Happy Birthday Daddy!

Yesterday was Asa's 21st birthday! We hosted a party for all the family and I really think every had fun, especially Marley!
She enjoyed tons of ice cream, thanks to Nana. Nana also gave her a bath when it was time and helped her brush her teeth and hair.

We played a family game of Apples to Apples and we all had a blast! Asa won both rounds. I think he cheated, but I guess since it was his birthday we couldn't say anything.
I am so glad he had a good birthday. With everything that has been going on lately, I was afraid that it would get pushed to the side. But he was so happy to have everyone there last night and it was amazing to see how well everyone got along! It wasn't that I expected a big fight, I was just nervous about everyone having something to talk about. But luckily our families are amazing and they were great!

Tomorrow we are leaving to go camping for Asa's last weekend here, and then he leaves Tuesday for boot camp. We went on a date tonight, our last before he leaves. I know he is coming back for Christmas and that is better than most people get, but we are both still worried. Asa keeps saying that he is really going to miss us, and him missing something is my biggest fear. I am going to have to take pictures of every single little thing and I'll also be following Marley around with the video camera. He will be getting his phone back on Sundays, so he will be able to read this blog if he wants or look at any videos I upload. So, get ready for more posts! I just hope it goes quickly. I only have 8 more class days, Thanksgiving, and getting ready for Christmas to keep us busy. Oh, along with writing letters everyday!

Babysitting

This afternoon, we got to babysit Zane for a little while so Samantha could take the dogs to the vet. I would love to write that they had a ton of fun together, but they really didn't... Zane was sad that his Mama was gone and Marley was so confused because she just wanted to play. When I would hold Zane, she would put her hands in the air toward me. When I picked her up thinking she wanted me, I figured out she really just wanted Zane to come down and play with her! Poor thing had to help take care of his instead.
As you can see, Zane does not look happy in any of those pictures. Once we tried to go inside, he started really crying, so we took them outside to take a walk down the street. We only have one stroller, so I figured Marley could walk until she got tired. But we made 5 trips up and down the street and she never got tired! In fact, she had a blast pushing Zane around! For some reason it was so fun to see Marley act so grown up and nurturing. She wanted to push him and hand him leaves and talk to him. She loved it and she will make a great big sister one day.

An Early Thanksgiving

On Saturday night, we had an early Thanksgiving for Asa at his mom's house. He is leaving 9 days before the real one, so we wanted to give him a small one before he leaves. We even had turkey! Bonnie and the boys came into town and we really had a blast! All three kids got to play together, and most of the time that meant playing on Asa.

He lifted them to play airplane and lifted them in a random plastic box. I was nervous to let Marley do it at first, but she loved it! And got upset when someone else was playing with her Daddy!
I had made Apple Dumplings (they were soooo delicious) but of course Marley didn't like that. So, we had a popsicle party, and Marley took someone of everyone's popsicle.


It was a great Thanksgiving! For the real one, Marley and I will be going to Austin to visit my Mimi again. I am really looking forward to it, to getting out of Nacogdoches and being with everyone, but I am sad Asa will not be there. At least he will be home for Christmas though! I am also very excited about that!

iBaby

Asa and I bought ourselves iPhones yesterday for our birthdays! After two days of arguing with the AT&T guy and the people at our bank, we were finally able to do it and we LOVE them!It is amazing how useful they are and now we don't have to worry about taking the camera and video camera everywhere we go! They really are fantastic!

Here is avideo I took last night. She doesn't do it perfectly in the video, but she said "baby" a few times yesterday! And today, she learned how to climb on the bench for the dining room table!

Helping Mimi Get Ready

Everyday, Marley helps Mimi get ready for work. Well, she might not really be helping, but she is there to hang out her Mimi and watch her get ready! She looks forward to it, and when my mom says that she is going to get ready Marley starts running down the hallway to her room as fast as she can.

First comes powder...And then blush.
Next is mascara...
And then they're done! Such pretty ladies!
My mom bought Marley her own spin-brush the other day, so that has definitely made one of her favorite times of the day! She loves when we let the water run out while her feet are in the sink. Now when we go into the bathroom, she tries to get up on the counter for tooth brushing time. I used to have the hardest time remembering to do this for some reason, but making it enjoyable has made it much easier to remember.

Four Wheeling

Zane let us borrow this last week at the park, but I think I know what she needs to Christmas! She loves being able to drive herself around the park! She better enjoy it, because she isn't allowed to own a big four wheeler.