Tis the Season

Here are a sample of the treats we made this year. I was a little sad because our santas turned out a little better last year, but as Mac says, "They taste just as good!" We've started early this year since we'll be heading out to Kansas and Utah next week! My sister's family lives near Wichita, Kansas and then we'll head out to Talmage Utah to see Mac's family. We have been looking forward to this for some time now!!!

San Antonio

I cannot tell you how enjoyable this past weekend was for Mac and I. We celebrated the end of his semester by taking a little weekend vacation! On Friday we drove down to the San Marcos outlets and finished off our Christmas shopping, which was perfect because the crowds were not near as bad as they would've been on Saturday. Then we made it to our hotel in San Antonio and unpacked and then headed downtown to have dinner at the River Walk....so much fun and romantic. Connor even slept through our dinner, which made it that much sweeter. What a fun place to go visit during the holidays! That night Mac went to an evening session at the temple and I stayed in the hotel with Connor and watched Cinderella Man---love that movie! We felt like kids again excited for cable television! The next morning I woke up early to attend the early session while Mac and Connor slept in. After lunch we headed down to Sea World and used our season pass for the last time. We had no lines for the rides and even ran into our bishop's family and went to a couple of shows and rides with them! We couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable, relaxing, and fun weekend! I'm so proud of you Mac!

Thanksgiving

We ALL went to bed with full tummies....even Connor!!!

Thanksgiving this year was great! We woke up early Thursday morning so Emily and I could go get an early run in together, which to our suprise was very cold and windy.....All the hard work though paid off later in the day.....Mac and Darrin went to a local high school to play flag football, a fun and luckily injury-free event! Then we had a couple of hours to spare to get our part of the yummy dinner ready for later in the day. I made a homemade strawberry rhubarb pie, green bean casserole, and a frozen pumpkin pie. Mac on the other hand was determined to have a chocolate pie, so he made a suprisingly very yummy choloate pudding pie, which was the hit of the party!

We were lucky enough to spend Thanksgiving day with family and friends at the Mattson's home! We had such a fun time Eating, playing on full tummies with the kids, playing apples to apples, and laughing lots! We're so lucky to have made such great friends here in Austin! And this year we had Mac's brother and sister-in-law with us!!! Definitely a favorite holiday!

What a Pro!

When we arrived at JcPenney Portrait Studio I realized what a dud I was in not thinking about making reservations prior, but because Connor was just too cute (or we counted our lucky stars) we got in! Connor was sleeping for the first couple of shots and then with all the prodding and manipulating his hands to look just right he eventually woke up and we got some great bright-eyed face shots. All in all I was so excited at how well Connor did with his first trip to the Photographer.
I think he's thinking, "And now I think I'm spent."

Dinosaur Land

For those of you who didn't know yet...Mac has accepted a job with Anadarko! Yaye MAC!!! We will be moving to Vernal Utah this summer. We're very excited yet also shocked that we'll be back near Mac's home town. Connor will be almost a year old and we'll be fortunate enough to have grandparents close by! Mac's family will be just an hour away. We've already gotten excited about taking up biking and doing all the other fun outdoor activities Vernal has to offer. Living in Austin Texas has been wonderful and we've made the bestest of friends here, so I don't like to think about moving yet. Now that it's fall and winter is coming upon us I will be excited to be back in a state with mountains and snow! Mac and I love to snowboard! I'm reminded of "Oh, The Places You'll Go" by Dr. Seuss.

Mr. Bubbles

Too bad his bubbles are covering his sweet smile! I've never seen a baby who likes to blow bubbles as much as Connor does....it's so cute!

Happy Halloween

Connor looks like he's secretly a karate kid. "Put 'em up!"
Boo!

This halloween Connor got to attend two Halloween parties. The first was at our ward Halloween party and the second was at our friend's house. Thanks to Dana we had something festive to put him in! Thanks Dana!

Two months!!!

Our little munchkin is doing so good! He's growing so big and so fast right before our eyes! He'll be 2 months old Monday October 22nd, right around the corner, and he's already pushing out of his 3 month size clothes!! This is the first time he's worn this outfit and I was shocked to see that there wasn't much room in it. We're excited to see how much he weighs on Monday at his check-up!

