Joyous Developments!

Hello everyone! We are BACK with lots of exciting news to share! Mom is getting a lot better about carrying the camera with me so lots of new photos this time!

Here are a couple pictures of Lucas. The first with a puzzle he had just completed for the first time by himself! We were so proud and all of us were jumping up and down! :) Here he is before our "madness". The second photo was on a recent Saturday morning. He gets to watch Thomas when he wakes up, and likes to be wrapped up on the couch. :)





We signed up Lucas for Soccer Tots this fall, and he really likes it. We go to our gym's gymnasium area and they kick over cones, play and run with the soccer balls, and practice using their feet a lot. He loves to wear his Soccer Tots T-Shirt they gave him as part of the class. Here are a few shots from our session on October 16. The third shot is him getting the stamps on his hands at the end of the session. Getting the stamp and chasing after the hoola-hoops are his favorite activities:





Right after Soccer Tots this day, we had another exciting event! "The Lion of Sodor" movie was playing at our local theater during the month of October, and we thought it was a great opportunity to take him to his first movie. This is a movie with Thomas the Train. The first picture was taken of Lucas and Ivan outside of the theater, the 2nd of all of us. Lucas at first didn't like the theater, as they had ads streaming in from the speakers, but the screen wasn't on so I think he wasn't sure where the "voices" were coming from. He paid attention to the movie for about 30 minutes, then we left early. He's still a little too young to sit still that long! :)





This past weekend, Ivan was in Austin in a wedding, and we decided at the last minute to stay at home vs. making the trip with him. We had so much fun, just Lucas and I. Friday after school, we made a trip to his favorite play place, Bouncin' Bears. It's a place full of these inflatable slides, jumping bags, etc. I took lots of pictures of him, however he moves SO FAST WHEN HE'S HERE that the pictures just look like streams of color! Here is the only still shot I have of him. He stopped in his tracks when he saw little pumpkins on the windows (he calls them "pumpkin jack-o-lanterns and refuses to just say just pumpkin!) The second photo is of him just coming down a slide.











We were at Bouncin' Bears for ALMOST THREE HOURS and he still got sad when we left, even though he was EXHAUSTED! Next, we had a bit of a scare. We got home and all of the smoke detectors were going off. There was no smoke or anything. After calling mom and dad with "what should we do?" I ended up calling the fire department. They came out and stopped the loud noise, and later on the main reason for them going off (water leaking from one of the A/C units) was remedied and all was back to normal around 9:00pm that night. However, Lucas was AMAZED when he saw the fire truck pull up, lights and all, to our house and watched them intently as they made their way around the house to unhook everything. Everyday since then he's been asking me where the firemen are. :)

We had a GREAT weekend together, though we really missed Ivan. We hung out on the back porch and had a chocolate popsicle (the only place where these are allowed!) Also a couple of funny pictures I took of him as he found mom's shower cap and was "posing" with it. Crazy.



This picture was taken before things REALLY got messy!


In other news, last week I worked in Houston with Quanex and finished up that training class. Ivan and I are just getting into the swing of things with our new life up here in Tomball. Though it's not been much of a season for Texas football, we spend our weekends watching the games, going the playground (Lucas can really ride a mean tricycle now).

I am continuing with my consulting work, though starting in November my "mommie" responsibilities will finally be able to change. Lucas will only go to school from 9-12, then I'll pick him up for his nap and he'll spend the rest of the day with me. This was the arrangement when we first moved up here, but we can tell that he's not napping well at school, and now that my work is slowing a bit we are able to do this permanently.

We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE life in Tomball. We have met so many wonderful people, live with some great neighbors and have really found a home here. We're also continuing to learn about the area and are considering a couple of neighborhoods near where we are to purchase a home. My favorite community has tons of trees and a golf course. For now we are happy in our rental home as we anticipate decisions once our lease is up.

November will be exciting, as I get to travel to Nashville twice, the first trip for a friend's wedding and the second for Thanksgiving with ALL of my family. We are so excited we cannot wait to get there.

We love you all!

The Houston Madrigals

October Already?

Hello!

Am I the only person that is shocked that it's already October? I cannot believe it. Where does the time go? It's already time to schedule holiday events, buy gifts, etc.!

The end of September FLEW by. I was working onsite with another client in Houston the week of Sept. 27-Oct. 1, and though the client was GREAT to work with, the time I spend away from my sweet family is difficult. Ivan was here during the mornings with Lucas (I left the house at 6:15am each day to miss the traffic) and in the afternoons I would RACE out the door in order to pickup Lucas as soon as possible! I actually did well to plan ahead and had lots of food prepared so I didn't end up cooking too much.

Lucas is keeping his KILLER pace of language development if I can brag! Here are the latest sentences. "What is that sound, mommie?", "I put it together!" (speaking of putting together one of his puzzles), "I don't like that song, mommie." So now we're getting five and six-word sentences. Of course I'm as proud as punch! :)

This past weekend we met some of our neighbors down the street, Eric and Lisa and their 5 children! She homeschools (so many people homeschool up here!) all of them which I think is so admirable. One of her daughters is coming over tomorrow night to see the "evening routine" with Lucas, so Ivan and I can start going out for regular date nights. Here's a picture of him riding his new tricycle with their brood this weekend. They had a "Harley tricycle" which he loved!

