The Adventures of Ryan

Ryan has had a fun month. We started out by going to the local Thomas the Tank Engine event. In the past, we have taken both Jake & Dylan when they were 4 years old to this event and bought tickets to ride the train. However, I didn't hear about this until the day before so we didn't have time to buy the tickets. We did however go and see Thomas and do some of the fun activities such as a large miniature train display, bounce house, train tent, and a blacksmith where they were creating authentic railroad spikes. It was a beautiful warm day and the boys all had a good time.

We also finally put training wheels on Ryan's bike and got him riding fast & keeping up with his friends and brothers. He loves his newfound speed. Here's a cute picture of Ryan lounging in a giant camouflage robe, he is so stinkin' cute!

Texas Blizzard

We have had the snowiest winter since I moved to Texas in 1996. We were two inches short of having the snowiest winter on record, but we did post a new 24 hours snowfall record of 12.5 inches!

This record snowfall hit Texas on February 11, 2010 and took us all by surprise. They were predicting a couple of inches with the snow predicted to start on Thursday afternoon. However, we woke up Thursday morning to find 3-4 inches already on the ground. It snowed the entire day and didn't end until after midnight. The foot of snow shut down the schools for 2 days. It was a very wet & heavy snow.

We also had the pleasure of having our power knocked out by the storm. It went out at 11:30pm on Thursday night, and thankfully was restored just before noon on Friday.

The boys had an absolute blast playing in the snow. They built a giant snow fort in the front yard, had snowball fights and Jake even went sledding on a boogie board.

They played outside nonstop for two days only pausing a couple of times to throw their gloves & hats in the dryer and warm up with hot chocolate.

Songs of Love

In February, we enjoyed a night at Lewisville Christian School seeing Ryan perform songs of love. Our favorite goes like this:

I'm going to wrap myself in paper,
I'm going to dab myself with glue,
I'm going to put a stamp on top of my head,
I'm going to mail myself to you!

Walking For A Cause

At the end of January we joined our friends in a walk for Muscular Dystrophy. The event was held at the brand new Dallas Cowboys Stadium. We enjoyed seeing the new stadium and supporting our friends, The Combs Family, who continuously inspire us.

Boot Camp

Dylan celebrated his 7th birthday this month by hosting a Boot Camp for his friends.

Eleven boys attended and we had a blast face painting, doing an obstacle course, playing "Sergeant Says" and eating army tank cake. The best part was a visit from a Paratrooper with the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division. He brought his bulletproof vest & helmet for all the boys to try on and shared with us all about Boot Camp and his tours of duty in Iraq & Afghanistan. We are so blessed to have Dylan in our family. He is very kind and thoughtful and his energy is unmatched. We especially love his adventurous spirit. Happy 7th Birthday Dylan!

2010 Pinewood Derby

Jake had a lot of fun racing in the Cub Scout Pinewood Derby on Saturday, January 9th. This was our second year in the derby, and I must say this car raced better than last year's car. Jake placed 6th overall and really enjoyed the event.

He raced a slick green car named "Green Baron". Here are some pictures of the fun.

Resolutions for a New Year

We will open the book.
Its pages are blank.
We are going to put words on them ourselves.
The book is called Opportunity
and its first chapter is New Year's Day.
-Edith Lovejoy Pierce

I love the start of a new year, and we are doubly blessed this year to also be at the start of a new decade. I have high hopes for this decade! I'm going to start by improving the following things in my life:

1. Exercise 3-4 days per week
   
2. Study God's word daily
   
3. Complete 8 classes this year (one class every 6 weeks)
   
4. Serve dinner at 6:00 or 6:30 each night
   

I have so many other things I want to improve too, but I know if I can at least manage these four then things will run much more smoothly in my life. I'm hoping that by posting my New Year's Resolutions that then I will be accountable to someone for fulfilling them. This is where y'all become an integral part in helping me achieve my goals.

• Feel free to ask me if I've exercised yet that day when you see me.
• As for studying the word of God, hopefully this one will reflect in my actions :)
• Go ahead and request a copy of my transcript to see if I'm completing my classes on time.
• Don't forget to stop by for dinner (unannounced) at 6:00.

I need your help to stay on the ball J In the words of Oprah Winfrey "Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right". Best wishes to you all!