Fly Lady

For those of you who may be a little overwhelmed with all your responsibilites...check out a fun website flylady.net! She gives you tons of advice on decluttering, checklists, and tips on keeping order to your life. Every week/month there are items that she reminds you to take care of ie: focusing on guest bedroom and bathroom (cleaning it from top to bottom), or simply today just scrub your bathtub really good. Also, she has rules like work for only 15 minutes and see how much you can accomplish! I like that one...it really works! We all can find 15 mins during our day to just do one job! She makes cleaning/organizing fun (if that's really possible) and less overwhelming!! SCRUB-A-DUB-DUB!!!

ZZZZZZ

I feel like shouting off every roof top, "Hooray!" I know I really can't complain because Connor has been such a great sleeper compared to most babies, but last night was our first whole nights sleep!!! I put him to bed at 10:45pm and low and behold no wake up feedings until 6am!!! That's over 7 hours! I think I was the one to blame for him waking up then because I was so shocked I had to go in and put my hand over his nose to make sure he was breathing. Ten minutes later he was up, so tomorrow morning I'll have to be a little more sneaky. That's it...just wonderful news for a tired mom! I couldn't exactly shout from my rooftop, so this was the next best thing!

Anadarko

This last week Mac was invited for a second interview down to Houston with an oil company called Anadarko. Of course Connor and I were curious as well, so we got to tag along. Anadarko is located just north of Houston in an area called the Woodlands....gorgeous!! We always have said we'd never move to Houston, but I think we're open to it now. Less traffic, huge trees, beautiful water running through it, kind of like the River Walk in San Antonio, and shops galore!! Who knows where we'll end up, but we like the possibilities!!

Simple Impressions

My sister is starting up her own business selling personalized vinyl lettering. She has many examples of how to create your favorite sayings, quotes, phrases, and more to make your house feel more like a home! Check out her link , "A Simple Impression" and see the possibilities!

Blessing Weekend-September 28-30th!

Two weeks ago we were able to have Mac's whole family, my parents, and Aunt Phyllis and Uncle Tom all here for Connor's baby blessing! The weekend went by so fast, but we managed to hit up Rudy's (good 'ol Texan Bar-B-Q!), the bat show in downtown Austin, and a few city sights like the capital building. And of course...they all made it to the most important event...Connor's blessing. It was so special to see both Grandpas in the circle along with an uncle and one great uncle. It really meant so much to Mac and I to have our family make it down for such a special time for us! Thank you!!!

Auntie Hannah

My best friend Hannah came to visit us and see our cute little Con-man. She's a natural with babies since she is two of ten girls and can pretty much lull a baby to sleep at the same time as cooking dinner and probably updating her blog. She's not a mommy yet, but I can't wait to see her have a family of her own...she'll be such a good mommy!

cutie patootie

Well, our little boy is three full weeks old and we're still alive. Take a look at some of his newest mugshots.

Big Blessings come in Small packages

Our little Connor has definitely brightened up our lives! He is 2 1/2 weeks old now and loves to go on walks with his mommy and daddy...it's amazing, if he's crying all we have to do is open the front door and he stops! He loves looking around and hearing the sounds of the water at the pool, birds chirping, cars zooming past, all of it! He responds to our voices and calms right down when we talk to him (most of the time) or when his daddy sings to him. Most every night Connor will sleep 4-5 hours straight, except Saturday nights--3 Saturdays in a row now Connor has had bad nights. We're not sure if he's worried that we might make him go to church or what, but like clock work he doesn't give us much sleep heading into Sunday mornings. We love him so much and learn more about him each day!!!

The Con-Man

Our little Connor Dean Burton arrived on Aug 22, 2007 at the beautiful hour of 1:09 in the afternoon. He weighed in at 7 lb and 1 oz and stretched 20.5 inches. After two days in the hospital, they let us come home. He let us know quickly when he is not happy or when he is hungry.

Hello...I'm naked in public...Ahh

Let's see. 7lbs and 20inches.

Mom and Dad saying "hello" and "its about time!"

Grandma Burgan always glad to hold her grandbaby.

Have you ever seen anything so cute in your life or parents who really think so?

I DON'T WANT TO WEAR CLOTHES!

