final thoughts

well 2009 is almost over, and I just wanted to say:

SEE Y'ALL NEXT YEAR!!!

i pray that everyone has a happy and blessed 2010.

here are some pictures from our recent trip to charleston!!

for more photos check out my flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hbyars/sets/72157622935754091/

winter pictures!

time flies when you are busy!

i can't believe that christmas is just around the corner! what has happened between thanksgiving and now? craziness is what has happened. at least from what i remember that is what has happened.

i had my high school production of "anne of green gables". it was amazing! my high schoolers are so talented and great! i am sad to not get to have high school drama next semester. i think i went into a coma for a few days after that, because i cannot remember anything for a few days.

after coming out of my coma it was time to put up our christmas decorations, which i love! i love the tree, the lights, the ornaments, the stockings, and the smell of christmas. although we had a mild scare that we had lost our ornaments, or at least left them in atlanta in the attic!! we didn't put up a tree last year since we spent two weeks in belgium with oma and opa, so this is the first year that we are putting up decorations in lubbock. luckily mema and grandad had held onto our decorations for almost two years! we had totally forgotten that we asked them to hold onto them. thank you mema and grandad for not tossing them!!!

there are some really precious ornaments that i would have been heartbroken to lose. it would have been so sad to lose the ornament that matthew and i made at the kappa/alpha christmas party the night we got engaged, or the cute bride and groom that we got as as wedding present. i also would have missed my claymation christmas ornaments from "rudolph the red nosed reindeer". to me the christmas tree tells a story all its own! each ornament is a part of our history and past whether it be good, bad or ugly!!

well, this started off being a catch you up on our lives blog, but it has ended up being about our christmas tree and all the memories that it holds!

liam loves the tree and just about every morning as he walks into the kitchen he says,"tree on!". we turn on the tree and his face lights up and he says, "lights!" like it is the most magical thing in the world. that is a new memory for me and the tree, one that i will treasure always. i love to see his face as he looks at the ornaments and can say what some of them are, and how he just enjoys finding them and touching them and then taking them off and then trying to break them!

next year there will be another little one with us, but this year, i love liam getting to enjoy the tree to himself.

i will catch up both of you reading this blog in my next installment. we will be in charleston for christmas on the beach!!! then two relaxing (fingers crossed) weeks at home! i pray that you all have a wonderful christmas!!!

ps - sorry no pictures aunt spazzy, but i promise to post some over the weekend!!!

so much happening . . . so little time to blog about it

well, it has been busy month! we have had halloween, thanksgiving, a jr. play, and soon to have a high school play. i don't even know were to start this blog, except that i have kind of already started it, but were do i go from here?

WE ARE HAVING A GIRL!! we found out before thanksgiving that liam will be getting a little sister around late march or early april! we are very excited and i have already decorated her room in my head many times over!! we cannot wait to meet her in person!

liam is getting bigger and bigger everyday and is so talkative and precious. i gave him his first haircut. the curls are still there, so you can breathe a sigh of relief.

he was the most adorable elephant this halloween!

thanksgiving came and went last week. my mom and dad were in the states, so that was great! of course that also meant that we never stopped. we shopped, had christmas, went to bundy reunion, and went and played on bundy ranch!! that is what we have named the land that dad has outside of throckmorton. he bought a polaris ranger and we all had a great time riding around in it, especially the boys. christmas was great, and liam got his first tricycle. family time is always great and we love spending time with them as much as possible!

talkie talkie

liam is a talk-a-holic and we love it! here is short but sweet video of our little precious one! enjoy!!

nothing overly exciting . . .

we are all just chugging along here in lubbock.

matt is about to take his comp exams for his phd. so keep that in your prayers. he is working really hard at his studies, and we are ready for this chapter to end on a happy note! all that will be left after this is defending his dissertation. we all need prayers for that part.

liam has entered his "no" and "nope" phase,

and it is driving us a little crazy. hopefully we will learn the word "yes" soon. otherwise he is still the cute little toot he always is. he is talking up a storm, and it is amazing the new words that he learns everyday. you never know what is going to come out of his mouth. we are having issues with cutting his hair. we don't want to, but it turns into a birds nest that is untamable. he is loving school and loving us, so who could ask for more?

i am finally over the morning, noon, and night sickness. school is going well, and i am finally getting into the groove of the new schedule and

expectations. the baby is doing well. growing and moving and grooving! we find out what we re having in a few weeks, and no, i don't really have a feeling one way or another what it is. i didn't with liam either. it was more like an alien in my body.

