Catching up...

We've not had too much going on lately. It's just cold and we've been stuck inside most of the time. Tag has 2 more basketball games left and their little team is looking better and better...they're starting to get the idea of the game. He still goes to wrestling practice and really enjoys it, but we aren't doing any of the matches. As his daddy says, it's a weekly outlet for him to get out some of that wrestling energy that he has so much of! ;) Bella Rose is doing great and growing like a weed...they both are growing too fast. She has gotten into her baby dolls again and loves being a mommy to them. In fact, when we went to see Santa and he asked her what she wanted to be when she grows up, she said "a mommy"! Awwwweee! I don't know if this started after being with Bently or what, but I love it...especially since I'm sure it won't be long and she won't want a thing to do with baby dolls.

Not much going on with me. I am trying to sub as much as possible...but those jobs are hard to get in this system! I do have 2 jobs already for later this week and next week. I am looking into doing the alternative certification program to become a teacher when we get back in LA. I would love to be able to start teaching next Fall....so I'm about to be studying for that dreaded PRAXIS. :( I honestly can't imagine taking any kind of test and I'm really anxious about it!

Tommy finished his Internal Medicine rotation a week ago. To brag on him a bit...he once again got a near perfect evaluation from his attending, as he has with each of his rotations so far. He has patients telling his doctors what a great bedside manner he has and how thorough he is and good at explaining their diagnosis. I'm just really proud of him. He does have this magnetic personality and has this really caring side to him that comes out when he's with a patient. I was always certain he would have a great bedside manner. He started his 12 week surgery rotation yesterday and although he had heard negative things about this doctor from other students, he hit it off well with him. The dr. had on an Alabama hat so it helped to break the ice by bringing up Alabama's Coach Saban that Tommy played under at LSU. :) We are still uncertain about how long we will be able to stay in Tulsa...or how long Tommy will. As of now, Tommy is scheduled to go to Virginia for a 6 week rotation at the end of March. We have said that we will not do such a long distance apart thing again, but looks like it'll be happening soon. And it wouldn't be so bad if we were closer to family... There is a possibility they will allow the Tulsa site to stay open and some students are drafting a letter in hopes of persuading them. So this is what I'm praying for and would love your prayers also! We have been through so much (that many of you prayed us through!) since he got in medical school that has grown us in so many ways...so I'm not going to let this worry me! Ultimately, we will survive whatever we have to and it will all be worth it in the end once he's finished and he has a satisfying and fulfilling career!! Weeeeell, I guess I had alot on my mind this morning! ;)

Here are some random pics from the last week or 2...

Here's our precious Santa pic! This was the best Santa we've seen through the years. It's funny because last year Tag wasn't in our Santa pic....he was too scared to go near him! ha! He couldn't believe he was that scared when we told him that the other day!

I went in to check on the kids before bed the other night and found Bella laying like this. =)

These next pics are blackmail pics! Tag put on my Uggs and stuffed his sleeves with paper. hahaha!

Rosie all bundled up for school...she looks like little Cindy Lou Who!

Hope you have a great week!

Thanksgiving in Tulsa!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We actually spent our first ever Thanksgiving with just our own little family. We've always had friends or family to spend our holidays with...even when we were in Grand Cayman we spent Thanksgiving with our friends the Clarks...so this was a first! I must say we did miss seeing all our family, but I'm not going to lie...this Thanksgiving was one of my favorites! We cooked together and just spent good time together. We went around the dinner table saying what we were thankful for this year...just a sweet, special time and I wouldn't have traded it for anything! Here are pics from Thanksgiving week!


Tag the cute little indian!

Bella Rose's class party

Ready to sing! And below are 2 videos of songs they sang. :)

Cute lil indian ready to eat!

Here are pics from Thanksgiving Day!

Ready to help mommy make the dressing!

They are getting good at cracking eggs...no eggshell made it into the bowl this time!

Mixing it all up! (please ignore the "catch-all" bookcase in the background! Space is quite limited in a little apt!)

Our Thanksgiving dinner! Dressing, Ham, broccoli and rice casserole, mac n cheese, devilled eggs, delish rolls, pecan pie and 4 layer delight! Heaven!!!! Yes it was alot of food for 4 people (really just 2 since the kids just picked at the food!) but it was all the things we wanted to make sure we had, since we only do it 2 times a year! This was my first time to make my grandmother's dressing recipe and I must say it was pretty close to being as good as when she and my mom make it!

The kids were out to play and came in and were so excited to see all the food! They acted like they loved it, but didn't eat much of it. Crazy kids!

Thanksgiving night we went to the Utica Square lighting! It was alot of fun and I'm glad we went!





The carolers

Bell on daddy's shoulders trying to get a good view of Santa!

There he is! Santa did the countdown to the lighting.

Pretty clock in the square! It is a fun area and has lots of high end stores, that I'd love to go walk thru sometime and window shop!

The rest of the kids' break was pretty low-key. Tommy worked and finished up his Internal Medicine rotation and the kids and I stayed home because I wasn't interested in fighting the crowds!

