!

 

 APRIL
At the beginning of April the group that I belong to, The San Antonio Area Mom's of Multiples, hosted a wonderful Spring get-together.  It was a picnic at Landa Park, in New Braunfels, complete with an Easter egg hunt & a visit from the Easter bunny, himself.  We even took a train ride around the park.  It was a fabulous afternoon spent making fabulous memories!

 

 

We took Jett & Delilah for Bluebonnet pictures, again, this year.  We were able to capture some really good shots of them.

 

"EEEEK!!!  I saw a bug!!!"

Here's 2 pictures that I put together showing just how much my little munchkins have grown.  Truly amazing!

We found a really neat place, only about a mile from the house, that is super kid-friendly & serves up yummy hamburgers.  It's called Beefy's & we've been there several times for lunch/dinner & let the kids play.  Jett has even been trying his hand at some basketball with the big kids.

 

We had a wonderful Easter Day filled with family, fun, BBQ & tons of candy.  The kids woke up bright & early to search for their Easter baskets that the Bunny had hidden.  I made some scrambled eggs & bacon, in the shape of an Easter Bunny for breakfast.  Then, Grandy, Uncle Clarence, Aunt Milagros & Brisa joined us & we had Easter egg hunts; dyed eggs & ate dinner.  The kids really enjoy spending time w/ their cousin.

 

 

 

 

 

 One afternoon a dear friend, Wendy Burns, sat with the Twins for a bit.  They absolutely LOVE hanging out with "Wiiiiiiiindy".

 

 At the end of April, we made another trip down to see Grandaddy.  This time, the weather was much better.  We even celebrated Rich's birthday in Kemah, on the Boardwalk.  I think my 2 favorite parts of the whole trip were the kids & Rich catching their very first fish & the kids "egging" Grandaddy with a cascarone!

 

 

 

 

Flying against the wind

 Our friend, Owen, came over for a play date.  It was a perfect day for a visit to the neighborhood park.  The kids played & played then we all went home for some lunch.

 

Some extras from April:

My little tree hugger

MAY

At the beginning of the month I had the honor of attending a luncheon, the 5th Annual Tribute to Motherhood, honoring a fellow high school graduate, Leslie Parks.  Thank you, Kevin & Angela, for including me in such a special afternoon.  And, thank you, Wendy, for watching the Twins for me:)

We had another fabulous playdate with Ava & Dylan Ruston.  We spent the afternoon at the park & then lunch was served on the back patio.  Such great kids!

 

 

 

 

 As we had at the old house, we set the kids pool & slide up.  I could almost hear the neighbors saying:  "Well, there goes the neighborhood!"  They're just lucky we kept it in the backyard!

We received some pretty sad news (well, sad for us).  Our dear friends, the Clarks, have decided to move to Baton Rouge, LA.  Meredith has been one of my closest friends for 10 years or so & Mazzie has been friends with the Twins since they were born. In an effort to celebrate their big move, we all got together for pizza & let the "big boys" play the some music.  It was a wonderful evening & made us realize even more just how much we are going to miss them.

As most of you know, Mother's Day has quickly become my most favorite holiday!  It always means so very much to me to be able to reflect on just how blessed I am to have the role & job as "Mommy" to these beautiful, little miracles.  Thank you, Jett & Delilah, for letting me be your Mommy!!

 

 

 I'll end with some extras that I took that I thought were just too cute not to include.

 

Well, if  you've made it this far... THANK YOU for indulging me!  I know this was a long one.  We just had sooo much going on with the move, Rich's promotion, trips to see Grandaddy, unpacking, etc., that time just got away from me.
As always, I hope this finds each of you doing well & enjoying the first half of 2014.  Please, keep in touch!