we are actually quite boring right now. life is smooth sailing, which is a blessing at the moment. we will just enjoy the comfort for a bit, as i am sure it won't last long. it never does.

peace to all and a happy halloween!!

liam goes to school and other happenings

waking up for our first day of "Super Kids"

we need to read our books to get ready for school.

back pack - check

lunch - check

smile - super check

let's go see our class

holding daddy's hand as we walk into school

silly boy in the morning! we like our jester hat!

our little man is getting so big

looking at daddy's bowl that was showcased in an art show at LCU!! exciting stuff

it has been and exciting few weeks. liam has started school at "super kids" south plains. well i call it school, because he goes to chapel, p.e., and eats lunch there. that is school, is it not? well, he loves it, and we love that he loves it. i also love that i get to have a nap on those days.

matthew, who is a member of "the south plains wood turners association", recently had some of his wood work in an art show at LCU. the work they showcased was amazing. matt had two bowls in the show, and both were beautiful. he is disgustingly talented.

the weather is cooling off and i love that. fall is here and my favorite season is looking promising. i look forward to the smell of chimneys, the taste of apple cider, and getting to wear sweaters and boots!! oh, and don't forget that we get to set our clocks back an hour for a little bit of extra sleep!

happy fall everyone

new, new, and more new with tired!

where to even begin?! there is just too much going on right now.

i guess we will start with the baby that is on the way. you heard me right folks, here comes number 2! the only reason that we are breaking the news so early is because we had a few things that made us a bit worried, so we had to go in to see the doctor a bit earlier than usual. we asked for prayers and prayers were answered,

and all is good on the baby front. God truly is a wonderful and amazing God! our scheduled due date is march 30, so both of our babies will be spring chickens! keep us in your prayers as we prepare to bring another crazy byars(with a little bit of bundy) into our lives.

so what else is new you ask? well, my new job is new. i am teaching three classes at kingdom preparatory academy. it is a university model school. classes meet on mondays, wednesdays, and fridays. i am teaching 9th grade English and jr. high and high school drama. it is the perfect mixture for me, a lot of drama with some vocabulary and grammar thrown in. so far i am loving it. the kids are absolutely wonderful, and the schedule for me and my boys is perfect. being newly preggo and what not, i am a bit more tired than usual, but this too shall pass!!

so could there be any more new in my world? of course there can! liam is starting super kids this fall. in a very small way, he is going to school for the first time. i know it is not that big of a deal, but to his mommy it is a huge deal! he has a backpack, containers for his lunch, and everything else that we have not gotten that is on his materials list (he has a materials list like a big boy!).

so a lot of new in a short time. all really great stuff and we are so excited about all of it, but it is still a bit overwhelming! life does not slow down, and i need more sleep!!

wish me luck and keep us in your prayers!!

here is a picture thrown in for fun!

walking man

goals in life with prayerful expectations!

stacey and i are doing a bible study.

she of course is almost done with the book and i am on lesson two, but we are doing it. the past two lessons have been depressing and uplifting at the same time. in the beginning you feel like nothing that you do is good or enough, but the more you think about the more you see the chances you take in everyday life. i think the most important discovery we made was that you can't compare your risks to the risks that other's take.

i teach, that is a huge risk, but not everyone would see it that way. but to be responsible for the minds and hearts of young ones is a risk that i think is worth taking.

we were asked to come up with 10 life goals. i don't think i have come up with 10, but here are the ones that i have come up with.

1. to act again

2. to complete a Bible study (this may be the one!!)

3. to have another baby

4. to finish an advanced degree

5. to put together a reading seminar with princess spazzy

6. to become healthier and more physically fit

7. pare down and organize my life overall

well that is the list as it stands right now.

lesson two deals with your prayer life. what is it like? well, mine is somewhat stagnant. the word for prayer in aramaic is "slotha" which means to set a trap. well, i am now setting prayer traps. when i pray now, i am thinking more thoughtfully and being more conscious about what i pray for. it was also interesting to learn a little bit about how our brian works, and without going into much detail when you buy something new there is a part of your brain that recognizes that item when others are wearing it or driving it. your brain works that way with prayer as well. when you specifically pray for something you become more attuned and aware of things that go with that prayer. you see the opportunities more clearly.

the morning prayer meditation is amazing: "At daybreak, Lord, You hear my voice; at daybreak, I plead my case to You and watch expectantly" (Psalm 5:3)

i have been using this in the morning to focus my thoughts for the day. i find myself calmer more focused and less crazed when i spend just a few minutes focusing on the Lord and on how He can help me through the day.

here are my prayerful expectations:

- preparing for a new job and being the best teacher i can be (hey, it may sound corny, but it is still true!)

