Cloudy with a chance of a pesky fever!

Today we had family pictures taken. We haven't had picture taken in a all time. Aaron and I got up around 6:30 watching the weather worried that it was going to rain out our session. We left at 8:00 to drive to Waxachie for a 9:30 appointment. Dana spend an hour and half with us trying to take pictures. Aiden ran everywhere!! He wouldn't look at her for anything. We pulled out all the stops to get him to listen and smile...... but no. He was extremely fussy. I felt like all I did was apologize for his behavior. I could only hope that through all 200 pictures she took there was a few good ones....MAYBE. When we got home I was putting him down for a nap and he felt very hot so I took his temperature. He had a fever of 101.0. I felt like a terrible mom for not knowing he was sick. At least it explained for his bad behavior. It's not fun having a sick little boy.
You can look at the preview of our pics. from today at www.tinstarphoto.com/blog/

Go Rangers!!!

Aaron's dad got a suite for game 3 of the ALDS. It's the only way Aiden could go watch a game. He had plenty of room to play.
Daddy and Aiden with the broom!

Aiden with his G-Paw. GO RANGERS!

Thanks G-Paw for the great tickets and food. We had a blast!! Go Rangers -all the way to the World Series!

2010 Pumpkin Patch

Last weekend we went to the Celina Pumpkin Patch. Grammy and Papa came with us. We got to feed the animals at the petting zoo, ride the hayride, run through the pumpkin patch and ride a train. We enjoyed a picnic lunch in the middle of the pumpkin patch. Over all, it was a fun day together as a family.

Aiden did not like feeding the goats. You can tell by the death grip he has on his daddy.

Aiden did like riding the little train. Aaron tried to sit in it with him but as you can imagine that turned out to be a joke so Mommy got too. This was the first time Aiden was still for more than 5 minutes. He didn't move the whole time we rode around the pumpkin patch.

Aiden's not real big on taking pictures. He had to much exploring he wanted to do.

As Fast As Lightning McQueen

Aiden did so good his first week of school that I surprised him on Friday with Lightning McQueen slippers. Needless to say he loves them and thinks he's super fast when he wears them. Daddy runs up and down the hallway with him sliding on our hardwood floors. Boys!

Sugar High

I'm sure you can imagine the sugar high Aiden had after this. Sunday afternoon Aiden and I decided to make some brownies. Aiden stirred while I put the other ingredients in. It took everything to keep him from sticking his hands in it. So after I pour the brownies in the pan I let him go after it.

Aiden likes to lick the bowl just like his Daddy but he takes it to another level and enjoys licking the counter tops too.

Yummy!


I love helping mommy in the kitchen!

9/11/ 2010

9 years after September 11 our country is still honoring and remembering those that lost their lives that day. As a family we got to honor our McKinney firefighters and police officers today. Aiden loved being able to see the fire trucks. I loved the free food and Aaron loved seeing Justin in a skirt. Justin played in the fire fighter's pipe and drum band and wore a kilt. We had a great time with the Reyes Family. Thanks Justin and all the firefighters and police officers for your service to our country.

Aiden's First Day at School!

Aiden's first day at school. He started off good looking at the fish in the tank and watching the kids but as soon as we went down the hallway he lost it. He refused to walk so I had to carry him to his room. Broke my heart but I know this is good for him. He hopefully will enjoy playing with the other kids. I met with the ECI lady when I got home. This process is crazy! I was not aware of how hard this was going to be. Not to mention it cost money and I was told it wouldn't. From what I heard today he might not even qualify but we'll see on Monday. Anyway, I spent my time with out Aiden cleaning house. Not much fun but necessary. I can't wait to pick him up.

Camp Out!

For labor day we went to my parents lake house or I should say land. They just started the building process. Aiden loves it out there. He is a typical boy when it comes to being outside all day. The weather was great! We had a relaxing day with the family. Can't wait until we have the house built and a BOAT.

A Trip of a Lifetime!

This was truly a trip of a lifetime for Aaron and me. It gave us much needed time together even through I missed Aiden terribly. Once we got to Rome (which is a whole another story) it was amazing. (My pictures are in reverse.) We were in Rome first for several days and got to visit lots of places. The Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Roman Forum, The Vatican, and my favorite- The Colosseum. I think the Colosseum was my favorite because there wasn't that many people there. We were able to explore the place ourselves and have fun.


We had delicious Italian food almost every night but its not the Italian food you would think. We (Americans) think Italian food is Lasagna, Chicken Marsala but they didn't have any chicken and not much paste either. They ate mostly pork, lamb, and beef.
It was all good! We never had a bad meal. Tuscany is more beautiful in person than in the movies. Vineyards everywhere! Aaron took me to a beautiful town called Montepulciano
(where they filmed Twilight) for a romantic dinner for my birthday. It wasthe best birthday I have ever had (except for my 27th birthday which was the day I found out I was pregnant). We had more wine during this trip than we have had in our lifetimes. (which isn't alot- we aren't big drinkers) While we were in Tuscany we drove to different cities. The drive itself was gorgeous but once we got to the city we shopped, had lunch, relaxed and explored. I had a blast! I can't wait to book our next trip back.

Aiden in BlueBonnets!

A couple of weeks ago I took Aiden down to Ennis to get some pictures of him in the bluebonnets. My mom has several pictures of my brother and I in bluebonnets so I wanted to get some with Aiden. Of course, he wouldn't stand still for two seconds. These pictures are my attempt at getting some. He wouldn't sit in them or stand in them. All he wanted to do is run after my aunt's dog. I must have taken 50 pictures and they all pretty much looked like this. There are a couple of good ones with his hands in the air. :)

Cheers To 30 Years!

Aaron turned 30 this month! We celebrated with family on Thursday night. I made his favorite dinner. Now I know why I only make it once a year. It took several hours and there was a huge clean up. It was worth it to me. I wasn't able to do it last year because I was in the hospital. When we sang happy birthday to Aaron, Aiden lit up, he thought we were singing to him. He loved helping his dad blow out the candles on the cake. On Friday we celebrated with friends at PFChangs. It was going to be a surprise for Aaron but I think he already knew. I can never seem to keep a secret from him.

Relay For Life 2010! Manda Strong

Relay for Life this year was incredible. The weather was perfect and we had a huge turnout. Team Manda Strong raised over 2000 dollars for America Cancer Society. Yea! I felt so honored to have so many people out there cheering me on. Thank you to everyone that supported our team in some way. This event will be a passion of mine for the rest on my life.

I was asked to speak at one of the relay for life events this month and was approached afterwords by a mom who's daughter was just diagnosed with the same cancer I had when I was five. I was able to meet this young lady at Relay for Life. She was an amazing girl with a great attitude and spirit. I am happy to say that we hit it off and I will be taking her lunch at the hospital sometime this week. Praise God for his direction in my life.

Bitter Sweet Memories!

When I looked at my blog tonight for the first time since........ Jan. 09 I immediately began to cry. I'm still teary eyed right now typing this post. As I went through all the pictures and relived all those special times Aaron and I had together I realized that in that very moment I had no idea what was about to happen to me. My life was going to change forever! It was bitter sweet! My life changed forever in a great way, my son and not so good way, cancer.
Instead of reliving through that hard time and catching everyone up to speed I'm going to start from this point on. Fresh! And what better way to start than with Relay For Life!!!