We love our Aunt Corie!

Happy Birthday, Corie!! January 28th is a very special day for the Warren Family. Dee's birthday, Corie's birthday and mine and Shaun's anniversary are all on the same day! Corie we are so happy Shad married you and gave us the most wonderful sister-in-law ever! It's been fun to have babies so close together, commiserate about the hard times of parenthood, and see our kids enjoy their cousins. You are such a fun aunt and always willing to take the time to make my kids feel so special and they know they are loved by you! I can never live up to your mani-pedi's or your glamorous photo shoots. You are so good at using all your fabulous talents in making a wonderful home and life for your family. Caleb and Janie (and Shad, too) are blessed to have you! We love you more than you know and miss you tons! Here is Corie...........

Halloween with Janie.

Washington D.C. with Abby.

Corie meeting Sadie Jane.

I love this picture! Corie is a dental hygienist and the tooth authority in our house according to my kids. Abby had her 1st loose tooth and she would not let me touch it, BUT when Aunt Corie wanted to try she said OK and without any drama had Abby's tooth out in a snap! Definitely the hero that week!

When we told the family Abby would be a "big sister".

Abby and Aunt Corie creating a sidewalk chalk birthday cake for Abby's 3rd birthday.

Corie and Lily at the Cabin.

Corie having fun at the Dallas Zoo.

10 wonderful years!!

Today is our 10th wedding anniversary! I can't believe it has been 10 years. I guess the old saying is true....time flies when you're having fun. We have been blessed in so many ways and for that I'm so grateful. We have done so much together in the last 10 years. We have had 4 jobs, 4 houses, lived in 4 different cities, and had 4 adorable kids. Not to mention Shaun completing his MBA and me re-learning how to manage all that comes with a home and kids each time a new baby came. I can't think of a person I would rather be on this journey with! Love you Shaun!

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

One of the great things about having a blog is that I can publicly say how much I love my family, and today I want to say happy birthday and I love you to my father-in-law, Dee. My father-in-law is a great guy with many talents and one of them is winning the hearts of all who come to know him. He is patient, kind, and soft spoken. He (along with lots of help from Marcene) raised great boys and for that I'm eternally grateful. Dee taught Shaun so many of the things that I love most about my husband; a great work ethic, loyalty, and responsibility. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of my kids with Grandpa Dee.

Grandpa and Abby in Washington, D.C.

Abby & Lily with a darling doll house bookshelf Grandpa made for them.

Grandpa and baby Lily at the Cabin.

Grandpa saying Hello to Spencer Dee.

Grandpa and new little Sadie Jane.

Sadie Jane and Janie watching a movie with Grandpa.

Happy Birthday Nanna!!

So for 11 years while I lived in Utah I would ask my mom, "Is there anything you would particularly like for you birthday?" and every year she would answer, "I just want you here." And of course a plane ticket was a little out of the budget so this year I thought for her birthday we would suprise her (since going to see her no longer requires a plane ticket) and show up at her house for her birthday, and she was so surprised!

Dad and Lis helped us keep the arrival time open and top seceret. We had a great weekend with our wonderful Nanna. On Saturday, Lis and I took Mom for a girls day out and got pedicures and lunch while Poppa, Shaun, and Eliseo played with the kids. Later that night, Oma & Opa treated us all to dinner at our favortie Mexican place, La Rosita's, and we enjoyed having a big table full of family! On Sunday, we made Cafe Rio Salad and birthday cake to celebrate and sing a grand "Happy Birthday" to our Nanna.

Mom, I love you! You are the best and I've learned so much from you. You inspire me to learn new things and never be afraid to try. Thanks for all the sacrifices you have made and continue to make for me and my family! I only now, as a mom, realize all that you gave to me growing up. Thank you , thank you, thank you!

Smarty Pants

Spencer started pre-school this week, and he is the happiest kid on earth! I know I'm a little behind in getting him into a pre-school but to make a long story short between the move and changing our minds about sending him to Kindergarten next year (he has an August birthday and originally we were going to wait a year to put him in school) I just wasn't sure what would work. There was an opening at a school were several little boys in our Ward go and their moms loved the school, so it seemed the perfect fit and we signed up.

Spence got to get a new backpack and this is what he chose! It's really fun to get to see all that comes with having a boy. I usually ask the kids to look through hand-me-down backpacks to see if they find something they like but I just didn't think Shaun would go for Spencer using a Hello Kitty or purple butterfly back pack! Do you think you can get beat up for that kinda stuff in pre-school???

Spencer's class was upstairs and he felt so big walking up to his class. The school is really big for a pre-school and has separate teachers for PE, music, library, and Spanish. He loves that he gets to take his lunch to school like Abby and Lily. We visited the school mid December to check it out and get him registered and since then he has been counting the days until Christmas break was over. On the way to school he said, " I can't believe it's actually here, my very first day of school." He was so sincerely happy! He is such a great kid, and I'm sad to that I'm going to have to share my days with him with the schools he'll be going to for the next 13+ years. Makes me think of the little saying that motherhood is the only occupation were the goal is to work yourself out of a job. OXOXOX to my little Smarty Pants!!

A New Year with new accomplishments!

We are excited to announce that we have a new bike rider in the family! Lily has taken her training wheels off and is riding like a pro.

Here is Lily cruisin' around the cul-de-sac. She did so many circles I'm not sure that she didn't get dizzy. The weather has been beautiful and we are loving the time outside to burn a little extra energy.

We have a great walking path that runs through our neighborhood and goes right by our house. The kids like to use the path the speed down on their bikes. Lily is taking her first solo ride down the trail.

Lily and Shaun coming home from a ride on the trail. This is the back of our house. We love looking out to the green belt and walking path.

Way to go Lily!!!