Some pictures from Christmas

Santa brought Landon a wooden bowling set!! He loves it!

Tyler got a Fancy Nancy doll and Fancy Nancy books!

One day I would love to get a family picture where we are all

happy and eager to get our picture made!!

AAAWWWW Shucks.....

I received two emails this week from old friends asking what is up with the blog! (Thanks Jo and Kerri!!) Honestly, I am not really sure! I was busy with school and sick kids for the past two months! Croup is no fun with a one year old. Thank goodness the second time around wasn't as bad! Wow, we have been busy bees around the Pierce household. We went home for Christmas for the first time in 8 years. We had a blast!! And the kids came home with quite a loot! This week the kids and I are hanging out before Tyler starts back to school next week. Then I start back the following week. And we have to big birthdays coming up!! David turns 29 next week and our lil man turns 2 at the end of the month! We were going to have a big party for Landon but David has a weird shift going on this month! But we do have plans to make the big day special for our lil man! Speaking of our lil man, I think he is showing signs of getting ready to be potty trained! We are headed to Walmart to start preparing. I am ready but not ready! I still vividly remember the nightmare of potty training Tyler. My mom swears that the first one (ahem, me) is hard, and the second one is so much easier! We will see about that! Hopefully she is right!

On a more serious note, I am thinking about making my blog private. There are just too many crazy people roaming the web! I have had nasty comments and so have many of my friends who have blogs. Honestly, I just delete them the first few negative words! But I really do not want to have to second guess a post due to the fear of a negative comment from someone that I don't even know. It isn't worth it. I started this blog for our family and friends to catch up on what is going on with us. I haven't checked out the settings for it yet but I think you will have to enter your email address. I will have all approved email addresses included. So leave me a comment letting me know you want to keep up with the blog. I will not post the comment so you will not have to worry about it being published. Or you can send me an email.

Ok, enough of the whole serious talk! Here are some pictures from our Christmas! I hope you enjoy them!

Ok, blogger is wanting to post my pictures for some crazy reason. I will try again later!

99 Balloons

I watched this video on another blog today. The video is about a couple in NWA whose son was born with Trisomy 18. Make sure you have a box of tissues nearby.

A History Lesson from a 5 Year Old

Background: David and I were watching Sarah Palin/Tina Fey on SNL.

Tyler: "Mommy, is she our President."
Mommy: "No, she is running for Vice President."
Tyler: "Well who is our President."
Mommy: "George Bush"
Tyler" "No mommy, his name is George Washington and he was our first President."

Week in Pictures

I am going to start attempting to taking more pictures during the week and posting a Week in Pictures post on the weekend. David actually took the pictures below. Tyler pulled her first tooth this week. It was loose forever but never loose enough to pull. We also went and bought pumpkins this week. Tyler had school pictures but of course it was on a day that David had to work so I was doing good making her "beautiful" (Tyler's words not mine!) and getting her and Landon out the door on time!! But this is my attempt at holding myself more accountable to take pics!!

Can I get an ALLELUIA!!!!!

I am still beyond excited as I type this post!! WE WON!! The Razorbacks beat #20 Auburn!! Way to GO RAZORBACKS!! And the fact that we beat them at Auburn makes this win even sweeter!! GO HOGS!!! Keep it up!!!

Movie and Halloween

If you are looking for something to do this weekend, you should go to the movies and see The City of Ember. I read the book in my Children's Lit class and it was amazing. It is the first of 4 books and I am hoping to read the other 3 books during Christmas break. I really want to see the movie this weekend but David works. Well isn't really a factor because I still wouldn't have a babysitter!! HA!!! If anyone sees the movie, let me know what you thought of it.

In other news, my neighborhood is playing You've Been Boo'ed. I read about this earlier in the week on another blog. That afternoon we were Boo'ed. I was so excited. Tuesday night I was coming home from the library when I saw a gift bag hanging on our front door. I had no clue that our neighborhood was playing this game. I ran up there and it was a Halloween gift bag with a bag of Hershey kisses. Inside the bag was a poem that read:

How to Boo

There was a ghost here bringing treats to you,

He flew to your house just to say Boo!

Who left this Boo bag, who could it be?

You might find out, but not from me!

Place this sign where all can see

So everyone will know a Boo! you received.

Enjoy the goodies as a treat from us,

But now it's your turn to Boo! someone else

Fill each bag with some treats and fun,

Bring them to your friends and

neighbors, knock....then run!

Happy Halloween!!

How fun is that!!! David and I had a blast trying to figure out who left us our treats. We did our Boo! last night and hope they enjoy their treats as much as we enjoyed ours!! What a fun Halloween game for adults!!

Have a great weekend!!!!!!!

