White Christmas

We had a very busy week leading up to Christmas! With last minute shopping to do, I tried to fit in some time to bake some yummy treats (Christmas cookies, glass candy and puppy chow) and Allie and I went and saw The Princess and the Frog. I am exhausted from our week, but we had some great time with family. I think the most memorable moment of Christmas 2009 is the snow God blessed us with. It was amazing to sit in the kitchen and make cookies, listen to Christmas music and watch the snow fall outside. I haven't had a white Christmas in over 14 years (use to live in Nebraska). My parents slowly made their way to our house Christmas Eve. We ate dinner and opened a few presents. Then we woke up early the next morning and saw what Santa had brought Allie. This year was so much fun with Allie. She just loved everything about Christmas and was so excited to see what Santa had brought her.

We attempted to make donuts and they didn't turn out too bad. Then we packed up and headed to my brother's house in Arlington. We had some wonderful food and great time with my family for a couple of days. I am so blessed to live so close to my family. After church today, we came back to the house and started to pack for our trip to Big Sky, Montana. We are flying out in the morning and meeting Jarod's dad and brothers for a week of skiing! Don't worry, I will not be skiing. I plan to play in the snow with Allie and enjoy my week off from cooking and cleaning! I may even try to get a massage, mani or pedi. Should be lots of fun. I'm looking forward to some time with Jarod and Allie before the baby gets here.

I hope everyone had a wonderful and blessed Christmas!

Some how my pictures got out of order. Oh well! Here is Allie enjoying her cookies.

Cookies and milk she left for Santa. Next year I plan to find a Santa plate to leave her cookies on.


Jarod took Allie out to play in the beautiful snow. Good practice for our trip!

Holiday Breakfast

We had our Holiday Breakfast at church today. This was our first year to go and I am so glad we did. It was wonderful and I was so impressed by all of the decorations and activities they had for the kids to do. When we got there we had a yummy breakfast and then Allie and I headed off to make lots of fun things. She made a goody bag, reindeer food, apron, decorated a cookie, made an ornament and a picture frame and last but not least, had her picture taken with Santa. She loves having her picture taken with Santa (do not have a copy yet). She has never been afraid to sit on his lap and she always smiles! We had such a great time as a family today and look forward to it again next year.

Allie in her holiday pj's

Allie and her buddy Hannah

A few of the fun things we made today

"Mommy I Want to Meet Mary"

Allie has been learning about Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus at school. She even got to dress up like Mary and hold "baby Jesus" one day. After I picked her up yesterday we started talking about her day. We talked about all the things she did that day and then we started talking about Mary. This was our conversation:


Allie: "Mommy, I want to meet Mary."
Me: “Well not today, Mary is in heaven with Jesus, God, and Joseph."
Allie: “Well I just want to meet her."
Me: “She is up in heaven and one day you will, but not today.”
Allie: “I will take a plane up in the sky and go meet her.”
Me: “No, you can’t get to heaven by a plane. Heaven is like a magical place and we can’t see it. It’s really high in the sky.”
Allie: “Well, I just want to meet Mary."
Me: "Yes honey, I understand but not today. One day you will get to meet Mary."
Allie: "I will jump really high on the clouds to go see her."
Me: “Okay Allie."


Thought maybe you could all use a laugh today!

Turkey Trot and Happy Thanksgiving

My parents, Jarod, Allie and I headed off to the Turkey Trot early this morning. We have gone for the last 3 years and are trying to make it a Varner tradition. It was pretty chilly so we were all bundled up. Allie's hat was a little big for her, but it kept her nice and warm. Only Jarod ran this year. I'm truly amazed at how many people come out to the Turkey Trot. While he ran, we took Allie to see the animals, ride the ponies and jump in the bounce houses. We had a great time being together. Then we headed back to the house to work on yummy food!

Happy Thanksgiving!!! I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are very thankful for so many things this year and feel so blessed to be able to spend it with family.

Allie loved hearing the turkey say "gobble, gobble".

Baby Brother for Allie

For those of you who haven't already heard, we found out Wednesday that we are having a little BOY. We are all so excited, especially Allie! We did not care what we were having as long as the baby is healthy. Everything on the sono checked out great. The little guy is kicking more and more every day and Jarod can now feel him kick too! Allie came with us to the appt. I had prepared her for what she would see and showed her pictures of what her sono gram looked like. On the way to the doctor she asked if our baby would come out black and white (the color of the picture). I had to fight back a laugh on that one! She also thought that the baby was coming once we got to the doctor. I think her favorite part was hearing the heartbeat. I am so glad she got to experience that with us. After the appt. she and I went to McDonald's (her favorite), plus I was able to get my burger fix!

I'm still in a little shock that we are having a boy. All I've ever thought about for the last 3 years is girl but I know I will get use to thinking "boy" soon! I can't wait to find sweet little boy clothes.