Last prego picture

Well, this is it! We're about finished with these prego pictures and ready for Connor to arrive! Now that Grandma Burgan is here things are ready to roll. We've been so lucky to have such a good pregnancy, but so ready to be done with pregnancy as well. We'll be keeping you updated on the Burton household with our new little addition!

35 weeks

I don't know why it's so hard to take these preggo pictures, but it is! So, this is me...35 1/2 weeks preggo! Luckily I'm not too uncomfortable yet with just 4 1/2 weeks to go. I have only 2 weeks left of work and then we're on the home stretch! Mac is finishing up his summer class with his final coming up this next week, so he's definitely getting close as well.
We're really excited for Mac's brother, Darrin and sister-in-law, Emily to be moving here in 2 weeks!! It'll be perfect timing with Connor arriving a couple of weeks after. Everything is coming together and Mac and I are just trying to prepare as best as we can for this new journey ahead!!

A Breath of Fresh Air

Mac and I were able to spend 6 short days visiting with family and friends in Alaska! With Mac taking summer classes and me working we couldn't manage to take a longer vacation. And the fact that I am 7 1/2 months pregnant was cutting it close with the airlines. We enjoyed being able to celebrate my friend, Kasey's wedding...took a trip past Palmer up to Hatcher's Pass, an old coal mine(yep still snow up there!)...having a baby shower for little Connor guy...and relaxing and playing with family and nephews!!! Those boys wore their Uncle Mac out!!! It was great! Oh, and of course Mac was able to go on an all-nighter fishing trip with the boys and catch his limit in salmon (definitely his highlight of the trip!) Mac keeps trying to persuade me to move back up there, I just can't get it through his brain though that summer in Alaska only lasts for only 3 short months (if that!). He argues that he loves winter just as much.

Starr's First Baby Quilt

Well, I did it! My motherly instincts are kicking in and I finished my first baby quilt. I told Mac I was getting the bug to start making/sewing something, so we bought a sewing machine with the help of mom and voila---baby blanket!!
Mac helped pick out the colors and even helped me snip all the edges. He was a great help! My friend Megan gave me a 3 hour startup lesson, so I could finish it on my own. It's definitely not perfect, but I think all the imperfections give it some character.
I think my mom was in shock when I told her I was interested in sewing a blanket myself and jumped at the chance to help us buy the sewing machine. Thanks mom!

Zilker Park Kite Festival

Zilker Park is a huge park next to downtown Austin, and they hold all kinds of festivals there. We went to the kite festival and what did we do--we forgot our kite. So Starr told me to get a kite out of the tree or we were getting a divorce. Since I didn't want that, I climbed this tree to get one. Actually, Starr was pretty scared and was worried she'd have to raise our little boy alone.

We went with our friends from church Todd and Katie Sierer and the Mattson girls: McKenzie, Riley, and Delaney. They were so much fun.












The Mattson children are very fond of their Oreo cookies. They stuffed them in to the point where we were shocked.

Preggo Time

Starr's finally starting to show and she's 24 weeks along (6months!) At 21 weeks Mac was able to feel his baby boy kick for the first time and he hasn't stopped since. Starr has returned back to work now, so these days we're both pretty tired. Mac has his finals left to do and then the semester is over!!!!!!! Then Alaska here we come---- in June!!

First Year Adventures

Arches National Park-Moab Utah (June '06)-This is us reaching "Delicate Arch" after about an hour hike in 100 + temperature!!
August 2006--Hava Supai, Arizona!! The most beautiful place we've ever been to on Earth! Definitely a trek to get there, but so worth it!

Mac and I hiked down this cave to get down to play in the waterfalls! Chains nailed into the mountain were also used in helping us (mainly me)with the descent.

This was just the start at about midnight for our 10 mile hike into camp! It was pitch black, so we had our essential head lamp gear on at all times. It took us about 4 hours to hike down. Falling asleep wasn't an issue for us.

This was Mooney Falls right at the base of camp where we stayed for 4 nights! Beautiful!!!

1st Year Anniversary

Well, we made it! All of one year and we are still deeply in love. We enjoyed celebrating by going to Sea World San Antonio for the day! It was Mac's first time visiting with Shamu and although I am 5 1/2 months pregnant I made sure he knew there will be no Starr and Shamu jokes in the same sentence! I know it was difficult for him, but he passed.