Currently Reading The Daily Bible: New International Version: With Devotional Insights to Guide You Through God's Word By F. LaGard Smith see related

I'm sick of "the field!"

So first and foremost I want to apologize for being so bad at updating this thing! You guys should get myspace!!! lol Just kidding! I should be better at this! I'm like addicted to the internet or something!

Anyways!!!....I hope all is well in Germany and Korea! Texas is getting better everyday! We are discovering new and fun places to go to down around Austin, so that has been fun exploring a bit! The weaher has just been amazing! This summer I really wondered why the heck anyone in their right mind would move here, other than if they werein teh Army! Now I know why! We had virtually no winter! There were maybe 2 cold days! And since the begining of Feb. the weather had just been beautiful! I makes it so nice to be able to go to the park or let the kids play outside in the backyard! I prbably already be in the nuthouse if we lived somewhere where we were still snowed in!

Mike has been gone A LOT!! He was gone for 2 weeks at the begining of Feb. for their "normal" field rotation! Okay no biggie right?? He got back on a Fri. and left that Monday again! for another week! then he was home for 4 days and gone for another week! He is home now, but leaves Tuesday AGAIN for that week, and then heads to Ft. Bliss or White Sands rather, the second week of April til' the 28th! I'm so mad! I honestly thnk I'd rather him just go for one long swoop and get it over with! This coming back and forth thing is driving me nuts! The kids are confused, we can't get on a good schedule...it sucks! I just keep telling myself "two more years, that's all!" I can do that right?

Well, the kids are great! They are just hysterical and settling down with the terrible two thing somewhat! no ne sat in time-out ALL DAY today! VICTORIOUS!    Their new thing is pretending that they are babies! Although I still think of them as babies...they are almost THREE!!....they think that they are sooo big! I have a really freat friend here, Gwynne, and her little girl, Sophia, is 5 months old! So cute! I think they want to be like her or something! Thy always want me to rock them and they fake cry like babies when they fall or don't get what they want! They're really funny! Crazy, but funny! Little angels!

We...me and the kids...are headed to my parents condo next week! I can't wait!!! It should be so relaxing and I will get to spend a lot of time with my mom! We are planning on doing some scrapbooking, Sandy's fav.!!, and just chilling at the beach! The kids love the beach! They just play and play and play all day! Then they are totally worn out and sleep soooo good! Did I mention that I can't wait???  We should have a really great time, but I feel kinda bad! Poor Mikey! He has to be in the field when we're at the beach! I feel so bad for this guy! We are just really missing him and our time together!  Hopefully leave will get here FAST!!

Other than that, noting new! We are pretty bring down here in Texas!  I hope all is well with both of you and always know that you are constantly in our thoughts and prayers! We think about you guys sooo much and miss you even more!!! I hope you both have a great day!!! I will get better about posting! I promise!!!

Here are some pics for now!

XOXOXOXOXO

Britt

She is really cheesin' here! Her shirt says..."my halo is temporarily broken!" Oh, how true that is!!!

Okay! This is my favorite!!! This pic cracks me up! There "new" thing is to take their clothes off ALL THE TIME!!  The otehr day we were grilling out and we both had come inside at the same time...just them the doorbell rang. This lady was holding our dog. it took me a minute to register that they must have opened the gate...she goes "uh, is that your naked kid too???" I was mortified! Mason was stripped completely down! undies and all! All he had on were his tennis shoes!!! lol I was just like "uh, yeah." I blame Mike for that one though! He let him pee outside once and it's his fav. thing to do now!!! So, I assume that's why he stripped of course! =) Boys!!

On the boat...eating "dinner"

HAHAHA This pic makes me laugh everytime I see it!!! This is her "crazy" face! I told her to do something funny! I think she got it!!! lol

He's so sweet! He LOVES to fish just like Mike! SOOO cute, and of course Daddy lovves it too! =)

I think this pic is so cute! Mike is so sweet in teaching him and letting him help! I can already tell that in a few years Kayla and I are NEVER going to see the two of them! They'll be out on the lake!  

February

Well, here's another update for my *2* dear friends to read! I miss you both soooo much! lol

Things are going very well at the Shoults household these days! The kids? Well, their little angels angels of course!  They are so stinkin cute! We have had a bit of a rought few weeks in the listening area, but other than that.....they seem to think they know what to do better than me and they also enjoy bossing eachother around! Sometimes I have to look at them and say, "I'm the Mommy, and you are the kids!" They're like sure mom, whatever! But, we have so much fu nwith them these days! It's getting harder and harder to get over on tehm though! I was busy folding laundry the other day and Michaela came up and asked me for some juice. I didn't want to stop right at that minute and she wouldn't take hang on for an answer. Sooo, I told her that we were out of juice and that we'd have to go bye bye to get some more. She just looked right up at me and said, "No, Mommy, the juice is in the refrigerator!" So of course she got some juice, and I got a funny story to tell my mom and Mike. Mason has decide that he will be "all boy" and start experimenting. This week it is flushingthings down the toilet! And not what he is supposed to!!! I was sick last weekend and was in bed I woke up to Mike fussign at the kids and heard them gettingspanked and sent to their rooms! =) I asked what had happened and he said that they a put EVERY single one of his Hot Wheels cars in the toilet! That is about 70 or so! Mike was so mad but I just laughed! =) He was all "Do you kow what kind of damage that can do???" lol He's funny!

