A Trip Back in Time Part 1 - Easter (Second Half)

I am behind in posting pictures so I am just going to post them anyway and not care that they are late. Kuddos to all of you who faithfully post and are never behind... Someday...maybe...but probably not...

Here are some pictures from Easter. It was a busy day, but we never felt rushed or stressed. It was very enjoyable. We woke up and opened up our Easter baskets, had our traditional orange cinnamon rolls, went to church with Meme and Grampy, had Papa Murphy's pizza (possibly a new stress free Easter tradition), played store, and pirates, and store, and more store in the living room with Meme, and finally drove Meme and Grampy to the airport. This was a great end to a weekend full of family, friends, birthday, celebrating Jesus, and watching our kids play, play, play!

Meme and Grampy celebrated with our family this year which hasn't happened in awhile. The Easter Bunny was very good to us all! They got some fun stuff!

More important than the Easter Bunny, it is so wonderful to actually be able to talk to Aidan about Jesus and what he did for us. He is starting to understand what Easter is really about. He knows that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and that he rose again. He is a very smart little boy and remembers everything. He definitely gets that from his father.

Asher doing my hair.... I remember doing my mom's hair and having the greatest time! Jerrica and I would put all sorts of barrettes in it and just have a blast!

The kids and Daddy playing Don't Break the Ice - a game our family played a lot growing up!

This was a really sweet time for Aidan and Grampy. They made eggs in a nest, which is something that Tom remembered his grandma making growing up. Grampy made the nests and then Aidan loved putting the eggs in them. They had so much fun!

Meme and Grampy - what a cute couple!


Mommy and Daddy - even cuter couple! :)

We opened some Easter presents from Grandma and Grandpa Buss after church.

The Easter Bunny hid some great eggs in the backyard.

Once Asher figured out how to open them and that there was candy inside it was all over. Grampy and Aidan sorting through the loot.


I'm not sure who was having more fun - Meme or Ashy?

This was so much fun to watch! Meme and Aidan played store with Aidan's new cash register and had such a blast together! Matt will have to post the video soon... It was hilarious!

It was a wonderful Easter weekend. Thanks for visiting us Meme and Grampy!

Inner Space Caverns

I was able to take Kaleb to Inner Space Caverns in Georgetown for the second time and the kids for the first time. Dad works there on Fridays so it was nice for him to see the kids and for us to get in free! All in all it was a lot of fun. Asher was a little too courageous at times and made me nervous getting too close to the edge! Both of the kids were very good, although Kaleb and I got a work out from holding them during the tour. We took a lot of pictures, but here are the highlights. We also LOVED the gift shop. It had some really neat things that Aidan loved, especially the polished rocks. And the 72 degrees in the cave was a nice change from the 100+ outside. Grandads popcorn snack at the end was probably the kids favorite part!

Asher and Kaleb in the little train heading down to the cave. Asher wasn't quite sure what was going on! Kaleb did her hair today to and it looked really cute!

Aidan and Mommy heading down to the cave. Doesn't Aidan look like such a handsome big boy? :)

The cave was amazing!

Aidan loved the soda straws from the ceiling and did ask me if people could drink out of them. How cute!

This formation was cool because it was very sparkly and it looked like nice clean snow. It was neat!

Kaleb is such a good uncle! This was my view for most of the tour. It was very nice to have help and I don't think I could have done it without him!

We had a really fun time visiting Grandad at work and exploring the cave!

A conversation with Asher...

Asher is becoming quite the chatter box. Her favorite things to say (or ask) are "What's that noise" and "What are you doing." The noise question comes up everytime there is something outside like a car or lawn mower. Now obviously these need a little translating to understand, but she knows what she is asking and we know what she is saying. Aidan helps translate for her sometimes. My brother did that for me and I'm sure Tiff did it for her brother Jake (which was probably her just saying what she wanted Jake to say). It is great to watch Aidan and Asher interact more and more. Unfortunately there is a lot of fighting over things due to the inability to share. They have also gotten into the habit of wrestling every once and a while. It is great fun. Asher really knows how to use her weight while Aidan tries to use his strength. It usually goes well until someone gets a 'boo-boo.'

Here are a couple of videos of Asher last night at the dinner table.

A Special Thanks To An Amazing Husband

With Matt being the more entertaining one, most blogs lately have come from him. I just wanted to carve out a little spot to tell the world (or whoever reads our blog) what an amazingly wonderful husband I have. I really feel so incredibly blessed to have a man who loves to be a daddy, is a partner in this whole parenting adventure, is a super supportive husband, and to top it all off never complains if what I cook doesn't turn out or if the house is messy. Does it get any better than that?

