photo 212...

Poor Sweet Buster....

While I was taking care of some laundry, Landry was visiting Daddy in his office while he was working. She saw that Buster was "nigh-nigh". After telling Daddy that Buster was night-night she left the office only to come back a few seconds later....with a pink blanket for Buster! She covered him up and patted his head and said "nigh-nigh Buh". Then she gave him a kiss on his head.

How stinkin' cute is that....she has done this with her baby dolls but this was the first time she has done it with him. And Buster, being the sweet dog he is, let her do it!

I love how toddler minds work...and I love toddler talk....

photo 211...

sidewalk chalk is the BEST!

Today we had some fabulous weather especially for August in Texas so we took advantage of it. While Daddy was doing his Fantasy Football Draft for one of his many teams, the girls and I headed outside to play.

After a little time in the sandbox, and playing with the balls, they busted out the sidewalk chalk. Landry was in heaven....she was getting to write on the ground!

I couldn't help but take some pictures of them....one of these days (actually in a few years I hope) , Ashton won't think it is cool to play with her little sis so I am getting these pics while I can!

photo 210...

what in the world?

This might look like normal doll clothes to you....but it isn't! It is actually a koozie that Ashton had on a water bottle earlier today. When I came to bed tonight, found this doll....dressed in a koozie! It just so happens to fit on this particular baby doll!

That is what happens when you have little kids in your house!

photo 209...

workin' workin' workin'...

It seems like August is the month to have babies! I was working on these cute little receiving blankets for Baby Jenna. I normally do burp cloths, but I saw these blankets and they were just too cute to pass up so I decided to try them out. {They turned out really, really cute}

She is a "little sister" so on one of the blankets that is what I decided to embroider.

photo 208...

After school...

Everyday after school, once Ashton has all of her things put away and has her snack, she plops on the couch for some time to just chill and relax. She gets to watch two shows {Martha Speaks and Arthur} then the tv goes off.

Well....Landry has been away from her sis all day so she usually climbs up on the couch next to her. Lately though, Landry wants people to sit in her lap which is really just on the couch in front her, but anyway she loves it! Today Ashton was sitting on the couch in this exact spot when Landry was trying to get behind her saying "lah-lah". So Ashton scooted forward and Landry wedged herself behind Ashton. Once Ashton was sitting in her lap, she started to brush Ashton's hair with a baby brush...you know the ones with the super soft white bristles. If it had been any other brush there would have been some serious drama....this girl's hair is tangly mess after being at school all day.

Both girls were happy as can be....Ashton's show wasn't disturbed and Landry was hanging out with her Big Sis after being away from her all day long!

photo 207...

The first "Non-PE" Day....

Today is Ashton's first day of school with no PE which means she could where the dress she picked out for her first day of school. You'll notice she accessorized her outfit with her "I LOVE DANCE" choker. {She is really into chokers and wears one almost every day}

She was pretty excited by this...we think she made a great choice!

photo 206...

This little photo album was given to Ashton by one of my sweet friends, Katrina, right before Ashton was going to into Kindergarten. Miss Katrina wanted Ashton to have something to keep her memories from her Kindergarten year in. Ashton loved the idea...she put her name stickers on the outside all by herself. She wrote her name on the inside all by herself.

She and I have gone through periodically and chosen pictures to print and put in this book since the day she started Kindergarten. The book wasn't full after Kinder so we added her First grade year. It still wasn't full...until today! We put the last few pictures from the start of her Second grade year in and now it is full!

She has really loved this "project". She loves pictures and spends lots of time looking back at these memories. It is her very own book! Thank you Miss Katrina....what a great idea!

So now we will need to find a new photo album to continue on down her very own memory lane!

photo 205...

Here she is....

...our SECOND grader....

...on her first day of school!

photo 204...

Another little tradition of ours....

So we have this little tradition that we do for Ashton on the last weekend before school starts. We always take her to get a snow cone. Today was the last day of summer for Little Miss Ashton Raley! We had a great day....lots of playing at home, a little swimming, dinner of her choice and a snow cone for dessert!