The kids out on the balcony painting plaster molds and making pictures one day during the break.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We each have so much to be thankful for every day!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas!!

I was planning to wait until Thanksgiving day to put up our tree...but we had snow in the forecast (of course we never saw any, but it was still exciting to a Louisiana girl to just see it forecasted) and it just seemed right to go ahead and put it up this past Monday. =) We also put some lights out on our balcony railings and the kids are so so excited! We'll wait until Thanksgiving to hang the stockings and the rest of the decorations. So for now, we are decorated half Christmas and half Thanksgiving in our little apartment! Poor Thanksgiving just gets pushed aside more and more each year it seems! ;)


We are excited to be spending a quiet Thanksgiving at home this year. Of course we love to be with family, but since that's not possible this year, it will be nice to be able to relax and just enjoy being with our little family without having to rush from house to house! I plan to attempt my family's dressing recipe, so I'll be sure to let you all know how that works out...

I had another "first" yesterday! I went to eat lunch with Tag for the first time. Now he wants me to come everyday! ha! Bella Rose eats lunch in her classroom so I can't go eat with her just yet. Tag has his Thanksgiving feast today and Bella Rose has hers next Tuesday. And then they are out of school Wednesday through Friday next week. Unfortunately Tommy has to work, but I think he'll be able to be home on Thanksgiving Day. I cannot believe how quickly Christmas is approaching!!! On our agenda for this weekend is getting pictures taken so my dear friend, Misty (check out her site...MSR Designs), can make us up some FABULOUS Christmas cards!! If you are wanting an original Christmas card, she is great and she also has lots of other stationery on her site to choose from. (She's also pregnant with her 4th child...and the fact that she's able to run this business in the midst of raising her family is just amazing to me!)

Have a great weekend!!

Our weekend in Shreveport

We got to travel to Shreveport this past weekend to meet sweet little Bently McGregor and he was just as tiny and precious as I would have imagined!! I knew the kids would be so thrilled to get to hold him, but they really surprised me at how much they wanted to be with him. Tag especially took to his little cousin and we've been talking to him about how he will need to be a good role model for little Bently as he grows up! :) On Saturday, my mom, Aunt Laurie, Sister, niece and cousin all drove up to Shreveport too for some shopping at the Boardwalk. We had a great time and as always, whatever time I get with my family is never enough. Saturday night Tommy's mom and dad came up also and the whole Banks clan got to go out to eat at Posado's (yumm!) for Ma C's birthday! It was nice having all the Banks boys and their families together and afterwards we went back to Mark and Amber's for birthday cake and ice cream. Then on Sunday my mom and dad came to visit us before we headed out. I was so glad I got to see my dad....and so was Bella! She had gotten teary eyed when I told her that we probably wouldn't get to see Poppy this trip...so it was wonderful that they came on Sunday! Then we stopped off to love on Bently one last time before heading back to Tulsa again. Thankfully we had a much better trip home than we did coming. Tag was so carsick Friday we kept having to stop, clean him up and clean the car and let him rest some. On the way back to Tulsa though, Tag's Dramamine helped him sleep about 3 hours of the trip...and Bella slept right along with him! Whew...what a relief and what amazing little travellers we are blessed with! Guess they're just used to it by now! The kids really did not want to leave this time and that makes the trips home even harder. The goodbyes are always hard and the kids are getting more aware when I cry (I told Tommy I'm just not equipped with that mechanism that will allow you to just tell yourself to NOT CRY!). But I think no matter how old I am, I will always cry when I have to leave my parents. That's just a sign of our relationship tho and how much I love 'em! =) And like I told the kids...time is just flying by and we've already almost been here for 6 mos! Soon we'll be moving on along once again!

I have lots of pics from the weekend and I'll just let them speak for themselves!

Tag holding his little cousin for the first time!

Cute boys!

Tag kept saying he just wanted to squeeze Bently!

Beautiful Bella Rose holding Bently for the first time!

Babies always look smaller when they're in Tommy's arms! ;) I love seeing him with a baby, he's always so gentle and sweet.

First time to feed him a bottle

I love this picture...it sums up the whole weekend pretty much. All eyes were on little Bently!

Bella Rose was quite the little momma and will one day be a fantastic big sister!! (one day...but not one day soon unfortunately!)

Burping the baby

Love this...just melts my heart!

At the Boardwalk!

The kids with my niece Katelyn

Bella picked tiny flowers while we waited for our table at Saltgrass

Gorgeousness!

Me with my sister Cherie, aunt Laurie, cousin Samantha and my mom!

I downloaded another PhotoShop trial and have been playing around with these pictures! ;) This one is just a great picture that Amber took!

Sweet sweet!


Ma C with her 3 grandbabies!

Brandon and Erica at Posado's

The new parents! They don't look too sleep deprived do they for parents of a barely 2 week old baby?! I don't know how they're pulling that off! ;)

Our family + 1!

The Banks boys with Momma Banks!

At the hotel with Poppy on Sunday

Nana and Tag at the hotel

Too funny! Bell in Poppy's glasses

As you can tell it was a GREAT weekend.....and a very FULL weekend! But we wouldn't have it any other way!