These past 16 weeks of you watching the kids without complaints every Tuesday night (which included baths, jammies, preparing the dish to bring to small group, and then leading our small group all while I am at my training class), some half day Saturdays which meant I trained for a few hours and then wanted to nap for a couple too, as well as getting to the race super early with a 4 year old, racing to every transition, letting me nap for several hours, and then surprising me with a massage gift certificate..... you amaze me.

Thank you for being so truly dedicated to your family, for loving me unconditionally, and for being such a rock for myself and our kids. I couldn't have done this without you!

I love you Matthew!!

The Race Around the World

I keep my promises. Here is the video clips of Tiff at the Danskin Triathlon last Sunday. It seems a little mean to take two hours of hard work and squeeze it into a minute and a half.

My Amazing Wife...

As some of you know Tiff competed in her first triathlon today. She did the Danksin Triathlon in Austin. She was a bit nervous but looked calm before she hit the water this morning. Aidan and I hoofed it to find her before she started and scrambled to all the transition areas to see her in between events. She did awesome! It was great to be able to be there and cheer her on. I know a lot of you would have been there for her too if you lived here, so we cheered for you. Aidan would yell "Go Momma Go, Go Momma Go" whenever he would see her (with the occasional "Go Tiffany Go"). He did great also considering all the running around we did. The kicker at the end was the 2 mile walk back to the car.

All and all Tiff did a great job and really enjoyed it. Her total time was 2 hours and 17 minutes which included two 5 minute transition times. I am working on a highlight reel for your viewing pleasure. It will be posted soon.

Here we are before she got in the water, so this was about 7:30 this morning. The little yellow matchbox car in Aidan's hand was his entertainment for several hours.

"What's that? Mommy's riding 12 miles on her bike? I think I'll have an ice cream cone"

Here are Tiff and Aidan at the finish line. She promised to put her medal on him when she finished.

Saturday Surprise

Last Saturday morning we woke to a surprise. Tiff saw it first as she was getting ready to go biking. We snatched Aidan out of his bed to show him and he said 'Wow.' In the field behind our house was a hot air balloon. I mean it was right there. After we showed Aidan from our bedroom window on the second floor we went outside to take a closer look. When we got outside there wasn't only the one in the field but five in all heading south to north. One balloon went by close enough that they said good morning to Aidan and I and we didn't have to yell to say good morning back to them. Here are some pictures and a video from the event.

Here is the first balloon. Objects in this picture are closer than they appear.

These three were behind the first one.

The checkered one had the people who said hello to us.

Here they are making their exit.

We've got a really big show tonight...

Well not a big show, but big news. No, no, no. No new babies. I am realizing that we have made a huge decision for our family and we really haven't announced it to everyone through our blog. We keep running into people either in person, on the phone, or via e-mail and we have to explain what changes we will be going through.

After some family budget meetings, pros and cons lists, doubting, excitement, nervousness, and what we hope is thorough planning we have come to a big decision. We feel that this decision is what is best for our family right now and will help us step into roles that we feel we are designed for.

Did you watch the 8 hour finale of The Celebrity Apprentice last night? It was hours of blah blah blah and then at 9:59 Trump announced the winner. Ridiculous. What kind of person would drag on an announcement that people are waiting on the edge of their seats for. I mean really?

Tired of waiting?

What was I talking about... Oh yes, our big news.

We have decided that Tiff will be staying home with the kids. She will finish out this school year and will not return to work after the summer. A lot of factors came into this decision. One of the more pressing was that Aidan has one year before he starts kindergarten and Tiff was really feeling like if she didn't do it now she would feel like she (and Aidan) lost out on time together.

I definitely feel that this wouldn't be possible without the financial strides that we have made since going through Dave Ramsey's course Financial Peace University. I highly recommend it to everyone. It doesn't matter if you are doing well with money or up to your ears in debt, you will get something out of the class. It has been a great blessing to our family and the fact that Tiff and I are on the same page about our finances makes it that much better. Don't be like Congress, don't spend more than you make.

So the plan now is that Tiff is staying home until Asher goes to Kindergarten (4 years), and at that point we will have another family meeting and decide what we are feeling lead to do. I definitely don't want her to think that she has 4 years and then back to the sweat shop. That is a bridge that we will cross later.

Just to let you know she is very excited and nervous at that same time. She has never been a stay-at-home mom so she isn't sure that she will be able to do a good job with our kids. Who wouldn't want a teacher with a master's degree taking care of their kids for free. I know she will do an amazing job just like she has been an amazing mother while holding down a full time job.