Here is to the end of a great summer that went by really, really fast! And now we are sending our BG to second grade in the morning.....Sigh!

photo 203...

today's lunch...

After Ashton's softball practice today, it was lunch time. Landry was eating her lunch which consisted of grapes, cheese, ham dipped in ranch {she's a dipper like her mommy and ranch is a new thing that she loves}. Ashton had finished her lunch and was waiting patiently for Landry to finish hers so they could have dessert. Ashton went over to "help" Landry in order to speed up the process just a bit.

It was hilarious! Landry wrapped her arms around Ashton's waist and opened her mouth with each bite like a baby birdie waiting for Big Sis to put the ham in her mouth.

Ashton of course loved the "hug" she was getting and Landry loved being fed for a change. Landry thought it was funny...she would giggle after each bite then open wide again!

Ashton told me I needed to get the camera and take pictures. Then she told me I needed to put this on the blog! Is it weird that my children request for things to be on the blog and for me to take their picture?

*sorry it isn't a great pic...I was in a hurry to catch it before the moment passed and didn't have a chance to mess with the settings on my camera.

photo 202...

second grade.....sigh!

Today we met Ashton's SECOND grade teacher ans saw her classroom! I can't even begin to tell you how that made me feel! She is beyond excited and can't wait for Monday...me on the other hand...I could totally use some more summer time with my girl at home!

photo 201...

Clippin' Box Tops

This is one of the things we do to help Ashton's school earn a little extra cash. So far with the money they have earned from these things that most people throw out, the PTA has been able to buy a digital camera for every single grade. The goal is to have one in each classroom so the teachers can snap pics of things they do.

My parents collect them and give them to Ashton...she loves that they do this! So between Grammy's & Grampy's house and our house, we collect a good amount each year.

Today I was trimming them...getting them ready for her to take to school next week! It really has become "habit" looking for them, tearing them off the packages, and trimming them! I used to collect them for my class when I taught and now we do it for our Big Girl!

photo 200...

This activity is what entertains Landry while I am taking a shower (if I have to shower when she is awake). She has collected a cup, a bowl, and a medicine cup which she arranges on the edge of our bathtub. The bathtub is right next to the shower so I can see every move she makes.

She turns on the water to just a trickle and very purposefully fills the containers and pours the water into the bowl. She loves playing in the water and filling containers and pouring these days! This is actually one activity that doesn't make a huge mess for me to clean up like say emptying her clothes out of her dresser drawers or taking every single towel or diaper out of her cabinet. It also keeps her from getting into things she isn't supposed to and it keeps her in the bathroom with me.

I just put a towel on the floor so the floor doesn't get wet and slippery and she is as happy as can be. She has improved greatly at this little task....she doesn't get her clothes soaking wet anymore!

It is really fun to watch her concentration and then she gets a ginormous smile on her face when she gets proud of herself! It is too cute!

*I realize that the last 3 photos have been of Landry, but next week will be lots of Ashton so to make it fair, Landry gets her spotlight this week!

photo 199...

we made it 19 months and 11 days before this happened....

This what I found when I went in to get Little Miss Landry from her nap today. I found a cute little "neck-id" baby....a dry diaper ....and tee-tee all.over.her bed. NICE! She was pretty pleased with herself.

So now I guess pants at nap time are a must! I am just soooooo glad it was ONLY tee-tee!

photo 198...

Daddy's Chair...

Landry just wants to be big~like everybody else.

The other day she decided she wanted to sit in Bobby's chair at the kitchen table for a snack....so I let her. She was as happy as can be swinging her chubby little legs back and forth. She had a huge grin on her face and chattered the entire time.

Since then, she wants to sit there all the time. I let her at snack time, but every other meal she has to sit in her chair. She never tries to get up into anyone else's chair...only Daddy's.