This past Monday was exciting. Lucas got a visit at school from the Cypress Creek volunteer fire department and he proudly wore is "volunteer fireman" sticker all day. In the afternoon, we went shopping at Carter's for some new fall clothes and new socks. Lucas was very entertaining to all other guests and employees of the store! He was moving the steel clothing rack around the store (the rack the employees are hanging clothes on that are about to go onto the store floor), talked with several other children, and even found a pair of fireman boots he wanted to walk around in. He picked a HUGE pair and had to put them on. Here he is in the boots showing mommie the outfit he would like to get (never mind it's a 6-month size!):

Lucas is also getting very quick on his new tricycle. He's only had the tricycle for a few weeks now and loves riding on it. Here are a couple of pictures. One is of the little bell that he loves to ring. One day I'll look back on those sweet little fingers. Soccer stamp is from Soccer Tots, the soccer activity we go to on Saturday mornings at the gym.

Ivan and I are still praying about the job situation. I think we've made our decision, but we'll see as we continue to discuss this week. I know for me specifically it's scary walking away from something I've always known, but I have to know that if it's the right thing, God will make a way for this to happen.

Also, something I'm playing around with are starting a couple of blogs. I've always loved writing, and did quite a bit as a young adult but got away from it once the "real job" hit. I feel like I have a lot to say and share, and I am learning so much everyday about being a better mom, wife, cook, time manager, etc. I just want to share it all with others so I feel there's more benefit than just for me. I have started a new blog, check it out here. I also found a great website that tells you all about blogging, and I just started reading it today. I feel like I found a virtual treasure chest! Her blog is Blogging with Amy. We shall see where all this blogging takes us! :)

Changes Coming...

Hello!

I titled this "changes coming" for many reasons. First of all, changes are coming with the weather (well, we are hoping). It's the middle of September, so cooler weather must get here at some point! I cannot wait for it!

Also, changes are coming with work. Ivan and I have noticed some changes with Lucas. We put him in school longer this month, and usually by 6:00pm he's at my feet in the kitchen crying! He just wants to spend time with his mommie instead of me rushing around from here to here to here, never having a second to spend time with those most important! So I've taken steps to transfer my work to someone else at my firm. My first reaction is "oh my gosh this is scary" but God has confirmed this on MULTIPLE occasions this week that this is the right move. I don't know how it will work, but I do know that if we walk in HIS ways, he will make our paths straight, He will provide, HE will supply all of our needs. Needs, that's really something to think about. What are our "NEEDS" here in America? Many more needs than in other countries, that's for sure! Oh, well, something to ponder.

Labor Day weekend was a blast. I got Ivan surprise tickets to the UT vs. Rice Game. They played at Reliant Stadium so I know this was one of the only times my sweetie would get to see his favorite team in Houston. Belita (a.k.a. Ivan's mom) was in town for the long weekenda and was only too happy to watch Lucas while we went to the game. We don't get out much just the two of us so we took several pictures of ourselves! We were SO excited! GO HORNS!!!

I got us awesome seats if I do say so myself!

Activities at the Madrigal house have been busier than usual. We enrolled Lucas in Soccer Tots and his 2nd class was this past Saturday. He was crying most of the time, now I know why; he was sick with a cold (because now Ivan and I both have it!) but after a while he got out there and started running around. We also decided to switch gyms and are now members at Lifetime Fitness. We went over to the pool for a little while before the storm clouds showed up.

Now, for Lucas news. He's now saying almost complete sentences, "mommy I want to eat now", or "I would like to go to the park". It's AMAZING to me to hear him talking like this after almost 2.5 years of life! You know that they will eventually talk like we do, but to start hearing it is really something else. We transitioned to a big boy bed several weeks ago, and he's doing great. We simply have a twin mattress on the floor so there's no chance of falling, then eventually we'll get him a bed frame.

Here is a recent picture of him. He's just growing up before our eyes (we are getting a haircut this weekend!)

He continues to love playing with Thomas the Train. I purchased for him "the crossing" that dings when you open and close the arms. He also has a new battery powered "Percy" that now pulls all of the other engines on the tracks! We all love Thomas! It's a favorite at our house.

Ivan and I start our bible study for the high school youth tomorrow. He's teaching the first lesson, and I'll teach the 2nd, and we'll hand off weekly. We're going to be studying the book of Genesis and include a lot of information we learned from our studies from the Reasons to Believe ministries. It's going to be a humbling experience and I cannot wait to dive in with these kids.

Have a wonderful weekend and we'll update again soon!

Getting Settled In?

Hello everyone!


We had another great week here at the Madrigal house. We were so excited to have our first house guests, the LeGrand clan, over on Saturday! We had also invited the Ripkowski's over, but little Abigail started running a fever so we've scheduled with them for another time. In my fashion, I didn't get a chance to flash any photos of the day, but it was great! We had Lucas, Lindsey, Meagan and little Blake all here with their mom and dad! Needless to say it was QUITE a trip for them, all the way from Sugarland! We THANK them for coming all the way up here.

