Happy Halloween!!!...

Sophie's first "trick-or-treating" experience this year. Her uncles showed her how the process works and once she found out neighbors were GIVING her candy, my gosh...our little witch was unstoppable!





We treated in two neighborhoods and Sophie was practically running to get more "cannee". Luckily she had 5 boys to take her to each house. She would latch on to one of their fingers and drag them along. She didn't want to be carried by us nor did she want help with her treat bag [she'd rather drag it then give it up]. Needless to say, Halloween was a big hit and I think she's been sugared up enough to last the remainder of the YEAR.





Hope everyone had a fabulous time too. Thanks to uncles Mike-Mike and Davy; and thanks to all three Shaffer boys for being so sweet to our little tyke. Sophie thinks you boys are the coolest ever!





Lot of love!

Twenty Months...

Sophie turned 20 months old! [sorry, I'm alittle late] We already knew she was a "big girl" but I guess we underestimated how BIG she thinks she actually is. As most know we have officially moved back to LUBBOCK so being around family for her is HUGE! She's been hanging with her family and she's become a new person practically. She is more outgoing as opposed to being so shy. And she talks! She's her normal self...silly, sweet and fun! The side everyone gets to enjoy now!!

She says MANY words...her vocabulary count is near the 100s [if not more]. She loves airplanes..."AIRPANE"! She likes to color and play with her uncles trucks. She loves to be outside, making the rounds looking at all the animals on Pop Pop and Grandma's farm.



She likes to touch and feel EVERYTHING! Picking it up to get a closer look and see how it works is mere necessity these days, whether that be at home, outside or shopping. If she can reach it...it's in her hands. She likes to be tickled. Hates to go to bed and loathes brushing her teeth. She loves to jump on the bed or couch and can now climb up on the couch all by herself.





I'm sure I am missing so many more milestones here but frankly, my brain is out of sorts. We'll update again after we move in our house and, of course, for HALLOWEEN!!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful week. Love, love, love.

Last day...

Today will be our last full day in North Carolina. Bittersweet because it is such a beautiful place to live and we've enjoyed getting to know the town of Holly Springs, not to mention our fabulous neighbors. Thanks to Ernie and Ann Olson for being our second family. Such wonderful people...Sampson thinks so too!



So if you're thinking of moving...DON'T! I, undoubtedly, can say packing/loading/moving STINKS....[yup, pretty much the entire process]. Mike and I have totally come to an agreement that we are NEVER moving again. [That should make our families happy] Poor Sophie is old enough now to understand her things are disappearing before her eyes but she doesn't quite understand why?!?! Everything we pack up she's right behind you saying "mine" with a pout. But with anything luck...our praying will do us some good and get our living situation figured out quickly.


[Just trying to get in trouble...]

Continue to pray for us for this week. Me and Sophie will be flying Friday morning while Mike and his Mum drive the vehicles back to TEXAS, through Saturday!!! Almost in the clear for our next life adventure!

Have a great day! Love.

Vacation...

Saturday night before our vacation to St. Thomas we get a call from my Mom regarding weather conditions in the Virgin Islands...not looking good. After long thought...we cancelled our [muchly] anticipated trip to the beach. As Sophie would say "SHUCKS!". Earl had other plans in mind for us...if not Bolongo Bay head to LUBBOCK!!



Sophie had no problems hanging out with family. In fact, she had a blast! She went swimming, rode a horse for the first time, and was practically at a petting zoo the entire trip. She loves animals and everyone in our family has them so she was in heaven meeting all the pets.


["Pa" blowing up the pool]



Swimming was too fun! Her and Rammie did "splashies" for hours. Horse riding wasn't exactly the best experience for her but she liked to look at them and pet their noses. The chickens were too funny running around and she laughed especially hard when her uncles would chase them.


[SPLASH!!!]




[Petting crazy chickens with Grandpa and Uncle Johnny]



She even got to see her Midland crew for a bit before the first Texas Tech game. [GO TECH!!] Took a minute to warm up but she took a liking to Reagan pretty quickly. They were hand in hand in no time at all!


