My adorable boys!

I KNOW I'm biased, but I really do have the cutest boys!

I love dressing them up identical for church!

Let's start with my littlest guy. Christian has his 2 month check-up last week and he is doing well and growing strong. He measured in at 23.5 inches tall and weighed in at 11 lb 12.5 oz which puts him in the 50% for weight and 75% for height. He slept through the night twice last week and we hope this trend continues. He gives amazing smiles and coos at us and is a lot of fun to be around. Last week he had a cold though, which was really sad, but he's feeling better now although he still has a cough.

He is so alert and awake!

Unless he's sleepy of course!

He gives fabulous smiles, and often sneers.

There's nothing better than a baby sleeping on your chest

Now on to my most mischievous boy. Brian has so much energy! He loves preschool twice a week and had a lot of fun last week when there was Father's night at his school. He and Paul came home singing and dancing really silly songs and I'm glad they had such a good time. Brian's favorite thing these days is playing the Wii. We got several new games for Christmas and after watching me workout every morning he wants to play himself and that usually lets me get my shower in so I let him.

Looking out the window of the playground at the park

Relaxing at the playground at the mall

Flying high at the trampoline at the mall. He had NO FEAR and flew amazingly high.

Kid A (Aaron) is doing great. He loves his kindergarten class and one of his good friends that is in his class at church and school moved just 4 houses away from us. Aaron and I are reading "Little House in the Big Woods" and are having a lot of fun taking turns reading a page each. Aaron also loves the Wii and is really good at most of the games. He likes to do his exercise on the Wii Fit Plus and we look forward to the weather getting warmer so he can ride his bike.

He also flew high at the mall, but was a lot more scared of the height and was happy being closer to the ground.

Going down the slide at the playground

Last year he couldn't reach this...when did he get so big?

Paul is amazing. His big project at work, where he was the Project Manager responsible for putting together an updated website for the ExxonMobil Chemical Company just went live this past week. The site is running great and we are really proud of his hard work. Check it out HERE. He is starting his second semester of his MBA program at Rice and is enjoying what he his learning and getting good grades. He works really hard at church, school and work and is still a great husband and dad. We miss him when he's not here, but we are so proud of him and love him a lot.

He's the best and he's all mine!

I am working on being more organized and am doing well, but still have a long way to go. I've been working out everyday with the Wii EA Sports Active and Wii Fit Plus. I've written a blog entry on my other site about working out though, so you can check that out if you'd like. I need to make more freezer meals, so for those that are here in the Katy area, I'd love to do a group freezer meal event. Let me know if you are interested.

As for other exciting events, Paul's sister Sara came in town this past weekend and we've had so much fun playing games and letting her hold the baby. We welcome any other friends or family members who want to come hang out.

Thanks for visiting. We love you!

Well, it's time to go make dinner now so I'd better run! Write comments!

Christmas, New Years and What not!

I started a post about Christmas, but didn't get the pics off the camera...then a week later I started a post about New Years, but again hadn't gotten the camera...now it's been another whole week without me working on the camera. I'll just post what I have and you'll have to deal with no pictures!

We've had a great 2009 and are so excited for 2010. This was our first Christmas with just our immediate family and we were happy having a relaxing day of opening presents and being together. We had a potluck dinner with some of our friends and it was totally a full house (8 adults and 11 kids) with so much food! We had a great time and feel very blessed to have such good friends.

I was so happy to have Paul home the week before and after Christmas, especially since Aaron and Brian didn't have school then either so our whole family was together. We spent time working on puzzles, playing our new Wii games, shopping, eating, reading and just spending time together.

Now a new year has started and we've sat down and made New Years Resolutions, both as a family and each member individually. We hope to do a lot of reading, exercising and spending lots of time together as a family. I hope to update this blog at least 2 times a month whether we do anything super interesting or not, just as a way of journaling our life. Plan on checking often just to see what we are up to.

