Happy Easter!

We had a wonderful Easter this year with all the kiddos. This day was really all about them. The morning started off pretty stormy on our way to church, but by the time mass had ended the weather could not have been more beautiful!

The Easter Bunny paid us a visit while we were away at church. He was extra nice this year!

the girls checking out their treasures

Once the rest of the family came over & the weather cleared up, it was pretty much outside time the rest of the day. First off, the cascarones (confetti eggs.) SO MUCH FUN!

Kenzie & Bella teaming up on Jamal

Show us your baskets. Time for the hunt!

After a long day of fun the kids decided it was time for a little R&R!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I just wanted to take a quick minute to thank everyone for helping me raise money for the March of Dimes, March for Babies walk I am participating in on May 9th. It is exactly one month from today & I am only a mere $5 away from reaching my $500 goal. I never really even expected that I would reach this goal, but it was more of a dream. It would not have been possible without all of your help. Thanks so much.
We are so excited to participate in the walk. Anthony & I are coming up with a t-shirt design for everyone who will be walking with us. I already have the girls' shirts ready & they're super cute. Anyone that is interested in walking with us, be sure to let us know. The walk is May 9th in Austin. Obviously our family follows the saying, "the more, the merrier!" So, everyone is welcome.
Anthony hadn't even had the chance to make his own page for the walk yet & I am already so close to reaching my goal that I am directing everyone to his personal page now. His is http://www.marchforbabies.org/maryalicemarch
So, if you were planning on donating still & haven't had the chance you can always donate there so we can help Anthony reach his goal.
Thanks again everyone! You are really making a difference in so many lives. This is helping all the babies-to-be that otherwise may have never had a chance to survive.
Love & Hugs to all!!!!

Isabella's Farm Party

Last weekend we celebrated Isabella's 3rd birthday with a little farm party. Whenever Anthony's mom had asked her, about a month ago, what she would like for her birthday this year, her response was... a donkey, a horse, a cow & a pig. Knowing we weren't planning on making a move to a ranch anytime in the near future, we decided to bring the animals to us. It was a really big hit with all the kids. There was a little pony for the kids to ride around on & also a petting zoo complete with a baby calf, goats, bunny rabbits, and a few baby chicks. They all really seemed to enjoy it. Isabella has already asked when her animal friends will be coming back.

She really loved the baby chicks

& Mackenzie loved the pony!

The sweet baby calf enjoying a nap.

The goat kids helping us with our yard work.

The animals were a big success & all the kids seemed to be sad when it was time for them to leave, but once they did it allowed us to get to the "usual" party events...

Blowing out the candles on her barn cake,

& lost in the sea of presents!

Thanks to all our friends & family who were able to make it. Isabella had a wonderful birthday this year & we are all so appreciative of everything you all do for us.

We love you Isabella... HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETHEART!!!

Please join me in supporting March of Dimes March for Babies‏

Dear family & friends,
This September will mark 5 years since we lost our sweet angel, Mary Alice, to my premature delivery. It is hard to believe that it has been that long, when it feels like just yesterday that Anthony & I received the news that our precious baby would not survive my delivery. Nothing in our lives has compared to the tragedy that we went through at that time. As with most trying times do, this only brought us closer together & closer to Christ. Since then, we have been blessed with two beautiful daughters & are expecting our next baby at the beginning of June. God is good!
We are always looking for ways to be able to help other mothers & families in any way that we can. If there is anything that we can do to prevent at least one other family from going through what we had to, we're more than willing to help. This is the least we can do. I am very excited to be a part of March for Babies. We are participating in the walk to honor our baby angel, Mary Alice. I am posting this blog to ask for your help. Please support my participation by making a donation or even joining my team.My personal web page address is...
http://www.marchforbabies.org/marchformaryalice
The March of Dimes mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. Thank you all so very much for just taking the time to look over our page. It means the world to us. We know our sweet angel is looking down with joy on what we are doing to try to help others. God Bless You all!
Love & Hugs,
Alice, Anthony, Isabella & Mackenzie

Sleepless in Seattle

We are so excited to say that we have finally made the final steps in getting our new business up & running. Some of you know that we have been chasing this dream for quite some time. The business story will have to be an entirely different post all together. Making a long story short, Georgetown Fanatics is our newest baby. We will be doing screen printing for athletic wear, everyday t's, holiday apparel, the list goes on...
Back to the post at hand, we made a trip to Seattle last week for the training for our new machinery. The girls started the trip off sick, which didn't make for very pleasant plane rides. Other than that part, it was a wonderful trip.

Bella on her first plane ride ever...

Kenzie knocked out from her meds... poor baby! However, this was much better than the screaming fit that preceded the nap...:(

Apparently, we were told we brought the Texas sun with us because it did not rain a single drop the entire week we were there, Monday thru Saturday. Seattle is a beautiful city with the water, gigantic evergreens & gorgeous mountains. If we wouldn't get so homesick we would definitely consider a move there. The scenery is simply amazing.