Today while she was having her snack, I grabbed the camera. I really wanted to get a picture of her legs hanging off the chair or her whole body in the chair, but they all turned out blurry. poo! So...this is the one we get. I think it still cute. She was loving her "mu-nin" with "bu-ner" {translation: blueberry muffin with butter}.

photo 197...

"First Ever Bennett Clan Wii Bowling Tournament"

So my parents have "Family Dinner" at their house every Sunday. Two of my sisters and their families attend and so does my Ninny. I HATE that we aren't able to attend. Every now and then we make the drive down and they change it from family dinner to family lunch. We had planned on attending today in honor of this bowling tourney. Since Landry has a virus we didn't go and good thing since today Ashton woke up with a fever and not feeling well.

We were able to participate anyway. My mom made a bracket and included us in it. She called when it was our turn to bowl, we bowled and called back with our scores. All three of us ended up in the LOSER'S Bracket. My nephews, Jon and Chris, along with my sister were in the finals. The championship game was postponed until Chris gets off work this evening.

It was fun, but would have been way more fun if we had actually been there. Ya know...we missed all the comments and smack talkin' that went on. We will be there for the next one for sure!

photo 196...

Winter Boots in August??

Oh yes~winter boots in AUGUST!

We had to snatch these "fuzzy boots" up today because last year we couldn't find this color in Ashton's size and they didn't have them in Landry's size. So while we were at Target and saw them...we had to get them even though they girls won't wear them until sometime in November.

Ashton had a pair of black ones last year and wore them all.the.time! She calls them her "fuzzy boots" and they were seriously her favorite shoes of the year. Landry already loves hers...I think she loves that she can get them on and off all by herself! Both girls wore them around the house today...Ashton with her shorts and Landry in just her diaper.

photo 195...

"coooooo-keeeee, show, show, cooooooo-keeeee" ~Landry

Landry has learned to say "show" plain as day and "cookie" is pretty clear too. We have one episode of Sesame Street recorded on the tv in our bedroom. She likes to request when she wants to watch a show.

This particular episode is all about Cookie Monster so she will request it with "cookie" followed by "show" over and over until we get it on for her. Most of the time she just wants to watch us turn it on...she really has to be in the mood to watch it even for 5 minutes. She isn't a big tv watcher yet but likes to see how things happen when she uses her words.

photo 194...

yummy AND healthy!

Tonight for dinner we had tilapia with mango-pepper salsa....it was so incredibly yummy! We decided this mango salsa could be used on chicken or even with fish tacos.

The picture isn't the greatest but this was a colorful and flavorful meal especially with the grilled asparagus that went with it!

photo 193...

I love so many things about this one too....

Tonight while Daddy and Ashton were at their first softball practice, Landry and I played in the backyard. She pulled the bat and ball out of the toy box and was playing "gaw" which translates to golf. She was trying as hard as she could to hit the ball...it was pretty stinkin' cute!

She was also excited that she was wearing her "flaws" which translates to flip flops. I just couldn't help myself and had to grab the camera!

photo 192...

...this picture makes my heart HAPPY!

photo 191...

Genius...

We have 3 or 4 old cell phones around here for the girls to play with, but for some reason Landry knows the difference between a working cell phone and a non-working phone. She prefers the working ones~aka Mommy's, and Daddy's

Well....when we went on our trip to San Antonio, my sister got in the car holding two cell phones. Parker had one and she brought the other one for Landry to play with. They are no longer in service, but you can still charge it so the buttons make noise and it lights up...just like a working one. Landry was in heaven!

I told Bobby about this when we got home and he went and got one of his old phones and charged it....the girls are in love! I think Ashton has dominated the phone for the past two days but Landry gets her fill too.

This is pure genius...why didn't I think of it! Thanks for the idea Auntie Megan!

photo 190...

"it's a BUBBLE HIVE! It looks like a bee hive but with bubbles!" ~Ashton

Tonight while Daddy was giving the girls a bath, I was changing out the laundry. I came into the bathroom and heard squeals. Ashton was collecting bubbles from the bubble machine on her hand! They stayed long enough for me to run and grab the camera for a quick pic! When she had too many bubbles, the "hive" got to heavy and fell into the water.