In other news I am going to a Bible study at church and just loving it! It was as if God knew what he was doing when he put me in that class!  I was supposed to be going to another study that meets at the same time and same day, but I got there late of course and walked in to the first class I saw. =) I realized later it was the wrong class, but I knew by then that i was in the right place! It is so great for military spouses....or anyone really! It's called "Calm My Anxious Heart." And it's all about being content with where you are at in your life, with who you are, how you were made, your physical image, and you role in your life and marriage. It's so great! I am learning so much and it is so refreshing to be around so many great women! I'm finally making friends! One of the biggest things I've really learned is not to compare myself to others (sorry Karee for saying that about the baby weight thing! ) I think i have always struggled with that, as a lot of women do, but I learned that God chose me for this role. I know it sounds silly, but I always thought I got this role because I or we rather, had made a mistake by getting pregnant early, and that God had given us 2 great gifts out of our mistake. It never dawned on me to think that he knew what he was doing all along and that this was his decision not mine. It makes me feel so much better that I know that this was indeed his plan for me to be mason and Michaela's mom and i am so much happier after realizing that! I know I'm rambling on! It's late and I can't sleep! =)

i do hope all is well there and that whatever you are doing you are loving it! You alls lives do seem a bit more exciting, but fr now I am appreciating the boring! =) lol I am just praying that one day our paths will cross again and we can pick up where we left off! I miss you both so much!

For now I will say goodnight and try to go to sleep....which doesn't look hopeful because Mike is snoring soooo loud!!!.....but, I promise I will try to keep this updated more! I miss you! Tell everyone we said hello!

Terrible two's! =)

Friday Feb. ?

That's ho bad it is! I don't even know what day it is! =) Well, it's been a whiile since my last entry! Things have been crazy around here! I thought once x-mas passed that things would settle down....NOPE! Wishful lthinking I guess! But, it has been good crazy! The kids are getting so big, and they are just hysterical! Everyday they are saying something new and doing something that I didn't even know they could do! It's so fun to watch them learn and interact with one another! Miss Micahela is a smart little stinker! She doesn't let me get away with anything anymore! When I couldn't find her "silky" for bedtime the other night, I tried to tell her that it was dirty and I was washing it. Convincing enough right? She loked at me puzzled, and said; "no, mommy. You not washing it, I think it's in the car!" Little fart! I was just too lazy to walk the 15ft to the car to get it for her, and she knew it! haha  Of course I had to go get it for her! she defintly keeps me on my toes, and doesn't let me slide on bit! mason has now taken on the role of the mean brother! He likes to make her mad by messing up her babies or running off with her "kitchen tools." He just laughs while she's trailing behing screaming! He has also become quite sneaking in his old age! When I'm not looking or I am distracted he like to take his stool from the bathroom and get into the pantry! He must have eatena dozen cookies in the past 2 days! The funny part is that hecleans up after himself. I don't even know he's done it until I go to the pantry to get them a snack, and all the cookies are disapperaring! =)

We are almost done with potty training! FINALLY! They have been going #1 for quite somtime now, but it was getting down the #2 thing that has really been a challenge! I refuse to put a diaper on them, and when they have to go, mason comes to me and cries for his diaper! I told him that if he was bi enough to ask for it, then he was big enough to use the potty! =) They are both so smart! They can count to 20 and they know all their colors! Tey are learning Hongul (sp) and of course they know a wide variety of classic Broadway showtunes! I'm so proud! =)

I accredit my craziness the past couple of weeks to a positive change in my life! I joined a gym!!!! Finally we are able to afford it, and I am going 6X a week! Sunday is my "day of rest!" I decide that this was the year to finally get this weight off once and for all! When we were at Bliss, I joined weight watchers and lost about 20lbs rightaway! Then it kind of leveled off, and I haven't lost or gained anythign in about a year! Sooo, when I saw my friend Karee, =) who's baby is only about a year old, looking fabulous, I started feeling bad again, and decide to get up and do someting about it! It has been so good for me in so many ways! I have only been going for about 3 weeks, but I have lost 5-6lbs! It is also nice because I get a little quitetime break from the kids! mike got me an IPOD for my b-day, so I can just go and listen to music and really enjoy my workout! I am hoping that this works once and for all! The only downside of course is that going anyhere isan all-day event! Gettng dressed, brushing teeth, fixing hair.....and the I have to get the kids ready! =) lol j/k They like to stall, so that whole process takes up most of the day. It's okay, but I do feel like I'm slacking a little with my house. Keeping things organized and cooking everynight has kind of fallen on th backburner. The night before last I ate cereal for dinner and last night it was popcorn! haha But, I just keep telling myself it will all be worth it, and this is my priority right now!