This was the view from in between 2 streets of the little neighborhood where we stayed in Kirkland, WA. Can you imagine this in your backyard!?! BEAUTIFUL!!!
We took Aunt Rosie with us for the trip so that we could have the girls tag along for the journey. Anthony & I had training all day Tuesday thru Thursday which left us with Friday wide open for all the touristy stuff. We started the day off with a "ride the ducks" tour. It was so much fun for the kids. The driver was super goofy & we got to see an entire overview of Seattle in 90 minutes by land & sea. Pretty cool!

Daddy & Kenzie on the truck/boat

Mommy & Bella
Space Needle in daylight

Duckie Lips

view from our boat ride of the "Sleepless in Seattle" house... sorry, I can't point out exactly which one it was
Mt. Rainier

Pike's Market

After the ducks, we headed to Pike's Place Market. My one big request for the trip. Too bad we're not huge fans of seafood, because they had the most amazing looking fish on display you could ever imagine. My favorite... the, what seemed like, mile long highway of fresh fruits & vegetables.... mmmmm! Pike's is also the proud owner of the very first Starbucks ever!
So, you may be wondering where the "sleepless" part comes into play. With all the excitement from our training class & getting our new business going I think Anthony & I totalled, maybe 3 hours on average of sleep each night. We kept having all sorts of dreams/thoughts of what we will get to do. Honestly, ever since we've been home the dreams haven't stopped. Some of our best ideas have been coming to us in the wee hours of the night. We are really excited to share with everyone our new journey. In the meantime, while we're getting things really going, you can check out our website: http://www.georgetownfanatics.com/

It is just a parked page for now but will hopefully be up & running really soon. We'll be sure to post again once things really start to take off.

Another little man in the Flan Fam

After much anticipation all week long, we were all very proud to welcome our newest little nephew into the world yesterday, Aodhan Patrick Flanagan. Amy had already been in the hospital two times earlier in the week expecting the arrival of their newest cutie, was actually due yesterday, but scheduled for a c-section this morning, Monday. I guess Aodhan (Irish spelling for Aiden) knew the day he was supposed to arrive & was determined to stick to it. Amy went to the hospital pretty early Sunday morning. Starting off with great progression and then after several hours at 5cm, she didn't move on from there; same as with Cian. So, the doctor decided it was time for a c-section. We're so proud of you Amy & know you worked so hard. I'm happy to say baby & mommy are doing wonderfully.

Only some of the kiddos waiting for their newest cousin

It's a BOY!!!

The proud new parents yet again... he's so handsome!

Cian checking out his little bro

Jamie & Aodhan, once again this little man has his daddy's genes

Sister Story Time

The other morning I was working on the computer & noticed the girls being extra quiet in the play room. Uh-oh, this can only mean one thing... they're up to something. So, I go to check out the situation. They were both quietly sitting on their window seat reading books together. SO CUTE!!!
So, I ran to grab the camera as soon as I could before they decided to do something else. Of course they realized what I was up to once they heard the first click of the camera & quickly "cheesed it" for my next picture. Silly girls!

Thank You, Mackenzie

The other night after dinner I was sweeping up the kitchen floor while Mackenzie was happily emptying the tupperware cabinet. This is something I really don't mind letting her do because it can keep her occupied for quite a while & she really enjoys it. Although, I knew something else was going on once I heard her saying, "Thank you... thank you... thank you!"

I turn around & this is what I see...

She had made her way over to Ruby's food cupboard, taken out her doggie biscuits, and was feeding them to her one by one saying "thank you" every time she handed Ruby a treat. Ruby was loving every minute of it. She had to have had at least 15-20 treats in a row. Needless to say, Ruby didn't eat much dinner that night.

Our 2 year old sweetheart...RUBY

On a much lighter note, we celebrated Ruby's 2nd birthday last weekend. It sure does seem like she's been around for much longer than that. I had fun making a bone cake for her. As you can see in the pictures she got a hold of the bottom of it before we even had a chance to sing "Happy Birthday." Of course the girls appreciate any reason to get to enjoy cake or any sweets for that matter. I did let Ruby have one cupcake, without icing. Although, she ate the whole thing in one bite I wasn't fast enough to get a picture. Happy Birthday Ruby Girl!

Prayers for Jaouad

Last week was another challenging week for our family. My brother-in-law, Jaouad, was rudely greeted by severe chest pains Wednesday evening while hanging out with his buddies after work. Gratefully, one of his friends avoided listening to him say he would just go home to sleep it off & called 911 to rush him to the hospital. Cassie went to the rescue to go watch the kids & Rose drove Tina to the hospital. Thankfully, Rose was there at the hospital with Tina when she got the awful news that Jaouad had actually had a heart attach!!! The surgery that was supposed to last 15-20 minutes ended up taking over an hour. Jaouad spent the entire next day in ICU trying to recover & get his blood pressure back up. Many prayers from our family helped move the process along to get him home. He is now home with his amazing wife, my sister, Tina who is not only taking care of Jaouad but also doing her usual job of caring for their 3 kids. If you wouldn't mind keeping their family in your prayers it would be greatly appreciated. Mainly for the obvious, Jaouad's health. But a close second; financially this is going to be very difficult with the hospital bills, medication, & the fact that Jaouad will have to stay home to recover for quite a while they will have no income between the two of them for their family of 5. We are so blessed that once again God has answered the prayers of our family and brought Jaouad safely home.

