5 Favorite Movies

This weeks topic...favorite movies. Gosh, this was hard, again! My top 5 are all pretty sappy, girly movies. Those kind are my favorites. The ones you can watch over and over again and never get tired of them!

#1 - When a Man Loves a Woman - This one is particularly sad, but with a great, romantic ending. I love Meg Ryan and Andy Garcia is "yum" in this movie!

#2 - Say Anything - I LOVE John Cusak!! This is such a cheesy 80's movie, but it's great!! I love the boom box scene from outside her house and the song he's playing..."In Your Eyes." Other great John Cusak movies...Serendipity and Sixteen Candles.
#3 - Sweet Home Alabama - I'm surprised that this DVD is not worn out completely! I watch this one all the time! Dustin gave it to me for Valentines a few years back. I'm pretty sure he regrets that now!! Gotta love this great "chick flick".#4 - Parent Trap - We watched this movie SO much growing up! I haven't seen it in a few years, but the last time I watched it, I still remembered almost all the words! I can't wait to introduce this one to Taylor!

#5 Beaches - I know...totally sappy! But I remember how much I loved this the first time I saw it. It's got great humor (I love the song she does about bras) and great emotion! It had to make my top 5!

Runner Up - Nothing to Lose - If you haven't seen this movie, and enjoy a good comedy, get this one! It's got some language, but it's hilarious! I watched this one with my college roommates over and over. This DVD is close to being worn out, also! Favorite quotes, "Helen Keller, do you hear the words coming out of my mouth" and "Please don't kill me psycho freaky Jason."
Runner Up - Office Space - Also a great comedy! This was the second movie Dustin and I watched together when we started dating. We were in College Station for Ashleigh's b-day. It's funny the things you remember!

Cute Hats

I love dressing Taylor in hats. I think she looks adorable! Yesterday evening, we went for a walk, so I put a hat on her to keep her ears warm. I LOVE it! I got it at a garage sale last summer. She was getting hungry when I took the pictures, so I couldn't get the best smile.

This is an outfit that Britten sent to Taylor. I love it because it really shows off her rolls! Man, I could eat that little watermelon up! Thanks, cousin Britten. I really like all my new clothes!

Also, Taylor went to the doctor yesterday for her 4 month check up. She weighs 14 lbs 8 oz (65th percentile) and 24 1/2 inches (50th percentile). She got 4 shots, but did really well. She was so good yesterday, you would have never known that she got shots! We are also going to try cereal this weekend...that should be fun!

5 Favorite Pictures

Okay, so the Blogging Chicks or Simply Us (did we ever finalize the name??) topic this week was your 5 favorite or most memorable pictures. This was SO SO SO hard for me!!! I narrowed it down to 5 faves and 5 runners-up. Here are the top 5, in no particular order...

I have to give credit to Kristin Bednarz Photography for this picture. Kristin took this picture the summer of 2000. She's done lots of photo shoots of the three of us for Christmas pictures and different things. This one was my favorite session and this was my favorite picture from the session. I love the relationship my sisters and I have with each other. We all three have a bond that our husbands will never understand! Love you girls!!

This is my all time favorite picture of Dustin and I. I think because it really captures our personality. We were dating here and were hanging out with friends. We were laughing at how funny our tongues looked, so we took this picture. I think this one will always be in a frame!

This one's kind of a long story. My senior year in High School, Kristin was our "ball girl" for basketball. She gave me strength and a "no quit" attitude before every game...if she could be there running and playing, I could play 32 minutes of basketball, no problem. Before the championship game of the Christmas tournament, Kristin got a HUGE bruise on her thigh from a shot, meaning her platelet count was really low. So, she would not be able to make it to the game. I went by her house before the game and saw her and told her that I would be bringing back a gold medal for her that night. We were playing Levelland in the championship and had not beat them in our tournament since the late 80's (I think). It came down to the last second and I made the winning lay-up. As soon as the buzzer sounded, I looked in the stands and mouthed to my mom, "For Kristin." I was SO excited to bring her the medal that night. I really think the look on our faces says it all!

I loved the summers growing up. I also loved being able to go to my grandparents in Sweeney. This picture was taken in their backyard one summer. The three of us would've all lived in the water if we could have. It looks like we're dancing in this picture...who knows?!

I love this picture of Taylor and Dustin. She is about 2 1/2 weeks old here. We were over at Dustin's parents house and Dustin had been working some really long hours at school. He and Taylor fell asleep on the recliner and the light was coming in through the windows so perfect. I think that they both look so peaceful. Seeing my two favorite people so content makes me feel so good!!

5 Runners-Up

This was on the first night of our honeymoon in Colorado. I think both of our faces show true happiness. I remember that I was so happy to have a break and get away. I had been planning the wedding, moving, and just finished finals two days before the wedding. We had our waitress take our picture after we ate.

This is more about the memory than this being a good picture. In the summer of 2001 (I think) my mom and I went on a mission trip to Singapore with a group from Katy, Texas. I fell in love with two brothers, Jasper and Jethro. This is Jasper. They were both such sweeties! The pronounced my name, "Ally-thon." It was so cute. I almost snuck little Jasper on the airplane with me in my backpack. What an awesome experience this was. You think the intent of going on mission trips is to touch others lives, but I know I was blessed more myself! What a humbling trip!

I love these overalls! I actually don't remember this, but I've always loved the pictures we have in these matching overalls.