18 Weeks, Comparisons and Man Food

I decided that now is a good time to update on how my pregnancy is going so far. I'm sorry that I do not have a picture. I haven't taken any pictures and I'm sure I will regret it. There isn't really a good place in my house to take one and it we've had a lot of rain this month! I'm going to try and get one this week since it's supposed to be beautiful outside.

I can not believe I'm already 18 weeks. I already feel like this pregnancy is going by so fast. Once I got past 14 weeks, I was not getting sick anymore. I was not nearly as sick this time as I was with Allie. In fact everything about this pregnancy has been the exact opposite of mine with Allie (hmm... maybe a boy?). With Allie I was pretty much sick from the time I woke up, to the time I went to bed. This time I was only sick at night but it lasted for a long time.

My appetite is huge! Even when I was sick, I still wanted food all of the time. I really didn't care to eat at all when I was pregnant with Allie. I love food this time! I've decided to call my cravings "Man Food" b/c that is what I want all of the time. I want anything that has to do with meat, except chicken. I can eat chicken but it's not what I crave. I really love chili, hot dogs and hamburgers. Not only do I want all of this "Man Food" but I also want "Man Portions". I'm having a hard time adjusting to the food I am craving and the amount I like to eat. I do not give in to all of my cravings but I do get chili from Wendy's about once a week. Other foods that I like are salads, fruit and sour things like pickles. I'm also addicted to lemonade! With Allie I couldn't even look at meat (cook or eat).

Allie is still very excited about being a big sister and she is determined that she is getting a brother. We talked about it tonight and I asked her if it would be okay if God decided to give her a sister instead and she said, "No Mommy, I want a brother." I honestly think she will be happy with either one, but right now she is determined that I have a boy in my tummy. We will find out what we are having on the 11th of November.

Last Thursday (exactly 18 weeks) I started to feel the baby move! I actually think I felt movement earlier in the week (only at nighttime) but just wasn't sure. With Allie I didn't feel anything until I was 23 weeks and that was big kicks and rolls. Feeling the baby move is the most amazing feeling in the world. I had forgotten how amazing it is and how real it makes everything feel.

Pumpkin Patch 2009

Every year we make a trip to the pumpkin patch in Flower Mound. I love that it is so close to our house and it's free! My parents joined us this year and we are so glad they came with us. Some how I did not get a picture of them with Allie. I don't feel like I did a very good job of getting a lot of "scenic" pictures. It was so busy and people were just every where!. My mom and I waited in line for 25 min. to get kettle corn. I think another reason I didn't get as good of pictures as usual is because Allie was so busy. She is at a really fun age and can really enjoy more things. She had a great time with the bounce houses and climbing the big slides and sliding down. She is really into posing right now, so she did give me some great smiles. Towards the end we ran into the family that watches Allie. She loved seeing them and enjoyed riding the train with Mae.

We decided to eat dinner at McDonald's and I finally got my burger! For those of you who don't know, I have really been craving a hamburger. I had hoped to grill out, but that didn't work out. It was still very yummy!

Mae and Allie. She is so sweet to Allie and Allie just loves her. I hate that the sun was in her face.

This was her favorite thing to do. She felt like such a big girl.

Not the best scenery for a picture, but it wasn't crowded in there and Allie was ready to pose. She would pick up a pumpkin and turn around and pose for me.

Usually I ride the train with Allie, but I had hurt my back and with me being preggo, I didn't feel like bumping all around the place.

Of course she had to have her picture with Diego.

*Next up: Halloween party, Jarod's b-day, air show, fall festival at my parents church, celebrate my nephew's b-day and a soccer game. That is all this weekend!!!

Catching Up on the Month of September

Saying that I'm behind is stating the obvious! We were very busy during the month of September, so I thought I would just combine everything into one post. I have included pictures from Allie's first day of preschool, Plano Balloon Festival, Ranger game, Allie's first soccer game and the Texas State Fair. Allie is attending preschool 2 days a week at a Baptist church close to school. I am so happy that the lady who watches her was able to work this out for us. Allie is the oldest where she stays and she really needed interaction with kids her own age. With me working, I never thought that would be possible so we are so grateful that she is getting this opportunity. She absolutely loves school!


We met our good friends EA and Ashley and a few others at the Plano Balloon Festival. Actually, EA was surprising Ashley for her birthday. We got there just in time to see the balloons take off. We had a great time hanging out with friends and eating yummy food. We stayed long enough to see them light the balloons (absolutely beautiful) and see fireworks. A lot of my pictures did not turn out. Bummer!

For Father's Day, I bought Jarod tickets to the Ranger game. Our seats were awesome! We were 4 rows to the side of home plate (closest to Ranger dugout). They are the best seats I've ever sat in. It was amazing how close everything was. They lost the game but we were on TV some! After the game they had fireworks and they let us move up a couple of rows to the cushioned seats. They were awesome! Jarod and I are spoiled now!

