Holiday Videos

What happens when Daddy feeds Lailey





Lailey's song repertoire is expanding, even if it's just the first lines.  She is singing into the broken antenna of our portable cd player that Davey uses while he works out.  It's her microphone.





The songs, in order of appearance, are
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Jingle Bells
Row Row Row Your Boat
Jesus Loves Me
ABC's

Every Since That Day Back in December...

We stood out in the cold as I remember

And I knew that you were different than anyone before

So I prayed and trusted Jesus even more

Thank you Jesus

For the greatest friend you've ever given me

Thank you Jesus

For my husband and my friend

I will love you 'til the end of time

From "End of Time," music and lyrics by Sarah Akin

9 YEARS AGO this past Wednesday (December 15th) was the day Davey and I officially began our dating relationship that would last four and half years before we got married on May 20, 2006.  9 YEARS. For us, that seems like an eternity.

Thank you, Davey, for being my best friend and sticking with me through the good and not so good times. We've seen some of both, but mostly it's been a wonderful journey.  I really will continue to love you until the end of time.

Happy Christmas Break!

Yay!  It's finally here!  I'm on break.  I get to spend the next two weeks with my family, catching up on Christmas shopping, activities, and more.  To celebrate, I decided to waste time on a new blog design, just for fun.  I think it looks like abstract Christmas lights.

Hopefully with a little more time I will be able to update on all that Lailey has been doing lately.  Though, I never make promises.  We may be having too much fun to blog!

A little about the picture at the top:
Yesterday Lailey got a hold of my oven mitts and figured out that if she set them both on the couch she could slide both arms in and then proceed to twirl around the room to Christmas music until she fell over.  It was priceless!  She looked like a little angel with oven mitts for wings.  Love that girl!

Making History

Grandpa Jim: "Lailey, you're going to be the 1st female President of the United Sates. When you're president, can I sleep in the Lincoln Room in the White House?"

Lailey: "No."

Grandpa Jim: "Well, can I sleep in the Washington Room then?"

Lailey: "O-tay."

Meet Hank

Say HELLO to Hank. Hank has been officially adopted into our family. He's a boxer mix (most likely, according to our vet), and is a very sweet boy. Are we crazy? Pretty much. Let me tell you how this came about.

The Monday before Thanksgiving, Davey and I were outside putting up Christmas lights on the house. Lailey was with Grammy and Granddaddy for the day, riding the pink pig and getting spoiled...I mean, having a ton of fun. (That's what grandparents are for, right?) Rudy was outside hanging in the yard while we worked. I saw a dog wander near our yard, and of course Rudy went quickly out to greet him, despite me hollering like a crazy person for him to stay in the yard. I worry about Rudy and stray dogs since he's quite bold and they may be quite unfriendly. Anyway, they engaged in the usual dog-sniffing behavior, and the dog didn't seem bothered whatsoever about Rudy's crazy, ahem, "friendly" behavior.

Eventually he wandered over to us as we were working and we engaged in the usual dog-petting behavior. Rudy was a little perplexed and kept trying to rough house with him. I suppose he was trying to establish that it was his yard and his humans. He came back to the house on and off that day and then spent part of the night on our porch.

If you had asked us the day before that if we'd adopt a stray dog, we both would have said "no way." But there is just something about him. He's a good soul. The next day I called the Humane Society and Animal Control to see if anyone had reported a missing dog. They said no. He has a collar (seen here) that is quite faded, no tag, and is definitely a bit underweight.

Davey decided one day he needed a name. While considering it, his face suddenly lit up and he said "Hey! What about "HANK!?" I quickly agreed. You see, Davey loves the name "Hank" for a boy and tried to make a good case for it before we had Lailey. I, however, vetoed it. (It's okay. He vetoed lots of my suggestions too :) I knew if the dog was named Hank then none of our future children would ever have it!!! Don't worry, I was completely honest about my sly plan. The name stuck.