This picture was taken in the Tech Coliseum after we won the Regional tournament in 1996. We were on our way to Austin!!!! I love the emotion in this picture. Basketball was a HUGE part of my life growing up. The State Tournament was always a dream of mine. Being able to go and PLAY in the Super Drum in Austin was an experience I will never forget. Taylor is going to get so sick of me talking about this when she gets older!

4 Months

I took these pictures of Taylor this morning. She was 4 months old on Friday. We go to the doctor this Thursday, so I'll fill everyone in on weight, height, etc. She's feeling much better! Just coughing a little, but much better!

Happy Valentine's Day from Our Lil' Sweetheart

What a Weekend!

Man, I hate it when my babies are sick! Dustin and Taylor have both been sick for a while now! Dustin started feeling bad last Tuesday night...fever, achy body, runny nose, etc. Then Taylor started running a fever on Friday, as said in my previous post. I have suctioned more snot from her nose than I care to do in her lifetime. Poor baby! She can't sleep laying down because she starts coughing and choking, then wakes up crying. So, Friday and Saturday night were spent holding her in the recliner. On Saturday, my dad kept her for a while so I could do bridal portraits for a friend, then go to Southland's basketball game. Southland was playing Ropes to see who would make the play-offs because they were tied for third in district. Unfortunately, Southland lost, but what a game!! Southland had a great crowd and the girls really played hard...it just wasn't quite enough. On Sunday, Dustin's parents came up for the afternoon so we could get some rest. Then, his mom stayed with us on Sunday night and last night. She's been a lifesaver. Dustin's been able to get some sleep, which is the only way he's going to get better, and I was able to sleep so I could be rested for keeping kiddos. Taylor seems to be doing better. I'm so ready for this all to be over!!

Here are some pictures of Taylor from yesterday. She turned 17 weeks old. She is getting so big! Check out the rolls on her legs. My dad calls her "chunky beef." I LOVE it! Even though she's been sick, she always smiles and giggles. She kicks like crazy when she's under her play gym and is getting so close to sitting up by herself.

Sick AGAIN!!

Taylor is sick AGAIN!! Not like before, but still, she's sick. Her nose has been really stopped up the last few days and last night, it got so bad that she was waking up every hour or two because she couldn't breath. Her temp got up to 101 today WITH Tylenol, so the doctor said to come on in. They wanted to make sure she wasn't wheezing or rattly in her chest. They also wanted to make sure her ears were clear. All was okay, except her temp and her nose. So, they said just keep with the Tylenol and keep suctioning her nose. I hate doing it because she cries so much. I know it makes her feel better, but ugh, I just hate it!! I'm so ready for Spring and warm temperatures so we can get through cold and flu season. Here's some fun pictures from this week...

16 weeks old...so happy!

Thatcher loves the camera...isn't he cute in overalls?!

Cousins playing together

5 Songs

I have joined in with a group that blogs about a different topic every week. These topics help us get to know each other better and learn new things that we don't already know about each other. This weeks topic was to list your 5 favorite songs or 5 most memorable songs. Since I have NUMEROUS favorite songs (so many I just can't choose 5) I chose my 5 most memorable.

1) Strawberry Wine by DeAnna Carter - Oddly enough, this song reminds me of many basketball trips in High School. We may have been tough on the court, but we were some really "girly" girls off the court. We would sing on the bus (after the game of course, and only if we won). This song was sung every time. I LOVE it still!

2) Tyler by The Toadies - This song reminds me of High School, particularly some CRAZY times with Brooke Meador and Yvonne Osuna. I remember always listening to this in Brooke's car, "Happy" the Honda. Anytime that I hear it, I think of those silly girls and some of the wild times that we had!!

3) Champagne High by Sister Hazel- This song brings back college memories from my Soph and Jr year. I lived in a townhouse with two awesome girls, Amy and Ashli. We all 3 loved music and would burn lots of CD's. This was one that we listened to A LOT!! If you haven't heard the words, pay attention. I had no idea what it was about for the longest time.

4) I'll Be by Reba McEntire - Most of you know or have heard me talk about my cousin Kristin. I sang this song at Relay for Life one year. It makes me think of her and all she went through battling and beating cancer. She was so young, yet so strong!! She will always be my hero!!

5) God Bless the Broken Road by Rascal Flatts - Before this song became popular (or even played on the radio, I think) Dustin heard it on Launchcast. He downloaded the guitar tabs and sang it for me on our second anniversary. It kind of became our song! So, this song makes me think of my WONDERFUL hubby. He is so many things to so many people...husband, daddy, friend, brother in Christ, teacher, coach, and mentor, just to name a few. I love you, honey!!

Update

Wow, it's been a while. Taylor is growing up so quickly!! She is constantly smiling and laughing. I love it that she is always happy. In the morning, when she wakes up, I go in to her room and look over her crib. When she see's me, she gives me the biggest smile. Talk about melt your heart!! She is also sitting up VERY well! I can sit her up and let go and she'll stay for 10 or 15 seconds. She's also grabbing everything...my hair, my necklace, Dustin's chest hair! It's too funny. We can put a rattle in front of her and she grabs it and plays with it. It usually ends up in her mouth. She also takes her pacifier out and puts it back in. Her hand/eye coordination is really developing. Here are a few recent pictures...

She was swinging after her bottle the other day. It cracks me up that her hand is on her belly...true contentment!

Here are a couple from last Sunday after church. She was laughing at her daddy!