In other news, Mike is deploying, we just don't know when! They keep giving us orders and then cancelling. So who kows! I am praying that he won't go at all, ut that seems highly unlikey. So now i am praying that if and when he does have to go, that it will go smoothly and easily. We need as little extra stress as possible! We are going to sell our house, which makes us oh so sad! We love our home, and it's our first house so it's pretty sentimental to us. But, it's really the best thing. so, come March, we are gonna put her on the market. We don't even know when he's deploying, but we know it's coming, so I'd rather have him here to help with it, than do it all alone with 2 little kids! If it doesn't seel for a while GREAT! But, if it does, it's back to post housing we go. I think housing here is one small step up from Ft. Bliss, so that'sa lttle depressing. But, we can do it! The ONLY positive ting about deployment is that I get to move back home and be around my Mom and my sisters. I miss my mom so much! So, that will be nice! We have also heard that they are moving a patriot unit to Ft. Knox...which is 15 mins away from home for us, so we are hoping and praying that when he gets back we can put in for that assignment. It will be close to his Capt. promotion, so we're told it looks good! We'll see though!

Well, I guess I've rambled on long enough! I better go clean up the mess that is my house! =) Mike gets home from the field today! YEAH!!! And, I want to make sure he comes home to an immacualte house! =) I'll attach some new pics. as well!

Love from Texas!

Britt

happy new year

Hello to all! Today is my first entry to my new site! It is a new year! 2007! One of my resolutions this year...other than losing weight of course....is to stay a little more in touch with friends and family. So, I created this site for all of those that we love so much, but have lost touch with over the past couple of years!

This year, 2007, started out pretty boring for the Shoults clan. We are all ASLEEP!  We were on our way back to Texas from a wonderful Kentucky Christmas, and we rang in the New Year in a Holiday Inn! Honestly, I tried to wake Michael up for Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, but he and Mason were passed out together, so I decided to call it a night! Funny how things change when you have kids huh? For the better of course, but it was just 4 years ago that Mike and I spent our New Year's in Times Square! Oh yes, we bundled up in coats and hats and hit the streets of Manhattan for the 2003 celebration! Who would have thought that a few years later we wouldn't even be able to stay awake to watch it on T.V. lol

We were told at the end of 2006 that Michael would be deploying to Iraq in March for a year! The kids and I were making plans to move hom to KY while he was away, and we were all set to put our house on the market. I was adjusting and mentally preparing mysef for what was to come, when a very big prayer was answered for us! Orders were cancelled, and Mike gets to stay here with us! YEAH!  So, now, as he says, "things should be normal and business as usual." I of course asked what the heck that meant, because for the past year and a half or so we haven't seen much "normal!" But thank goodness he will be staying here with us! Even if he does get of work at 10:00! lol  

The kids are getting so big and becomig little two-year-old terrors. But they are the cutest terrors you will ever see! They had so much fun this Christmas! And we had a blast just watching them! Mason got a HUGE 7 foot long truck, that is also remote-control, and Michaela got a beautiful kitchen set with pots and pans and food! Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Shoults! So now, I spend my days eating lots of coffee, donuts, soup, spaghetti, and other concoctions from "Kayla's Cafe.'" She is such a good cook!

Michael and I are about to celebrate our 3rd anniversary on teh 17th! And what a wonderful 3 years it has been! I lvoe him mre today than the day we got married, and we are both so in love with our family and the life we making together! Mike got promoted in November to 1st Leitenant. It's not a big step up in responsibility, but our BAH (basic allowance for housing) did go up! haha  He will be taking on the position of XO (executive officer) in March. That should be interesting! As far as we know we will be staying at Ft. Hood for the next couple of years. Or "until further notice." We like it here okay, but we are parying for some more friends to come our way. It;s hard to keep friends in the Army b/c everyone moves around so much! Maybe if we stay here a while, some of the ol ones will find their way back to us though!

I guess that's all for now.....here are some pics of the kids at Christmas, Michael and I on our first date in 9 months (I'm totally not kidding!) and a few of our "new Year's celebration!

Our New year's Rockin' Eve!

Michaela making mommy some soup! Look at her hair!

Michaela and Daddy after the trauma of seeing Santa!

My little sweeties! She's trying to say "cheese!"

My little chef's!

Mason with his new cars. he like to line them up in rows.

Kayla making cookies with Granda Thrush. Yummy!

Cheesin' up for the camera!

He thought he'd go for a little ride!

Sorry this is sideways, but I had to put it in. Our first date in 9 months!

Michaela just being cute!

My little bear!