Parade in the Neighborhood

October is fire prevention month. Every year the firetrucks on base do a little parade through all of the neighborhoods on base. This year some of the local firetrucks joined in the festivities. Well this morning David was mowing the yard when he heard the sirens. He came and got us so the kids could watch the firetrucks. Landon loves anything with sirens and we knew that he would love seeing the trucks in action. Excuse the pajamas, we weren't expecting the parade this morning and we were having a lazy Sunday.

Landon is waiting patiently.

Then he decided to climb up the steps.

Tyler decided to pose for pictures while we waited on the firetrucks.

Here they come!!

Landon loved waving at the firetrucks.

Tyler decided to cover her ears up. There were about 10 trucks all

blaring their sirens. It was a little loud!!!

Bye Bye firetrucks!!

Tyler's First Fieldtrip

Today was Tyler's first kindergarten fieldtrip!! We went to the Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead in Ovearland Park, KS. We had the best time. I can't wait to go back when we have more time and have David and Landon with us.

Tyler, McKenzie, and the goat!!

McKenzie is one of our neighbors. They girls

became really good friends over the summer.

Tyler milking a cow!!

Tyler actually took a picture without posing!!

I loved this bird house!

Some of the girl's in Tyler's class.

Deanna Rose Childrens Farmstead II

An old school house.

Tyler's teacher is in the green.

The goat and sheep really wanted the food in Tyler's hand!!

After I snapped a picture, I rescued her. That sounds bad,

but seriously, right when I was snapping is when they were attaacking

her. I ran to her and her teacher ran and we got the WILD

animals off Tyler. She was a little freaked out!!

Crazy Hair Day

A couple of weeks ago was Spirit Week at Tyler's school. She had lots of fun days but Crazy Hair Day was the only day I managed to snap a picture of!! OOPS!!!

Labor Day Weekend in Branson

Yes, I know that Labor Day was a month ago but here are the pictures. We met my parents and sister at the Branson Landing for the day. We took the kids to Build a Bear. Landon loves stuffed animals so we knew he would love Build a Bear. He did but by the time we got there it was his nap time and he wasn't ready to get a nap!! We have a great time in Branson. I didn't get many pictures because I was busy taking advantage of the holiday sales!!

OOPS

Somehow I accidentally erased my last post!! URGH!!! But I hope to get some pictures posted this weekend!!

Where Were You

My mom is in school and one of her teachers gave them an assignment of writing an essay on how the events of 9/11 effected them or someone they know. She gave me a call and asked me to email our story for her essay.

David and I were newlyweds and stationed at RAF Lakenheath in England. We had only been in England for 3 months, married for 3 months, and new to the whole military way of life.

I was working at a bank on base and was attending a training course at another base that was outside of London. It was about a 2 hour drive from our base. David had driven my coworker and myself to the base for the course. So we basically relied on a taxi to get us from our hotel to the base for the training course.

The day of 9/11, we were done with our course and waited and waited and waited even longer for our taxi to pick us up and take us back to the hotel. Finally an airman from security forces came and picked us up and said the base was on lock down and that he would take us to our taxi. We all gave him a blank stare!! We had no television in the classroom so we had no clue of what bombshell he was about to unload on us.

The airman told us that 2 planes had hit the Twin Towers in NYC and another attempted to hit the Pentagon. We are all military wives and we knew at that moment that it was an act of terrorism. When you are stationed overseas, you attend briefings with your military spouse on safety issues overseas. We had been briefed on Bin Laden and that name spilled right out of my mouth.

The airman seemed like he was in a rush and we were all in shock!! We didn't ask too many questions. We got in our taxi and the driver was more than happy to fill us in on the events. But the only thing we could think of was when our husbands would be deploying.

We got to the hotel and they had the BBC news on in the lobby. All of the British people were comforting us and asking us if we had family in NYC. Luckily, none of us did. They were all very sympathetic and accommodating in our time of shock, fear, anger, and any other emotion that you go through during something like this.

It was several hours later before we FINALLY got in touch with our husbands. My husband couldn't give me any details over the phone but he said that he was trying to get to our hotel to pick us up and bring us back home. His supervisor eventually agreed to let him leave the base for long enough to make the trip up to pick me up and bring me back to Lakenheath. But he couldn't get me until the next day.

The rest of the night we were glued to the tvs. We would cry, we would yell, we were basically just in schock and wondering how our lives as military wives were about to change. But we were all proud of our husbands because we knew that they were about to serve a huge mission in the military and honor those of died from the events of 9/11.

When David picked me up, I was full of questions. He told us that only essential military were allowed on base. We lived off base and there was no way I would be seeing that base for a few days!! Since the base was on shutdown, David had to get gas off base. I remember him telling me that he spent $70 on gas. Ok, so today that is the norm, but 7 years ago!!!!

As we drove past the base, I was amazed by how many news stations and reporters were camped out by the base. David said that they were not allowed to talk to the press.

We finally got home and I rushed in the house to call my mom and let her know that I was ok. We cried and cried!!! I was very relieved to be home because we did not have cable. We were going to be moving into base housing in a few months so we decided to wait on cable. It was nice to have a break from the news and the images.

