The Biological Need to Throw Your Child...

The biological need I speak of pertains only to dads. My dad did it, and now Donnie is carrying on the tradition of throwing his children and freaking out his wife. :) We've had so much fun in our "redneck pool" this summer, and one of our evening traditions is to go for a swim after dinner. This always leads to the girls requesting for Dad to throw them and for me to do the "mom gasp" over and over again.  It's a rite of passage, I suppose,  but that doesn't mean I have to understand it.

Sydni catching some air.

She becomes braver with each toss, and attempts to do "tricks" midair.

Makki has no fear, too. (Much to mommy's chagrin.)

4th of July...Without the Fireworks

Due to the drought conditions in Lubbock County, we were not allowed to shoot fireworks this year.  Although the girls (and I'm sure every MALE in the county, including my husband) were disappointed, I actually WASN'T. As a paranoid, morbid mother, 4th of July freaks me out. I'm always fearing the impending danger that could befall my children amidst explosives.  Call me crazy and unpatriotic, but my "have no fear" children are not to be trusted around fireworks. :) Anywhoo, back to what we actually did sans fireworks - we did what any true American families do and cooked out in our backyard.  The Bennetts came over to celebrate with us, and as always, we had a great time with them. Here are a few pics from our get-together.

Syd and Belle - just a swingin'

Mr. ALL BOY, Beau Bennett

The Gals sporting red, white and blue

Makki - always with messy hair, no matter WHAT I do to it! ;)

Mr. ALL BOY, playing in the dogs' water! LOL!

We hit up the park after cooking out

He's a cute little guy!

DRUM ROLL, PLEASE!

Introducing, HART BABY # THREE!

Or as I like to call him/her - LITTLE NUGGET!

For some odd reason, the first question we've been getting is - "Did you plan this?" I'm not quite sure WHY that matters, because it isn't really relative at this point (I mean, the NUGGET is in there - planned or not), but YES and NO.  Yes, because I've never given up the "itch" for another baby (and certainly wasn't doing anything to "prevent" another baby), and NO because we weren't charting, planning or using a book to conceive.  That also brings me the the other question I'm asked on a daily basis - "You want this one to be a boy, right?"  That's a loaded question too, because I was the second girl in the equation that is my family, and I'm pretty sure people wanted me to be a boy. It's natural, and I get it, but I still wouldn't want to here my mother say "I SOOOO wanted you to be a BOY." (And to her credit, she's never ONCE said that! Love ya, Mom.) So, I don't want to go on record saying, "Yes, this one better be a DADGUM BOY. Who wants another girl? Yuck!" Because THAT'S not true. Little, baby girls are the most PRECIOUS gift and Lord knows I know how to take care of baby girls.  I just want a HEALTHY baby to cuddle and love, and that's the God's-honest truth.  Donnie obviously would enjoy a boy, but he's said the same thing. It's just cool we are having another little one when we thought we were finished!   But you know what happens when you try to tell God YOUR plans for how your life should go....we've both learned that you keep your mouth shut and let HIM guide you down the crazy path that is this blessed LIFE.

   Another detail that is very cool about this baby is that it is due on my grandmother's birthday - February 24th.  My Mamaw passed away this year after a long-fought battle with cancer.  Learning that the Nugget is due on her birthday made me really feel that she is watching over us and enjoying being with her maker.  I miss her. She loved her great grandchildren and this little turkey would also be loved and adored by her as well.

A baby that is due in February is a baby that has a very LONG time to get here, according to Sydni and Makki.  They are SO excited and bombard me with questions daily.  My stomach is already poking out there and I know it will be a very AWESOME day when they can finally feel that first kick. Makki lays her head on me everyday, trying to "hear" the baby. It's so sweet! Sydni will be a much-needed helper and is already gearing up to be the "best big sister EVER"...in her words. (Makenzi had to remind her that, "duh, you are already a big sister, Sydni.") I'm pretty sure this little one's feet will never touch the ground. She/He will constantly have a sister carrying it on their hip. I can't wait to see them in action with this little one! 

So that's what's new in our world.  We are incredibly blessed and would love your prayers for this new addition. We have a long road ahead of us, but I know with the support of our friends & family, we can get through anything. (You've helped us prove that time and time again...this little guy wouldn't exist, otherwise. ;)

A Little Behind...

I haven't posted since MARCH, so I guess I'm more than just a LITTLE behind! We are in the thick of summer and loving every minute of our time off. I guess I'll use this post to catch everyone up from March to NOW, but if you have me on Facebook, you pretty much know most of our exciting news (but I'll save a seperate post for THAT). So here are the past four months in a nutshell...

Makki graduated from Pre-K and is eagerly awaiting the start of Kindergarten. (She already has a backpack! LOL!)

Sydni had a super-cool, Justin Bieber-themed birthday party at Main Event to turn SEVEN. (Where has the time gone?)

The girls went to Vacation Bible School for a week and didn't burn the church down. Whoo-hoo!

Daddy took us on a very fun vacation to the exotic Dallas, TX, where we went to Six Flags, Hurricane Harbor and the insanely awesome Medieval Times. It was "a knight to remember" for sure!

So that's about it for April, May and June. Stay tuned for the next post for the BIG news. :)