Christmas Letter 2009

We decided not to send out as many Christmas cards this year, so I'm posting it here for those of you who don't get one. Enjoy!

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family, Christmas 2009

This Christmas season finds the Thomas Family happy, healthy and very much blessed. Here’s our update since last year.

Last Christmas we spent our holidays in Houston with Jen’s family. We greatly missed having Jen’s father around but we still had a good time and were grateful to spend time with Jen’s Grandparents. A few days after Christmas, Grandma Fuller passed away so Jen and her mom and siblings hopped on a plane to fly to Sacramento, California for the funeral. Paul stayed home with the boys and had a good time with them. The week after that funeral, Paul’s Grandfather died so our whole family flew to Salt Lake City, Utah then drove up to Pocatello, Idaho for another funeral. While funerals are not the best way to start off a new year, being with family is and we greatly enjoyed the extra time we were able to spend with our loved ones.

We traveled two other times this year, both to visit Paul’s family. In June the whole family got together for a family vacation in Kawai’i, Hawaii and had a great time. We spent a whole week relaxing and playing together and loved it. In October we flew to Salt Lake City, Utah again to participate in the wedding of Michelle and Andrew (Paul’s brother). Again, we enjoyed being with our family and are glad we were able to stay so close to them despite living far away.

The biggest news for our family is that Christian John Thomas was born on November 9, 2009 at 11:52am and weighed 7 lbs 10 oz and was 19.5 inches long. He is a gorgeous little baby and is such a joy. Although he currently sleeps and eats most of the time we’ve seen several smiles and are so glad he’s a part of our family

Brian (3) has had a great year. He attends preschool on Mondays and Tuesdays for 3 hours and really enjoys it. He has gotten potty trained. He loves to read and play and while he is very strong-willed he is also very kind and sensitive and is a wonderful big brother to Christian

Aaron (5) still amazes us with all he can do. In the spring he played on his first t-ball team and had a lot of fun then this summer he and Brian took swimming lessons and Aaron made great progress putting his face under the water for the first time. In August he started kindergarten which here in Houston is a full day program. He rides the school bus, has lots of friends in our neighborhood, and is a happy healthy little boy.

Jen was pregnant most of the year and felt like that defined her, but she had an easy pregnancy and recovered after Chris’s birth very easily so she can’t complain. While she didn’t do much engineering or teaching sign language this year, she kept busy with her family and church callings and blogging and on facebook. As a part of our Young Women Presidency she attended the week long girls camp held this summer despite being 6 months pregnant at the time. She was sad to be released from her calling in YW this fall but has learned to love being a part of our ward Relief Society presidency. It’s quite a difference having responsibility for the women versus the youth, but she enjoys the women she works with and is learning a lot.

Paul is still working for ExxonMobil and has worked on several high profile projects and has gained great experience as a project manager. His big news is that he began an MBA program at Rice University this fall. Between his church calling of ward mission leader, his work at Exxon and his schooling he keeps very busy but is most happy when he gets to spend time with his wife and three sons.

As Christmas approaches again we are very grateful for our Savior, Jesus Christ and we celebrate His birth by remembering all He has done for us. We express love and gratitude for how blessed we are to have such wonderful friends and family and so many blessings in our life. Merry Christmas to all and we hope to keep in touch with each of you all year long (check out and comment on our blog for more updates)

Love,

The Thomas Family

Paul, Jen, Aaron, Brian and Christian

It's a busy time of year

We've had a busy few weeks since Thanksgiving and thought we'd share the latest update on what we've been doing.

One week after Thanksgiving Grammy and Grandpa Thomas came to visit. We had a great visit with them although mostly we just sat at home and chatted with each other. We visited Rice University so they could see where Paul goes to school and Paul and I employed them as a babysitter so we could get some Christmas shopping done for the boys, but other than that we just hung out and let them hold the baby.