The boys stayed the night on Thursday while Tina was still at the hospital. On Friday we started the morning off with some story time & when that wore off all the kids made a sweet card for Jaouad to take to him on their visit to the hospital.

***A little side note: This was the first time Isabella has written her entire name by herself. (A very proud moment for a mommy.) Of course the "b" is a little off... looks more like an "o" & "l", but for the most part I think she did pretty good. Jaouad, you should feel special. She did it for you.:)

20 weeks & kickin'

I had my 20 week appointment last week. Things are moving along rather quickly this time around & growing even faster than you could imagine. I don't know if it was all the yummy food from the Christmas holidays or the fact that I had been sick for almost a week straight when I had my last appointment & was losing weight, but I gained 12 pounds this past month! Crazy, I know!!! So far at 20 weeks I am just starting to feel a little bit of kicking around. This is my favorite part of pregnancy. Everything starts to feel so much more real & the thought of having another sweet little miracle begins to really set in.

We got to have another sonogram to see our little one moving around, busy as ever. He/she will fit in just great with Isabella & Mackenzie. Looks like we have another little monkey on our hands. While watching the sonogram Anthony & I both stated how this baby looks a lot like Mackenzie. (Well, from what you can tell with the ultrasound pictures anyway.) Once we got home I pulled out Mackenzie's sono pictures. Looks like the same baby!

our newest little miracle at 20 weeks

Mackenzie at 20 weeks

This is my favorite picture of our little miracle so far. Ellison, our amazing ultrasound tech, was very excited because he said this was a first for him as far as the picture goes. The face, both hands, & both legs all curled up in one picture. A true little bundle.

How sweet!

Merry (very belated) Christmas!

I know we are extremely behind on our blog these days. What can I say, so far 2009 has been a pretty busy year. We had a wonderful Christmas filled with lots of family, but as usual, not everyone was here this year. My one BIG wish for Christmas next year is that our entire family can be together. How awesome would that be!?! I wasn't very on top of things with the camera either. So, the majority of our pictures are from Christmas day here at our house. We had a fairly little Christmas at home this year which consisted mainly of stocking presents. With the girls' reactions you never would have known the difference. They loved every minute of it. We hope everyone had wonderful Christmases & more than anything that you have all had a great start to 2009! I have to say, so far it's looking to be a pretty good year. Our family is so extremely blessed! Love & Hugs to all!!!

the girls enjoying their stockings

Even Ruby's stocking was filled with goodies.

Mackenzie & Tyrone

Isabella's favorite gift from Cousin Fabian.... a bike!

God's Plan

This past week has been one chaotic whirlwind. It all started with the dreadful phone call I received Wednesday afternoon at 4:30. I knew for quite sometime that our company had been in trouble, but never really thought it would come down to this. Especially not at this time. Only a few weeks before Christmas. Right when I was expecting a call to come pick up my Christmas bonus, the complete opposite happens...I get a call telling me that I am being laid off. Now my 2 weeks of vacation time that I have worked so hard for all year long & saved up to enjoy time with my family during the holidays has been stripped away from me & will be spent searching for a job. Obviously, I was devastated at the news. As always, I tried to keep my spirits up as I am an extremely firm believer in God's plan for all of us. I know things can get really difficult in life at times, as I am sure they will be for us over the next several months, however; I know God has something bigger & better waiting ahead. We have been through much harder times emotionally, more than most people can imagine, with the loss of our first daughter. At the same time, we have never had a closer relationship with Jesus Christ. This time around may be the hardest financially for us. Only time will tell. All we can do is put our faith in God & his plan for our family.
I would like to share with you the reading, of which I am pleased to say, I was the lector for this Sunday at church. I could not have imagined a more perfect reading at a more perfect time.
Brothers and sisters:
Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophetic utterances. Test everything; retain what is good. Refrain from every kind of evil.
May the God of peace make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, The one who calls you is faithful, and he will also accomplish it.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
While reading this letter in front of my entire church, I tried my hardest to fight the lump in my throat & hold back the tears I knew were about to come. As always, God pulled me through. This was the third Sunday in Advent, also know as Gaudete Sunday, which means "rejoice" in Latin. This Sunday we were given a chance to rejoice in the Lord and look forward to all the ways He will make justice and praise arise in the future, as were apparent in the lessons of the Gospel. As hard as life seems to be at times, it is in these times that I am so grateful for my faith in God & all He has given me. All I can do know is look forward to what lies in the future.

It may be a tough journey, but it is one we are not willing to take without God as our leader.