More Pictures of Jace

Heading home from the hospital

The family four home at last

Madelyn came to visit me and Jace (can you tell she is happy)

I'm the Little Brother!!

Holding her brother. She just adores him.

Jace is HERE!!!!

The pictures are a little bit backwards.

Madelyn meeting her brother for the first time. She was so excited!!

First picture of Jay and I with Jace

Welcome Jace!!!

That cry was the sweetest sound to my ears that day.

Jay and I getting preped to meet our son

Jace has finally arrived. He was born on Dec. 28th and weighed 8lbs 5oz. We were very surprised by the size of our little man. We have been home for almost a week and I can't get over what an amazing baby he is. Madelyn has taken to big sisterhood wonderfully. She just loves her baby brother and loves to hug and kiss him all the time. I am just really hoping that it stays this way and we can avoid any jealousy issues.

Christmas!!!!

Watching Beauty and The Beast with her baby and puppy in her new sleeping bag!

Madelyn got a Bitty Baby from American doll and her own pair of matching PJs!

My husband's idea of wrapping presents is using duct tape

Checking out what Santa brought

Playing Wii while waiting on our Christmas Eve dinner!!

The tree and presents at my parents before we tore in to them.

What a wonderful Christmas we have had so far this year!!! We went out Thursday night to celebrate my 25th birthday which was actually yesterday the 24th. On Christmas Eve every year my family gets together and we all go to the the Candle Light service out at Lake Point and of course as usual the weather chooses not to listen. After the service we go back to my parents play games and wait on dinner to be done cooking. After dinner is done cooking we all sit at the dining room table (this is the only time of the year we use this table) and we our nice dinner off of the twelve days of Christmas plates. After we eat and get everything cleaned up we pass out presents and we tear in to them. My mom always goes overboard on the present but who would complain!!! this year was a little bit different for me since I didn't want clothes. When Jay and I got married we decided to change the colors in out house so my mom and dad got us several things to go with the house. Madelyn in the other hand got all kinds of fun stuff. She got a furreal dog, which she is totally into as well as a Bitty Baby from American Girl. These 2 gifts have yet to leave her side. This morning Santa visited Madelyn and then we did our Christmas(just the 3 of us). We then cleanned up and took all the Christmas stuff down and got all the baby stuff out and set up. We get to meet Jace really soon!!!! On the Dec. 28th and we are scheduled for surgry at 9:30 in the morning. But before that can happen we have Christmas with my mom's family tomorrow and then a day of getting the house good and clean and the nursery completed.

Okay so now I am only 15 days out from delivering Jace and I have officially hit the completely miserable phase. That I am afraid wont pass soon enough. Not only do I hurt but I am battling a rebellous 3 year old, who appears to already be having trouble adjusting to the idea of being a big sister and the baby isn't even here yet.

Over the last month or so Madelyn has been having a very difficult time at school and home. She has been arguing and refusing to do what she is asked. Everything has become a knock down drag out fight with screaming fits. She has even had to go and visit the principal of her school and she is only 3. Boy what do we have in store for us.

Baby Update

I know it has been a very long time since I have been on and updated everyone. My last post about the baby was the he was a boy. Well we have a name now and his full name will be David Jace Durham but we will call him Jace. I will be 36 weeks on Sunday and we are officially meeting him on Dec. 28th (25 days, yes I am counting down). We are very excited and can't wait to meet him. I think I am more excited to see Madelyn when she first sees him more than anything. She is going to be a great big sister.

Other then an update on the baby, I have good news about Jay. HE FINALLY FOUND A JOB!!!!! It was crazy how it worked out we got a call on Wednesday about an openning, had the interview on Thursday, called by 4 yesterday afternoon and signing paperwork and already on the job today. We are blessed. This couldn't have happened at a better time.

School Year in full swing

Okay so it has been a long time since I have posted. We are back at work and Madelyn has officially started Pre-school and loves it. Telling her it's time to go to school is the only way to get her out of bed in the mornings. Let's hope it will remain this way until she is done with College. Here are some pictures of Madelyn on her first day!!!! The pictures are a little bit out of order.

Walking into her classroom. My baby girl has become such a big girl!!!

My baby and me before we left to go to school.

Madelyn with her daddy, she decided that she has to stand like him. Such a Daddy's Girl

With her back pack and lunch box ready to go.

Big new in the Durham household is that about 3 weeks ago we found out that a new bundle of joy will be a baby boy!!!! We are very excited to be getting one of each. Now the tricky part is us settling on a name for our little man and picking out bedding and getting his room ready to go.

I think he will have his daddy's good looks!!!!! Our Little Man!!!!

All boy!!!! It was pretty hard to miss on the sono!!!!!
(We now have our perfect little family 1 girl and 1 boy couldn't ask for more)

My school year started a week after Madelyn went back to school it has been a very rough 3 weeks but I am finally starting to have confidence that my kids are starting getting it. Each day has gotten a bit better and a bit more bearable down in Kindergarten Land. (That's what I call my classroom because it is just me and one other teacher on our hallway.) I am still working out a few kinks in my schedule and how I deal with certain kids but we are well on the path to have a great year. i think they just need a few more weeks of adjusting. I really miss my kids from last year but I think each year you get the class that you need to help you learn new things about yourself and yourself as a teacher. LET THE YEAR GET ROCKIN!!!!! (School theme: Shaw Rocks)

Summer Update

Okay, so a lot has been going on so it has kept me from getting on to update. My summer is just about over, I only have 1 week left then it is back to work for me. I am getting pretty excited but at the same time I am not ready for it to end.

I began my masters in July and that has been going pretty well, well that was until this week. There is so much work to be done this week and so little time.

My summer has not gone quite how it was suppose to but that is okay. My sister in law and I had planned a trip to Galveston to take Madelyn to Moody Gardens and Schlitterbahn but around the time that was suppose to take place my mother in law got sick and ended up in the hospital with congestive heart failure. Scary time for all of us.

So we got all that stuff figured out and then it was time for my cousin to go back to work and I for the last several years have watched her kids when she went back to work so that is what I am doing until I have to go back to work on the 16th of Aug. Aug. 16th will be a bitter sweet day in the Durham household because our sweet little Angel will be starting Pre-school.

Last summer update, I had most of this week off from watching the kids since their parents were going to New York for FREE, yes I said free. What an incredible trip. So Madelyn and I decided to pack up our stuff head to Austin to see her aunt and while we were there take a trip back to Sea World. Every time we go it is so much fun. Madelyn's favorite thing to do it to feed the dolphins so of course I had to buy like 3 trays of food for her to feed them. This time we went we spent most of the day at the water park. It was a hot day so that was the place to be. Madelyn became obsessed with the water slide and we had to slide down it like 100 times and she loved the wave pool. She was even adventurous enough to want to try a big water slide but I had to tell her no since she doesn't fit into the tubes very well just yet. To end our fun filled week of traveling in a sort few hours we will be heading to Lufkin one last time before the school year starts and then back home to Mesquite.