They must have brought their Utah weather with them because the day after they got here it snowed. Really snowed - in Houston! The boys were pretty excited to have us build them a little snowman and throw some snowballs. While it's nothing compared to what Grammy and Grandpa get in Utah, it was one of the biggest snowstorms we've had in Houston in many years.

The real reason for Paul's parents to visit was for Dave to participate in Christian's baby blessing. Sunday afternoon Paul, his father, our home teacher and our Bishop stood in a circle and gave Christian a name and a blessing. Chis cried throughout the blessing, but it was still a beautiful blessing and a beautiful event for our family. My mom and our friends Julie and Justin were there too and we all had a nice dinner at our house after. It it always fun to celebrate with family and friends!

This past Tuesday was Brian's preschool Christmas Program. He sang "Joy to the World", "Santa Clause is coming to town" and "We wish you a Merry Christmas." He did a great job and it was a lot of fun to see all the 3 yr old in his school singing and behaving as 3 yr olds often do!

Wednesday was Chris' 1 month birthday. I can't believe he's already a month old. He's getting bigger all the time and is doing great. He has more awake periods now and we've been able to see several genuine smiles which we love. He sleeps a lot better when he's upright (in his car seat or swing, or in the baby sling I wear) so we have started putting him to sleep in his car seat so that I can get more sleep at night. When I wake up every 2-3 hours to feed him, the sleep deprivation starts to add up and I turn into a grumpy mommy, but when he gives me 4 hours at night I become a better mommy and am much more patient. He's a joy to have in our family and both boys love him a lot!

Thursday night we woke the kids up shortly after we had put them in bed so that they could see Santa Clause riding through our neighborhood on the local Firetruck. He was checking to see if our boys were naughty or nice, and I guess they are nice cause he threw out candy to them and they were really excited about it!

Lastly, today was our Ward Christmas Party and our boys were one of the 12 talents for the 12 days of Christmas. The two of them stood at the front of the congregation and sang "Joy to the World" for everyone to hear. They did a great job and I was really proud of them.

We're almost ready for Christmas and I'm looking forward to having all 4 of my boys home the week before and after Christmas. I'm sure we'll update you then on everything we did.

Thanksgiving and more

Hi Everyone, Chris here, and I thought I'd write my first blog entry now that I've been in the family almost 3 weeks. This past Thursday was Thanksgiving and evidently it's a big deal.

We went over to Grandma Fuller's house for dinner and hung out there all day.

While they

were eating this

I was sleeping.

I woke up just in time for a quick photo session (I get lots of those these days)

and then after eating myself unconscious again we went for a walk.

We ended up at the gazebo where Mommy and Daddy got engaged and had a quick family picture taken.

Yesterday was Mommy and Daddy's 7th wedding anniversary
and I sure am glad that I was born into such a wonderful family with parents who love each other so much. Thanks Mom and Dad for starting our family 7 years ago!

Update from the past few months

I know I had a good excuse to not blog lately (preggers and new baby and all), but we've had a lot happen since school started, so I'll try to do a quick catch up of the highlights from September and October.

Shortly after Aaron started kindergarten, Brian started preschool. Brian attends Holy Covenant Methodist Church Child Development Center on Monday and Tuesday mornings from 9-noon and loves it. He's part of the frog class and tells us all the time that he's a frog. He really enjoys his teacher and his class and I appreciate having just a few hours without him at home, although I rarely get to relax as I am typically doing laundry or having a Relief Society Presidency meeting. As long as he's happy though, we are happy!

Speaking of Relief Society, in September I was released from working with the Young Women in my church and called into the Relief Society Presidency. I was very sad to leave the YW program, as I had really enjoyed the association with those awesome girls, but just a few weeks after being released I received this new calling. Having not attended RS in several years I was quite nervous at first, but I am learning to love this calling just as much as my previous callings and am gaining a testimony of the importance of the RS program too.