[cousins Reagan and Mason]

Thanks to Jen and Chach for letting us bunk at your casa this time. Had a fabulous time with everyone! Love.

Nineteen Months...

Sophie is slowly becoming such an individual. Shy, cautious, super sweet, all girl and totally independent. Mike weighed her on the airport luggage scale and she's still only 21.5 lbs. Yup, she's a SHRIMP...short with a round belly. Her hair has grown past her shoulders and she brushes fly-away's back when they get in her eyes. [Sassy]



She's a TALKER!! New words all the time. Her favorites are...NO!, MINE!, and Shucks!. She plays soccer, dribbling [I believe the term is] her ball around the house. Two words...SILLY BANDS! New favorite show is Yo Gabba Gabba. Loves toe nail polish. Eating habits are getting better. New fruits to add to her list...kiwi and grapes. "More!, More!" She can spot the moon almost instantly and is quick to point it out to you. She went on her first picnic where we shoo'd flies. Needless to say, crawling is a thing of the past! "Ready, set, GO!!" [Imagine little feet pitter-pattering as fast as they can go]




[Kids Museum in Raleigh]


[Goodnight Moon]



I've said it before...Sophie loves, LOVES to dance. Favorite song to-date is Black Eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling". Check her out...



Have a great week everyone! Love.

The Ritchey's...

We recently visited Washington D.C. [again] but this time met up with our Lubbock-ites, Eric and MJ. Weather was so much more enjoyable and we loved getting to catch up with our friends. Sophie totally made two new BFF's and knew them by name within a few hours. She loved sniffing flowers with MJ and had a secret crush on Eric sharing her beloved "silly-bands" with him. She liked to walk with them and show them all the big trucks passing by too.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera and theirs was jacked so I only have my phone pictures...sigh.


[Smelling flowers]


[Playing coaster flip and catch...??? Sure, we'll call it that]

So this trip we visited the NARA to view the original Constitution, Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence. Sat for drinks at the Willard Hotel were the term ‘lobbyist’ originated when Ulysses S. Grant was in office (1869-1877). Apparently President Grant would frequent the Willard Hotel to enjoy brandy and a cigar, and while he was there, he’d be hounded by petitioners asking for legislative favors or jobs. It is said that President Grant coined the term by referring to the petitioners as “those damn lobbyists.” [Were thinking of you Dad while we were here!!] And we took Sophie to the National Aquarium.





Thanks guys for letting us crash your vacation. We had so much fun and miss you already!!

Congrats to the Percival Family on their new addition, Miss Libby!

Hope everyone reading is having a great week!! Love.

Eighteen Months...

It's been an entirely new world for Sophie this past month. She's all over the place and LOVES to walk. She's figured out how to dance standing up and walks around in circles. [It's all part of her dance routine] She loves STICKERS!! I probably pull about 10 stickers off the couch, the ottoman, the floor and my feet 20 times a day. She likes to stick them on her legs then pull them off saying "AH!"...as in "OUCH!". Hilarious! She can eat an enormous amount of blueberries but has become quite the difficult eater. UGH! Bribery has worked wonders...for now.




[iPhone pic of stickers Grandma mailed...turn your back for 2 seconds...]

She loves to throw her trash away...and anything else for that matter. Still our little book worm...new favorites are "I Knew You Could" and "Pinkalicious" . She likes to "tickle, tickle" and LOVES the park slide. She likes to pick flowers and sniff to see how pretty they smell. Her new bracelets she finds in Mom's bathroom drawer...[hair rubberbands]. She knows where the snacks are and will beckon you to open the pantry door so she can pick something. She loves her baby dolls and likes to push them in her doll stroller. So sweet how she hugs them and pats their backs while rocking them in her arms.





She likes to be rocked for a few minutes before bedtime while you hum or sing her a song. We're teaching her the alphabet and she's learning new words everyday. She tries so hard to say what we say and for the most part...she can! Okay, so I'm bragging here...but seriously she's got to be the smartest baby on the planet!





Next up...POTTY TRAINING!!! AHHHH!!

And...Congratulations to The Wagner Family on their new addition...Selma! She's so precious and we can't wait to meet her!

Love, love, love.