Ivan and I have decided to take on the responsibility of being bible study teachers at our church for the middle school and high school youth. I am very excited about it, but a bit nervous. My first thought is, "where in the world where I find the time to do this?" but it's something I've wanted to do now for a while, and this is a great outlet for my teaching skills and Ivan's skills in relating to teens and their specific needs. Please pray for us for guidance! We will be starting in a month.

Monday and Tuesday found me feeling a bit under the weather, just a headache and a very sore throat! So, I've been missing my YMCA workouts. I am hoping to be feeling better by this weekend. I love going to the gym and miss it when I'm not there. It's like my stress just builds up and has no place to go! :(

Tuesday after school Lucas and I headed for our weekly trip to Starbucks (by the way, Lucas is now 27 months old). The extra treat was that we also went to the new Imaginations Toys and Shoes store, where they had this amazing Thomas the Train display! Lucas saw it with wide eyes. Mom shopped around while Lucas played with all of the trains. We had a BLAST. Here are some pictures from our big day out:


Enjoying our milk and protein plate (the only thing we get there...occasionally we'll splurge for the butter cookies). Mom is so strict, I know...but it's for his own health. :)

Lucas a few minutes after "discovering" the Thomas the Train play table. He was in heaven! I think the store had every single train made! You can imagine he did not want to leave.

This one last picture as we sign off. I just took this of him. He's here with me in my office as I am typing this post. In the time it's taken me to write this, he's got out my garage sale stickers and stuck them all over himself, got my wallet out and took out all cards and spread them out EVERYWHERE, then found a permanent marker but I caught it before...Oh, the joys of motherhood! :)

So, Tomorrow we are off to a fun event we're going to try out called "SoccerTots". I'm going to see how he likes it! Then Friday we've got a playdate setup with our friends Caitlyn and Nichole. Hopefully I can remember to take pictures this time!

Bye everyone!

Houston Madrigals are Back!

Hi Everyone! We are back! We needed to remove our blog back in 2008, and now are getting back "online" to share the latest happenings of the Houston Madrigals!

The theme of the past month or so has been NEW, NEW, NEW! We put our home on the market in June, and in 9 days got a contract! Praise God! We closed on July 30th and now live in a different area of Houston, in the Northwest area closer to our old home of Austin.

NEW house, NEW places to shop and eat, and NEW school for Lucas! Here's a picture of him on his 2nd day at school. I think he feels pretty comfortable here, what do you think? He'd been completely racked out for almost 2 hours when I arrived and snapped this sweet picture:



Yesterday, as we were driving home from school. He's purposefully looking away from the camera; he's NEVER liked to have his picture taken! He's like Ivan that way; they can't stand for the picture-taking process to get over with!



Last one, this morning in his new Thomas the Train PJs we got yesterday. He's also got these GREAT new slippers from L.L. Bean. We had to order them for wearing at school, but he likes them and they keep his feet warm so I'm going to get him a pair for the house, too. He wanted to wear his PJs to school, but sorry, buddy, we gotta wear real clothes.






So, I'm slowly unpacking boxes each day. The process is VERY SLOW. I work from home several hours each day, so in addition to all of the normal mommie and wife duties we have, I hear the boxes constantly calling my name! :) Ivan and I cannot believe the stuff we have accumulated! We moved from Austin in 2005 with hardly anything. Add 5 years and 1 child and I think we have 3 times the amount of stuff! We are planning our yard sale for September so get ready to come and get your bargains!

We love being out here close to the country. For the first time, I have a yard I can work in, and though I haven't got much time to get out there yet, I have planted a few things and feel such pride at watching things grow and change. There are many new responsibilites to having a home vs. a townhome without a yard, but this is much more "me". Lucas enjoys being outside and pushing his big trucks around!

Lucas is talking a mile a minute now. He can ask entire questions, which I think is very impressive at his age. I can ask him questions, too, and he understands them completely and can answer. Some examples: "Mommie I watch Thomas", "Go school to playground?" "I want to go to church." "I want to go to the store", "Daddy is coming home work", "Mommie go to the pool", "Upstairs take a bath." Not only can he say these things but his words are becoming clearer so anyone could understand him!

Now that we have moved, and his school is MUCH closer to our new house, Lucas has a shorter school day so he can spend more time with mommie. I pick him up at 2:30 each day and we have fun in the afternoons. Right now it's tough because it's way too hot to be outside, but we go to the YMCA child care center (so mommie can workout!), to the YMCA pool, run errands, buy groceries, play inside, help mommie unpack boxes (which is translated as Lucas pulling everything out that I've already put away!) and helping mom with dinner. He really is a great helper for 2 years. I'm so happy about our decision to place him in a Montessori school. He's very independent, can do most things on his own, including putting on his pants and shirt. He's such a busy-body that it's best to give him small tasks to accomplish, like throw something away, pour rice into a pot for cooking or putting his utensils into the sink when he's done eating.

I'm enjoying spending more time with him and being out of the busyness of Houston.