Paul has been super busy with work and school, but is enjoying it all. He typically has class on Monday and Wednesday nights, plus one Saturday a month and other random times. His work schedule has been pretty crazy and most of October he would go back to the office after class ended and stay until midnight. The boys and I didn't see him for a while and we missed him, but we managed pretty well and are glad his schedule is a little lighter now.

Labor day was the first day Paul and the kids had off since school started and we were very excited to spend the day together and play. Paul had planned out the entire day and my mom came and joined us for many of the activities. We went for a bike ride, played on the playground at Aaron's school, did some arts and crafts, played backyard games and on and on. It was a lot of fun and we really enjoy spending time together as a family.

One of my favorite things that happened in September was that Brian got potty trained. He was so much easier to potty train than Aaron, I really only had to work with him for 2-3 days and he got it. We still have the occasional accident, but he's done a great job and we are super proud of him!

Our big excursion in October was a quick trip to Utah for Paul's brother's wedding. Andrew and Michelle were married in the Salt Lake City temple and the ceremony was absolutely beautiful. We only got to stay in Utah for a day and a half and we wish we could have stayed longer to be with our family, but we are glad we got to spend as much time with them as we could. Congratulations again to Andrew and Michelle, we love you both.

Lastly, here is a picture from Halloween. I went as an engineer, and was surprised that I couldn't button up the sides of my coveralls at all, but being 9 month pregnant at the time I shouldn't have been surprised. Aaron was a fireman and Brian was a cowboy. Our church did a trunk or treat activity that started with dinner, lots of games inside the building, then going from trunk to trunk in the parking lot to get candy. The boys had a great time and got lots of great loot!

There were lots of other great events in September and October, from my sister visiting, fun date nights, parent teacher conferences, a weekend at the lake and much more. We've been super busy and have had a great time. I can't believe November is almost over and so much has gone on. We'll try to update more with pictures of Chris often, but until then, know that the Texas Thomas Family is doing well and is happy!

Letter: to Christian John Thomas from Daddy

Dear Christian:

Welcome to our family. You've been with us for a few days now and we are so excited that you get to be part of the Thomas family. You were born at 11:52am on Monday, November 9, 2009 and we will celebrate your birth every year on this day. Let me tell you about how it happened.

We showed up early at the hospital, as we had an appointment to bring you to us today. The nurses were very nice as they hooked mom up to the monitors and gave her an IV. Mom was already having some contractions but they gave her some medicine (oxytocin) to induce labor and bring you to us quicker. After about 2 hours the doctor broke the bag of waters you had been living in then another doctor gave mom an epidural so that she wouldn't have any pain. (It was a FABULOUS epidural too...mom is still raving about it!)

About 2 hours later mom started feeling the need to push you out and less than 30 minutes after that you entered this world. Your mom and grandma and I were so excited to watch you be born and we were amazed at how awake and alert you were. The nurses weighed and measured you and you weighed 7 lbs 10 oz and were 19.5 inches long. We think that you were perfect. We got to hold you and take lots of pictures of you and mommy gave you some of her milk for the first time then the nurses took you away to clean you up and run your first tests.

Other than having some fast breathing and being so sleepy you didn't want to eat much for a day or so, we didn't have any problems and both you and mom were healthy and happy. We took you home on Wednesday, November 11, 2009 and you got to meet your 2 brothers who were so excited to meet and hold you for the first time. Grandma has been around helping out and I have been able to stay home from work all week long and cuddle with you lots.

We are going to have so much fun together and our whole family is excited that you are here with us. Your mom and I promise to take very good care of you and teach you everything you need to learn to be happy. We love you and we are glad you are ours. Welcome to the Thomas Family.

Love,

Daddy.

Aaron's first week and other updates

Two posts in one week...I'm sure everyone is so excited!