The base finally opened up about 3 days later. But it was never the same. Every car was searched. Anything in your car was searched. Every building that you walked into, you had to show your military ID. It was a different era from here on out. The credit union, that was next to our bank, received an envelope in the mail with white powder in it. They were evacuated and so was our bank. The fear of anthrax was overwhelming. We had to start wearing gloves just to open up our mail.

Things eventually calmed down some but the security levels were still really high.

On March 17, 2003 we watched the news of Bush warning Sadam to get out of Iraq within 48 hours or war would be declared. I know you are wondering how I remember that date. I was in labor with Tyler. The day that we left the hospital, war broke out. David had to report back to work and was on standby. My parents were unable to make the trip to come see their first grandchild.

Luckily, David did not deploy to Iraq until 2005. He was supposed to be deployed over the summer and his squadron comes home today.

I cannot believe that it has been 7 years. I remember my mom saying that she remembers every detail of when Kennedy was assassinated. Well I know that I will never forget the events and the aftermath of 9/11.

May God Bless all of those who lost loved ones that day. And May God Bess all of our military and their families that are home and abroad.

And also, today is one of my good friends birthday!! What a birthday, right!! Happy Birthday Cissy!!!

Help!!

I found a new layout for my blog but for some reason I can't get rid of the brown from my last layout. Does anyone know how to get rid of it!! I erased my last template.

It's Game Day

It is officially my favorite time of the year!! It's time for college football!! I am watching ESPN's Game Day as I type this!! The only sad thing about today is that the Razorback game is not televised!! I am eager for this season!! It is a season where you have no clue what to expect!! I am very excited about Coach Petrino. Although I am not expecting the season to beat all season, I am excited to see how the game is changed up!! Will we throw the ball this year instead of running the ball? I have to admit that I am already having McFadden and Jones withdraws!! There is only one more thing to say, WOOOOOOO PIG SOOOOOOOIE!! GO HOGS!!!!

Landon is 19 months old!!

Our little man is 19 months old today!! Here are a few pictures of his milestones for your entertainment!

Yes, he is starting to stand on his own now!!

He loves to knock on the door!!

He loves giving Landon kisses!!

(Landon Kisses = Landon leaning his forehead to your forehead and saying aaawww!!!)

He is starting to become a daddy's boy!!

And Yes, he is starting to walk!! ALLELUIA!! ALLELUIA!!

What a roller coaster ride these last 7 months have been!! But we are beyond excited that he is starting to walk. He isn't all the way there yet but we are at least mobile on two legs now!! And yes, we are TRYING to take the bink away!! I know we are bad parents for letting him have it this long but we have had lots of bigger battles to tackle so the bink is minor to us right now. And he also chipped a top front tooth. If he had that bink in his mouth he may still have a normal tooth. It is actually really cute when he smiles!! It makes him look ALL BOY!! No need to worry, we called the dentist and they said as long as it doesn't turn colors then it isn't a big deal!! I think the chipped tooth just fits his personality!!!

Did You Know....

One of my professors shared this video with my class today. Let me know what you think!!!!

Where did the summer go?

Wow, it has been a crazy, busy summer!! I cannot believe that it is basically over with!! Tyler started school last Thursday. She loves her teacher and I cannot believe she is in kindergarten!! Here are some pictures from her Open House and the 1st Day of School.

Landon will be 19 months old next week!! No, he STILL is not walking but he is getting there!! He is starting Physical Therapy at Children's Mercy next week. His pediatrician is really worried about his legs turning out too far. His personality has really been coming out this past week!! Man, does he ever know what he wants. Last night he was holding my hand while walking and decided that he wanted to go to the park across the street from our house. We went to the park and then he went straight to the swings. He is getting really good at walking for longer distances while holding our hands. I have been trying to snap a picture of him trying to walk but he sits down every time he sees the camera!! (Ok, not the best of pics of Landon, but he will not look at the camera for me these days!!)

Last Wednesday, Tyler's last day of summer, we took Tyler to the state fair. It was a hot day and we knew that Landon would be miserable so he went to the CDC. Tyler really enjoyed spending the time with just mommy and daddy!! David and I had never been to a state fair before, just the county fairs!! We had a great time but could not believe how much everything costs. Seriously, $5 for a lemonade. After we made the rounds at the fair, we went to Sonic and took advantage of Happy Hour!!

Tyler loved the horses!!!!!!!!

David and I are just counting down the days to the start of college football!! Although we are not ready for the cold temperatures that follow!! David has moved to a new area in his squadron and works really weird shifts these days. He works every other weekend but the weekends he has off, he has a 3 day weekend. I am not too sure if I like it or not. David seems to like the new schedule except for the 12 hour shifts!! I start back to school on Tuesday!! I am not sure if I am ready to go back or not!! I guess it is time to get back on a schedule!!

We hope everyone has a great school year!!!