- having patience and wisdom in being a mother to liam and wife to matthew

so there you have it folks. the first two weeks of Bible study that only took one month to complete. hey, to each his own.

the byars' european vacation!

it is almost august, and that means that school is almost here again. i am not quite ready for it, so follow me as i reminisce about our latest summer travels.

mr. tired

say hello to a very tired boy, who actually slept very little on the flights to and from the u.s. to brussels. the flight there was much better than the flight back.

we did get the bulkhead seat, but the arm rests do not raise up, so we were trying to squish him into a seat.

and what else can i say, except that he sweats like his father. poor thing.

mr. hungry

here we are in the adorable city of brugge eating lunch. liam is an all table food boy now, so in europe he ate a lot of bread. there was always some on the table.

great works of art

michelangelo's "madonna and child" is in brugge. it is one of the few michelangelo pieces outside of italy.

see ya later oma and liam

mema, grandad, matt, and i went on a canal tour of brugge, so oma took liam on a walk and put him to sleep. brugge is called the venice of belgium.

a.d.d. opa and fussy liam

we went out to a really nice place for our birthday dinners. meal time in europe is different from here in the states. it is not simply a half-hour to an hour affair, it is closer to to two- to two-and-a-half hours long. needless to say, liam gets antsy and fussy. in comes opa who can't sit still, so they take a break and take a stroll before dessert!

big boy in his in own seat

liam is now a big boy and wants to sit in his own chair whenever possible. the train system in europe is great, because it makes this possible. oma kept a close eye on him as we head to antwerp to shop and go to the zoo.

tiger, tiger at the zoo

liam really loved the zoo and really seemed to be looking at the animals. they had little windows at the exhibits for stroller kids to look through.

all the animals were out and active, the weather was nice but not too warm, and it didn't seem overly crowded! it was the perfect day for the zoo.

what is a vacation without shopping?!

i love to shop, especially in europe. the clothes are fun and funky, and their shopping streets are so pretty. they don't just tear down and rebuild, they work with the existing facades and architecture. it makes it not only fun to shop but beautiful to look at.

brussels city square

we went out for dinner and a walk in brussels and in the square. there is almost too much to look at sometimes. it is such a nice relaxing atmosphere. that is until your 15 month-old starts to screech (in happiness mind you) at the top of his lungs!

chocolate chip muffin - healthy breakfast

liam needs his nourishment and strength as we head to disneyland paris!

sleeping beauty's castle

let the fun begin! the weather was great the first two days, the lines weren't bad, and we all had a great time. it was so much better than we imagined. being disneyland paris, and having heard some not great things about it, we were not sure what to expect. we loved it! the rides were great and the people were nice. it is small, but going with a little one, that was a good thing.

liam loved most of the rides that he rode, but i think that "it's a small world" was his favorite ride. we rode it twice. at the studio park he loved the show "animagique". it was disney characters singing and dancing under black light and, again, we had to go twice.

we are so blessed to be able to do all the things that we do, to have the oma and opa that we do, so thank you oma and opa for a great trip.

it has been a great summer filled with travel and fun. for more pictures of all of our travels check out my flickr site - http://www.flickr.com/photos/hbyars/ or check out my mom's -http://www.flickr.com/photos/bydeedeebundy/

i hope everyone had a safe and happy summer, and i hope that we all have a great school year!!

our visit from princess spazzy

since we don't get to see princess spazzy very often we needed some extra cuddle time. we weren't quite ready to get up from our nap.

we like to relax when we drink our juice. especially in our new ikea chair. we also like to stand up in our chair, throw ourselves off, cry, and then do it all over again. hopefully we will grow out of this, because i love this chair.

diva night called our name! it calls to most women: the need to eat, drink, and paint pottery. we all had a great time and hopefully our pottery will turn out well as well. this was princess spazzy's farewell. she had to go to muleshoe (yes, an actual town in texas!) to meet up with her fertile friend!!

to get over our depression at the loss of princess spazzy we had to get out the water pad and play on it!

mema and grandad came over for steak and baked potatoes. in my opinion, one of the best and easiest meals on earth!!

we decided we would let liam try to drink out of a cup regular grown up style! it was interesting. most of the water ended up on him, his high chair, and the floor, but he had a great time trying. we will keep working to develop this skill.

ta ta for now! enjoy the video below of our water pad play time!!