Something our pastor said at our church men's retreat a couple of months ago lingers in my head today. "Don't make your wife go to work because you want a lifestyle you don't need." Or something to that effect. So we know we have to come to terms with not buying a bigger house within 4 years, not getting a 37" LCD Flat Screen HDTV (yes I stand in the electronics section at Walmart and dream), not buying a new car within 4 years, and having to be very diligent (and content) with what we have. If my wife feels a greater sense of purpose in doing what God designed her to do none of that stuff matters one bit.

So HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TIFFANY!!!

Mind you this photo was at the end of the day on Sunday and Asher was continuing her week long tour of fuss.

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Sometimes I can't believe that God has blessed me with two absolutely beautiful and wonderful children. Thank you both for letting me be your mommy!!! I love you so so so much!!!!

Aidan and Asher enjoying some watermelon.

Here are some recent pictures of them. We have a few from today but they haven't made if off our camera yet. Notice the lack of clothing on my little Texans. It is HOT here!

Happy Mother's Day Mom! I know I can't hug you today but I really really wish I could! I love you so much. Thank you for all you do and have done to help teach me what being a mom is all about. I know your absolute number one favorite thing in the world is your family and we love you so so much! Thanks for loving me unconditionally through all the ups and downs of these past 29 years. You are an awesome mom!!!!! xoxox

Notice my son's face in this picture.... Apparently he doesn't love getting his picture taken.

Mom, you have some big shoes to fill... xoxox

Happy Mother's Day also to everyone who has had a part in shaping mine and my children's lives. I hope today was wonderful!

Thank you Matt for the wonderful lunch you made for your Mom, Grandma, and I today too! It was wonderful. I know not just any man would make asparagus, ham, and cheese crepes, hashbrowns, and coffee cake for his wife. You are one of a kind baby...

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Meme and Grampy's visit

The kids were so excited that Meme and Grampy were coming up for a long weekend visit. Aidan talks to Meme on the phone almost every day, and has been eagerly awaiting a visit! It was a really great weekend. It sure felt a lot longer than a few days because we enjoyed a lot of fun, stress free times together. We even split up and did boy/girl things together which is really cool with one of each!

They arrived late Thursday night and Aidan and I made the trip to the airport. It was very late, but Aidan was a trooper and not at all grouchy! I thought he would fall asleep in the van on the way there but he was way too excited. On the way home he and Meme were total chatterboxes and didn't stop visiting the whole way home!

Thankfully Asher stirred some after we got home and I was able to go get her out of bed for a little cuddle time with Meme and Grampy. She was pretty happy too and went right to Meme and Grampy both without any hesitation.

Meme enjoying cuddling with a very sleepy Asher and an excited Aidan.

The next day Meme and Aidan played in the coffeehouse/fort/pirate ship and had a blast. They had such a sweet time playing together. They loved playing with Aidan's new birthday treasure chest from Grandad and Miss Gerry. They would throw the jewels out of the treasure chest onto the ground to keep the "bad pirates" out. Only the good pirates were allowed into the pirate ship!

Aidan, Meme, and Miss Gerry

Asher also had a great time playing outside. She is actually wearing one of Aidan's shirts and looks super cute!

Dad and Tom catching up in the backyard...

Friday morning we went out to breakfast at one of our all time favorite restaurants, The Monument Cafe in Georgetown. Grandma and Grandpa Moore loved this place and our whole family does too. It is the best and brings back great family memories!

Meme of course loved the bathtime and turned it and lotion time into a big huge laughfest. The kids love baths by Meme!

Friday night the boys went to a Round Rock Express game. They had a great time hanging out together and eating good food. The girls and our family friend Gretchen went to Maki for yummy sushi and then to Whole Foods. In our opinion it was the perfect night, but I bet the boys were glad they didn't have to tag along to that one. Sorry, no pictures! However, the girls ended the night watching the fireworks at Dell Diamond from our top balcony. Meme's animated reaction to the fireworks again had Asher cracking up!

Saturday morning Meme and Grampy had a fun time playing with the kids both inside and out. Some highlights were the sleeping bag hide and seek sessions and playing with Aidan's new scooter from Uncle Rob, Aunt Katy, and Cousin Robby.
I couldn't get them to stop moving long enough to take a picture so it is blurry!




Saturday was party day and went really well! I just love Jungle Java!

Aidan in a grandma sandwich...

After Aidan's party we went to see the Clydesdale horses at Dell Diamond. Actually, all we saw were their butts since it was dinner time and their hay was in the back of their stalls...

Another blog about Easter will be coming soon!!! Here is a preview of Tom's Grandma's eggs in a nest treat that he made with Aidan. They were yummy!