As most of you know Aaron started kindergarten this week. Despite 2 years of preschool I was a very nervous mom, especially about letting him ride the bus and being at a big elementary school for full day kindergarten. But he wasn't scared or nervous at all and had a great time. I did follow the bus to school the first day and parents are allowed to walk their kids to class the first 3 days of school so I happily went to ease all my fears. He seems to have a great teacher and even has a friend from church in his class. Here's some pictures of him before, then after school.

That's a sign language "K" to show he's in kindergarten

He later told me I didn't need to come Tuesday or Wednesday, because he already knows what to do and doesn't need any help. That gives me conflicting emotions. I'm proud I've raised such a smart independent son, but he should ALWAYS need me!

Brian had his 3 yr old check up today and did great. He impressed the doctor by reading all the signs posted around the room and was his funny giggly self. He was in the 75th percentile for height and the 90th percentile for weight. He weighs the same as Aaron despite the 2.5 yr age difference, but the doctor didn't seem too concerned about it. Both my boys are growing up so fast!

Lastly, today I got a haircut. I had been growing my hair out for over a year and am planning on sending my hair to the Locks of Love Foundation. I'm loving my new haircut and while I know it will take some getting used to, (I've never had it this short before) I'm very happy for the change. Here's some before and after photos of my hair. (including a belly shot for those who have been asking for it!)



That's it for now. Hopefully now that school has started I'll find a little more time to keep this updated, but with the baby coming in November who knows how crazy life will be.

Summer 2009 Update

I thought about doing an update for June, one for July and one for August, but decided to just lump it all into one. Sorry if it's long!

June began with Aaron finishing preschool and us taking a weekend trip to Lake Conroe. We had a lot of fun on the boat and got some work done and had a great trip. Then we went to Hawaii, but we already blogged about that. The end of June Aaron and Brian took some swimming lessons at a local high school and that continued into July.

For Independence Day we were up at the lake and had fun watching the fireworks over the lake. It can be so relaxing and peaceful there. On the 4th, Brian refused to take a nap and then fell asleep during dinner, still eating his corn on the cob. I tried to post the video we took of it, but couldn't get it to work. It really was hillarious!

In July our youth group also had an activity where they spread mulch at Mom Fuller's house then had a swim party. It was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun.




Also in July, the Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey Circus was in town and we took the boys with another family. Brian tolerated it, Aaron enjoyed it and Jen and Paul loved it. It really was amazing some of the things they could do, from the trapeze artists, to the motorcycles to the trained elephants. It was quite impressive.



At the end of July we were lucky enough to spend a Saturday in Kemah, TX with Aunt Nancy and Uncle Tom and their boats. It was beautiful water, beautiful weather and fabulous company.

The only thing that marred our excursion was Brian falling and getting a black eye. He cried for a while then took a nap, but it never bothered him after that. He was happy to tell people he had a "shiner" and that he "fell on a boat." I had to document it though!

The first weekend of August we spent at Lake Conroe again having fun. Saturday Paul and one of my Dad's friends helped repair the deck at the house and worked really hard but it looks great and we won't have to worry about it falling apart any more.

The first week of August Paul started his MBA program at Rice University with his week of Immersion as described in the blog Paul wrote last week. The boys and I missed him, but we survived with help from my mom and some great friends. The next week though I was off to our church's girls camp with my mom watching the boys and Paul sleeping at her house at night. Camping in Houston in August while over 6 months pregnant wasn't fun, but I had a great time with the girls and other leaders and I'm glad I went.



I got back just in time for Brian's 3rd Birthday and I can't believe how big he's getting. He actually seemed older after I was gone for a week. He got lots of great presents and loved his grasshopper pie.

Aaron will start kindergarten on Monday so I promise to post next week about how that all turns out. He's totally excited and I'm a nervous Mom. I'm sure he'll do great and have a great time though. That's it for now. Sorry for having not blogged in a while, but as you can see, life was pretty busy this summer. I'm sure we will all have to adjust to a different way of life now that school's starting. Wish us luck!