I'm so happy that "Pudge" is back with the Rangers!

Allie is playing soccer for the first time. She is on a team with some friends from our small group at church. I think she really likes playing. Her first game was a little rough. She wanted to be out there the entire time and she was grouchy because she was hungry. There were a few tears shed. In Saturday's game she only cried once which was improvement. I'm really enjoying seeing her in this environment. I think it is really good for her and it's really funny to watch!

Allie and her buddy Cale. His dad is the coach.

We went to the fair on opening weekend with my parents. We got there fairly early and it was not crowded at all. We were lucky enough to get some coupons from nice people in the parking lot. We had a great time, but boy was it hot! We drank lots of water and ate some yummy food. We did not try fried butter (new item this year). If you are not from Texas, every year they have different types of fried food to try. This year was fried butter. I did see someone with it and it did not look very appetizing. Allie really had a good time! She enjoyed seeing the animals, climbing a sand hill and being a "farmer". She also was able to drive a couple cars. By the end of the day we were all exhausted but so glad we got to go.

My Lil Farmer!

THE BIG 29

I am a person who loves birthdays! I'm always so excited when it is my birthday but this year has been a little different. For some reason, I just wasn't all that excited about my birthday. You probably think I'm crazy, but I think it's because I was turning 29. I know that isn't "old", but it just feels weird. I'd honestly rather skip 29 and go straight to 30. Maybe my hormones are just crazy right now! Last night I woke up at 3:30 (my usual time) to go to the bathroom. When I got back in bed, I couldn't go back to sleep b/c all I could think about was my birthday and that I was turning 29. Crazy I know! So of course when I woke up I was sad, grouchy and a tad bit emotional.

This birthday morning was a lot different than any other. I left over 10 min. late to work. On my way, my good friend and teammate Michelle called me and her car wouldn't start. I told her I would come get her (took 20 min.) Picked her up, then took Allie to Carmen's. We were 45 min. late to work. Thank goodness for a helpful teammate and understanding office staff. We had grades due today and we had both planned on getting to work early (even if I didn't go pick her up I still would not have been there on time). It was just a crazy morning, but by the time I got to my class my kids were being so sweet and they had brought me gifts! I was shocked. I have never gotten gifts from my kids before for my b-day. They were just the sweetest things and just made my morning. The rest of my day was filled with yummy food (we had a luncheon) and sweet emails from friends and family.

Jarod had sent me a text earlier informing me that I had a gift at the house when I got home. I was a little confused b/c we just got a new TV and that is both of our b-day/x-mas gift this year. When I got home he had picked up the house (disaster b/c I'd been sick all week) and vacuumed the house (aw!). It was the best gift ever! He also took my car to be washed and cleaned and then took me out to dinner. Now I'm just waiting for my Oreo blizzard cake to thaw out so we can eat it. Yum-O!

So all in all, turning 29 wasn't that bad!

*Michelle if you read this, I still think we should have just gone and eaten breakfast instead of going in to work!

April Fools

BIG NEWS: Allie will be a BIG SISTER in April! Our official due date is April Fool's Day. We are very excited and so is Allie. She has requested a "real" baby since Christmas. She is so excited and would like a baby brother. I hope she is not disappointed if it's a girl! I am almost to the 12 week mark and I already feel like it's going by so fast. I'm not a big fan of the first trimester and I have been exhausted! Starting work at 8 weeks preggo was not easy. The first week I would come home and crash on the couch. Thank goodness Allie is so good and patient. Each week has gotten easier and I look forward to having more energy in the weeks to come. I only get sick at night time, which is better than getting sick at school. I was really sick with Allie and didn't like food. This time I'm only sick sometimes (am taking some meds to help) and want to eat all of the time. I never seem to get full! Plus, I'm already starting to show. That caught me a little off guard. I've always heard that you show quicker with the 2nd one, but I was not expecting it to happen.

Jarod and I feel so blessed to be able to raise another one of God's children. We have wanted to add to our family for the last year and we have patiently learned that it is all in God's timing. Please keep us in your prayers that I continue to have a healthy pregnancy. I've been so worried these first weeks after miscarrying last August. I know that God is in control and I've put everything in his hands.

*At some point I will get better at blogging again. I have lots of things to put on here!

Allie's 3 Year Pictures

We had Allie's pictures taken a few weeks ago at the Dallas Arboretum. It was beautiful and it was hot and we got there at 9:30! We used the same photographer that we used last year. Her name is LE and I just love her. She is so patient with Allie. Allie takes a while to warm up to new people. I had to bribe her with marshmallows! Hey whatever works, right? I think she did a wonderful job. I had a really hard time choosing my favorites to share. I put several on here and there are several more that were left off. Let me know your favorite!

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Classic Allie

We decided it was too hot outside and Allie needed to cool off in the fountains. She had a ball getting wet!

I think she kind of looks like the frog in this picture. Too funny!