Happy 4th Birthday Aidan!

Happy 4th Birthday son! It has been such a joy being your mommy these past 4 years. You are such a wonderful, sweet, caring, intelligent, loving little boy. Some of my favorite things you do are: Making up lots and lots of songs! I love the ones about your family. You love to rhyme and your songs always sound great. I can't wait until you and sister can do duets! Telling me you love me. It melts my heart everytime you do it, and you say it a lot! I also love it when you say "I love you this much" and you put your hands all the way behind your back. I love it when you are a great big brother to sis and share and help her. You are her favorite person in the world! I love it when you read your books you made in school. You are so smart! I love it when you wrestle around with Daddy. You too are so cute rough housing together. I also love it when you dance all around with me, Daddy, and Sissy in the living room. We all have a blast! You are the best son in the whole world and your entire family loves you so much!

Here are some highlights from your birthday:

Look at those handsome guys!

Aidan loved his new "veenoculors"

Your party at Jungle Java was a blast! That is our new favorite place! Here are some pictures of you playing with your friends and hanging out with family.



It was great that you got to celebrate with Meme and Grampy this year. They really enjoyed seeing you and celebrating with you! Grampy even made you pancakes for breakfast on your birthday!



I am so looking forward to seeing you learn and grow this year! You amaze Daddy and I every day! We love you!!

Done

After snapping this picture I had to separate these two. I don't need a house full of bunny baskets hopping around everywhere.

Preparing for the Easter Bunny...

So after we got home from church and our sushi lunch at Maki (www.maki.us.com), Tiff was talking to her mom about Aidan's Easter basket. Now a while back, probably a year ago, Tiff had asked me to make a replica of her old Easter basket for Aidan. Her basket was going to be passed down to Asher so that left Aidan high and dry and standing there every Easter with his arms full of eggs (which wouldn't really bother him). So today Tiff reminded me that she had asked me to make Aidan a basket. So off I went to my parent's house to use my dad's wood working tools with a quick stop at Home Depot (www.homedepot.com). I think it took me about 3 hours to build the basket. I brought Tiff's with me to be able to use as a reference. It turned out great. Aidan was excited to see it. This evening I started the finishing process by brushing on a blue wash to make it more 'boy' but to try to still show the wood grain. Tomorrow I will finish the bunny face and it should be ready to go. I'm sure there will be some Easter photos on later postings so you can see the finished product.

As you can tell, I hope, Tiff's old basket is on the left and Aidan's new and improved basket is on the right with the devilishly handsome carpenter next to it.

This blog posting was brought to you by The Home Depot. Act now and receive 15% off your online purchase at Home Depot.com by typing in "Matt is awesome" at check out.

*WARNING: The above statement has a high probability of being untrue. In fact it is an out right lie*

Go Aidan!!

I have to brag on Aidan. I was so proud of him tonight. We went to the carnival at Dell Diamond which was a money pit but still a fun time. Aidan and I had seen the Farris Wheel earlier in the week and had talked about going on it. When we got there we bought tickets and Aidan was pretty excited. Unfortunately, when we got in line and he looked up, way up, he no longer wanted to go and instead wanted to go on the flying helicopter ride. After trying a little to change his mind, we decided to go on the helicopter ride after all and Aidan had a blast on it! He was steering and pulling the bar to lift it with a big huge smile on his face the whole time. I was feeling a little sick from the ride, but that one was OK. Asher and Daddy watched us the whole time and Daddy said Asher was letting out huge belly laughs when she saw us go around each time. It was really fun!
Now here is where the bravery comes in. There was this barn ride that went up and then spun and moved all around. It was more for older kids, but Aidan spotted it and wanted to ride it. I thought 2 things would happen: 1 - he would get up the the actual ride and then change his mind and want to do something else or 2 - he would get on and then start crying and want off. Well my amazing son did neither. He rode the whole thing and had a great time! I was so proud of him! He also did not get sick or did not tell us he was feeling sick although I was by that point not feeling to great. It was super fun! My little boy is going to be my partner in all the rides someday and Daddy will be cheering us on from the ground with little sis.
Now after all of this excitement we had a royal meltdown when we got home because of 2 little kids who were up way to late with 1 not having a nap today. Both were screaming, neither wanted to go to sleep, one of those what can you do but kiss 'em goodnight and close the door moments. Within about 2 minutes Aidan was out. Asher on the other hand has been crying and wanting water about every 5 minutes and is doing so right now. Aidan used to want the water a lot too, but he was older when he started this...
Aidan, mommy's so proud of you son. XOXOXO