Happy Birthdays and Scary Storms

Well, the Waddills weathered Hurricane Ike and aren't too much worse for the wear. Unfortunately, for the Houston area, that is an uncommon story. Seeing and hearing of lines for gas, food, and water everywhere around is really humbling. Because the storm hit Galveston and headed north, we were on the "clean" side of the storm. Stories of neighborhoods less than 20 miles more towards the east were so much worse. We were literally spared by a few miles. And the night was horrible. I can't imagine those closer in. It was very scary. Lots of downed trees and fences, but our neighborhood has power and is doing well. The grocery stores have limited resources and we can't find milk, etc, but otherwise, we are fine. Since Doug is working in Brenham, he was able to get gas today and will hopefully get milk after work.

Anyway, Wednesday was Doug's 32nd birthday and Friday was Briley's 6th birthday.

We had scheduled her party for Saturday but Ike made us postpone. However, since we had no school that day, we celebrated at home with donuts for breakfast and presents and cupcakes after lunch.

That evening we let the kids "camp out" in the closet under the stairs and after Braden climbed in, he said, "You know what would make this really like a camp out? A fire and those white things!" Well, since we were not about to "roast" marshmellows in the closet, we opted to let them eat them room temperature in bed while they read books by flashlight (we had lost power by 9pm). They finally went to sleep and Doug and I listened all night to howling winds and sheets of rain pound our house. It was crazy. The pictures you see of the sunset are of the sky in front of our house that evening as the sun was going down. At this point it was already windy but the sky was eerily beautiful. A sign of what was to come.

Sunday we had some neighborhood friends who had been without power over for dinner and Blake snuck up on their plates while they were playing. . .

Busted!!!

Yeah, I did it, so what?!!

We Made It!!!

Well, we have finally arrived. . .into the school years! Briley started Kindergarten yesterday and has been having a BLAST! Doug and I were talking tonight about how we always knew this girl was going to love school, and boy were we right. She is giddy with excitement. It really jazzes her and she bounces out of bed each morning eager to get dressed and get going. Today she had "homework" that was voluntary - more like some papers that if they wanted to take home and finish, they could. She went upstairs after school and spent an hour doing them and then put them back in her folder in her backpack and even made some crafts for her new friends. At first she told me she wanted to make 9 presents for the 9 people in her class, but I said maybe she could just do a few for now! Anyway, we are just so thrilled that she is able to go to Cornerstone Christian Academy. If you didn't know, this past week we were given this wonderful opportunity and feel so blessed to be able to have Briley in such a wonderful environment. Everyone there is so wonderful and has been so helpful - they have even helped me by hooking us up with uniforms that their kids have outgrown. This was nice since we just found out a few days ago that she would be going there! Anyway, we just want to say YEA GOD! Thanks to Him for making this all happen and we are so thrilled for Briley. Her teacher is wonderful too! I titled this "We Made It" because, although she is a wonderfully sweet kid, Briley has been an intense kid as well. Now that she is finally getting the social and educational stimulation she has always desired, our day seems a little more manageable. We do miss her, but the good thing is that I am teaching part-time at that school so I get to see her on Tuesdays and even teach her! Our good friends the Martins gave Briley a sweet book called, "T'was the Night before Kindergarten" and we read it Sunday a few times. In the video, that is what she is talking about. Thanks Kelly and Chris - for the book and for lunch too! The video is a bit lengthy but you'll get a sweet smile at the end if you can make it that long!

Braden's Pearly Whites. . .

Braden Before the dentist. . . Braden after the Dentist. . .

As many of you know, Braden injured his front tooth over a year and a half ago and essentially, the tooth "died". We were so glad that it didn't fall out, we didn't give much thought to the darkness of the tooth. It never seemed to bother him anyway. Well, this week we went to the dentist for his first tooth cleaning (yes we are a few months behind), and lo and behold, the hygienist said there was something they could do about it! I had no idea! They got us in right then and there for the "procedure" which was nothing more than some play doh type substance applied to his tooth and Voila!! A white (er) tooth! He was all smiles afterwards! It was an exciting day!

Waddill Summer News

We are doing well. We have had a great summer (although I didn’t know I would ever survive at first!). We started out the summer with Briley “graduating” from preschool. I actually cried! She will be starting Kindergarten in just a couple of weeks. She will go from 8 to 3 every day, right here in our neighborhood. This will be a big change for her and for our family, but we are excited for her. She is already reading very well, so I would say she is definitely ready! We went shopping and picked out her backpack and school supplies, and she is all ready to go. I am not sure who enjoyed that more, Mom or daughter! Of course we don’t exactly need to pull out the fall clothes yet since it is still 98 degrees and feels like 104!

Blake started out the summer learning to walk and now he is a pro! He climbs on top of everything and goes up and down stairs like a champ. He is a very active toddler and also a very loud one! He is talking up a storm, although we can’t understand most of it! He really enjoys making his brother and sister laugh and is becoming quite a ham. He is a very happy baby and a joy to be around (most of the time).

Braden is doing great and especially in the pool! He learned to swim this summer with the help of Coach Dad and lots of practice, and loves to go to the pool. He loves to do anything active and doesn’t mind breaking a sweat, which is most of the time! He finally got a big bed and is loving it. He makes his bed every morning without being asked! He was in a toddler bed up until a few weeks ago and could barely fit in it! We went ahead and got bunk beds, but he is just sleeping on the twin until Blake gets a little bigger. We tried moving him into Blake’s room but Blake woke up at 5 am and wanted to talk and play, so that didn’t last. He and Briley will continue sharing a room for a while longer!

Our family enjoyed a trip to Nashville to visit my family and play with cousins in July. We flew and they did great. The kids LOVE to go on the airplane. After we got home, Braden kept asking to go back on an airplane. Little did he know how much it costs! After Nashville, we got to go to the Waddill Waterloo, AKA, Doug’s parents’ lakehouse on Lake LBJ in Kingsland, TX. We had a wonderful time relaxing, taking boat rides, playing games, going swimming, seeing Granny, taking naps, and entertaining ourselves with one small container of toys and NO TV!!! I know, it is a shocker but we survived. I will admit that Doug and I did watch a movie one night on the laptop though! (Did you expect us to go that long without a movie???) After we got back, Braden kept asking if we could go to the lake. He just LOVES the lake.

The kids and I just returned from visiting my college friend Carrie in New Orleans and yes, I survived a road trip with all three of them! We did have one set back as my van died on the side of I 12 but it just gave us an excuse to stay a day longer and get a new alternator to boot. So now it is back to being at home for the last few days of summer. . .

"Wheee!"

Our "Queen"!

We love you all and miss you. Hope all is well with you and come see us soon!