Bubbles are the BEST!

photo 189...

I love, love, love this picture because...

~it is of my two most favorite little girls in the whole entire world

~my two favorite girls are walking on steps at Baylor

~they are walking up with the same foot at the same time

~they are holding hands

~Ashton is being such a great Big Sis to Landry

~Landry is loving that Ashton is helping her be just like Ashton

~I love the way the sunlight is on them

...and those are some reasons why I LOVE this picture!

photo 188...

Here We Come SEA WORLD....

I took this picture as we were on our way to Sea World from the hotel! Grammy's GPS aka "Bossy" took us there with no problems what-so-ever!

photo 187...

Road Trippin....

The girls and I left today and headed down south for a special trip to visit Grammy and Grampy. We left our house on Thursday, drove two hours to Waco, then headed to San Antonio. Grammy was taking us to Sea World with Auntie Megan and Parker.

I knew the girls would be in the car for a long time so I got a few new things for the trip. I found these great little books in the dollar section at Target. Landry and Parker loved them and I got a couple of boxes of info cards for Ashton. One was on Space and the other was on Animals. I also found a neat little "Wonders of the World" book for Ashton.

**I just love LP's little chubby hands holding this book! More details and lots of pics coming on the family blog!

photo 186...

Stuck....Trapped.....

This evening, Bobby got in the car to run to the grocery store real quick for some milk....but he couldn't get out of the garage! The garage door would not open for anything...he tried to manually open it....no luck....he tried the red rope....no luck...nothing worked. He was out there for about 20 minutes and drenched in sweat. He tried everything he could think of, he got online to see if he could find a solution....nothing!

So we had to call a garage door guy (Tommy from North Texas Doors)....and he is here right now saving the day! Bobby has already pulled my car around front and the great garage door guy is fixing a broken spring! This guy is unbelievable...he was at the mall....got our call at 7:45, was here at 8:20 and gone by 8:45. He gave us some great tips and charged a very reasonable rate which was exactly what he had on his website. So if you need a garage door guy....he was fabulous!

I really don't like feeling trapped at all....not even a little bit!

photo 185...

Twinkies...

This week, Ashton and Macy are doing round 2 of Hannah Montana Dance Camp. The director from their studio so sweetly invited them to camp and do it again just for fun... and of course they loved it. Today when we walked into dance, Ashton was so excited to see that she and Macy were matching...and it was totally NOT PLANNED!

Jodi and I end up dressed similarly often (also un-planned) and every once in a while the girls do too so it is funny to me every time this happens.

photo 184...

Ashton's Lair...

This girl totally cracks me up and I LOVE having her in our house! Today after we got home from grocery shopping, she decided to grab pillows and blankets and build her a "lair"! She built it in between our couch and chair...she blocked both entrances with pillows, made the top with blankets in which she used notebooks and magazines to hold in place. Then she needed to fill the lair with things....our lantern, more blankets, a play phone, and a few other random items.

She wanted Landry to play with her but not ruin the lair. Well...I am sure you can guess how that went over! She must have had to re-build it a dozen times. This entertained both girls for quite a while. They even got to the point where both girls could sit in there without making it fall.

I don't know what it is about her and building things with blankets....I just thought it was funny that this time it wasn't a fort...it was a lair!

(I hope I spelled "lair" right....I don't even know where she learned that word~and sorry this picture isn't that great!)

photo 183...

The Youngest Cousins in the Bennett Family

My younger sister, Megan and her son Parker, came to visit us yesterday and spent the night too! Landry and Parker are 3 weeks apart and had a total blast playing together. Ashton did such a great job of playing with both of them. Parker is obsessed with his Uncle Bobby...he walked around the house calling for Bobby...it was so cute!

This morning before they left, we wanted to get a picture of them together. It isn't easy when you have TWO very active toddlers...but we managed!

Thanks for coming to visit...we will see you on Thursday!

photo 182...

Margarita Party 2009!