Over the next few days we talked, discussed, prayed, considered, and thought and thought about it. Finally on Friday Hank went to our vet. He was calm in the car, calm at the vet's office, and calm at Tractor Supply Co. where we bought dog food and a no-bark collar -- a necessity if we want to stay on friendly terms with our neighbors. The vet guessed that he was around a year and a half old. It didn't occur to me until just now, but if that's true, then his birthday would be around Lailey's birthday (April 7th), which is also Rudy's birthday!
With the help of our brother-in-law, Tim, Davey started building a large dog pen in our backyard last weekend and is trying to finish it up as I write this. The rain has set him back, but he's been at it as much as possible. Hopefully Rudy and Hank will have a nice dog pen by the end of the week. Thanks to a Humane Society volunteer, we're getting one dog house for free and another very cheap off of Craig's List. The boys should be comfy in no time.

Oh yeah. Lailey LOVES him.

Thankful Thursday

Welcome to my first "blog hop." To explain this, I will quote my friend and future famous blogger for her hilarious stories:

Blog hopping "is basically where you blog about the same thing someone else blogged about, and then hop over to their blog and post the link to your blog. I think the overall goal is to get more followers."

Thanks, Lindsey, for the idea. Here's her blog so you can laugh and smile. I've been considering a Thankful Thursday post for awhile, but never seem to think about it on Thursdays, or a Thursday when I have a moment to sit and blog. So, I don't know the rules [if there are any] to how many "thankfuls" you have to have, but I'll just start and see where it goes.

I'm thankful for the following things, in no particular order (except the first one...he does get to be my #1).

1. My wonderful husband. He cleans, does laundry, keeps me sane, balances out my crazy moments, is an incredible daddy, is even trying to learn to do Lailey's hair...

and not only uses cloth diapers but listens...very patiently...when I talk about them, while doing an outstanding job of making me believe that he is actually interested in such mommy things.

2. Mint Fudge Covered Oreos. I didn't think you could improve an Oreo, until I met these. I almost burst into spontaneous worship while eating them. Soooooooooo good.

3. Our house. We would love to sell it, but God is teaching us contentment where we are, and it's wonderful.

4. Hot showers. The privilege of having indoor plumbing is something I never want to take for granted. Sound silly? Visit a third world country and it will change your perspective.

5. How much more I notice the little things in life now due to having a toddler. The moon, bugs, spiders, leaves falling, cows, horses, to name a few of her favorites.

6. The opportunity to be a mommy. I am continually reminded each day, even amidst the "toddler moments" that we have, that this is such a gift and privilege. I want to cherish every moment, the good and the...not so good...and learn, grow, and enjoy it.

7. Getting to take a "sister trip" to Boston! I need to do a post about it eventually. We had a blast!

8. Easy Mac 'n' Cheese. I have been saying now for a long time that I swear they put something addictive in that stuff.

9. Getting to read and snuggle with Lailey every evening. Again, I should probably blog about her favorite things (including books), but I make no promises.

10. (Hey, I made it to 10! Do I get something for that?) Knowing that God is ultimately in control of our lives. This is a tough time to live in right now, but I'm so glad He's sovereign.

Halloween 2010

In the Akin house, Halloween calls for some favorite family traditions. We began the weekend with our annual pumpkin carving. Lailey got to experience a little more of this tradition this year since she's older now.

She was fine with touching the pumpkin guts, but reaching inside? I don't think so. She gave me several emphatic "no's." She was willing to take the seeds out of my hand and put them in the bowl though.
The finished products did not get finished until well after Lailey went to bed. Here they are! I carved Elmo, and Davey did an INCREDIBLE job on E.T.

Just for memory's sake, here are our 2009 pumpkins, award-winning mind you. Hmm...I wonder who did the Ghostbuster pumpkin?

And the moment you've ALL been waiting for (or at least just my sister) .... dun dun dun....

MILK AND A COOKIE!!!

A cookie on a mission

Oreo and Ghostbuster

Grandaddy and his little Oreo

Somehow I didn't get any pictures of the back of my costume with the Nutrition Facts, but I think my dad did, so maybe I can get those later.

On Saturday night we went to Harp's Harvest (church's fall festival) and had a great time. Grandpa Jim chased Lailey all over while she gleefully ran, embracing her temporary freedom.

Then on Sunday evening we went over to visit Davey's grandparents and show them our costumes. It was a pretty busy weekend but a fun one. I've already got to start thinking about next year's costumes!