The Worleys

We were so blessed to be able to fly up to Minneapolis for The Devon Worley Concert this May! Devon is our great-niece, and one of the most talented young ladies you will ever meet. She is only 11 years old, and already an awesome performer! Sarah told us to rent a cool car. This was as close as we could get! It was fun to drive around in! And also comfortable! We arrived on Thursday, so we would have plenty of time to rest up for the concert on Friday night. This was May, right? It had been in the upper 70's in Minneapolis earlier, but not the weekend we were there! Definitely sweatshirt and jeans weather! We were so lucky to be able to stay with John and Patty! Darbi and her boyfriend, Kel, came in for the concert, too. Darbi was Devon's back up singer. Lots of singing talent in the Worley family! Friday, we went shopping! Mike deserved a new pair of jeans! We found an Applebee's nearby and had lunch. While waiting to be seated, we noticed that a uniform fro...

Ava is learning to string blocks together. I love Melissa and Doug products! So bright, so cheerful, and just the right size for little hands! When Ava and I first started playing with these, I started humming "La La, La La La La..." It dawned on me I was humming the theme song to the Smurfs! So the whole time we were stringing, we were singing this tune. The next time she came over, we sat down on the floor to string. She starts singing the Smurf song again! I could hardly believe she remembered I had been humming that! So, I guess we have started a little tradition of our own! Ava and I like to watch Elmo on You Tube together. We particularly like "Tickle Me, Elmo". We can play that over and over, and we both just sit and giggle! At some point, it becomes "Tickle Me, Ava", of course. Such fun. For the first time the other day, when we were through with Elmo watching, Ava took my computer glasses off, took my hand, and pulled me to the floor ...

Ava loves her Tutu. This is not her first, either. So I thought some pictures of Ava and the Tutu would be in order. Pictures courtesy of Jenni. I love this picture! She was playing with her cars on the kitchen floor. However, she looks like a professional model here! The Back View! Sitting on Belle. Why Belle is letting her sit there, I do not know. And my favorite picture, courtesy of Sarah. Ava putting on her Ruby Red slippers with her Tutu getting ready to play! She is sitting on a box made by Sarah's dad. Ava is a bundle of energy! I will part with one last shot of her twirling in her Tutu. Ava twirls wherever she goes. Sometimes we twirl while listening to the opening songs of Barney. Even without a Tutu! Isn't she adorable? "Come, everyone! Clap your hands! Shout to God with joy ful praise!" Psalm 47:1

Lots of birthdays to celebrate in the Worley family the first part of the year! Jenni ends the year on December 28, then Sarah picks it up on January 8, and finally Rod on February 8. Then came niece Katie's birthday February 24, and then my great-nephew Ayden turned three in March. We celebrated all these birthdays! So glad birthday cake is my favorite dessert! Yes, Sarah had an Abby Kadabby (spelling?) birthday candle. Sarah picked Chipotle for her birthday dinner. So after a wonderful meal -- we LOVE Chipotle -- we went back to Jay and Sarah's house for cake and milk. Ava was especially excited about the cake! Sarah did manage to blow out her candle before we devoured the cake! This is not a birthday celebration, I know. Jenni is going to be a Matron of Honor! And this was her invitation! You will have to click on the picture and enlarge it to truly appreciate the decorations on the brownie. Rod chose a Mongolian Barbeque restaurant. Another good choice! His fri...

A picture of my favorite granddaughter sitting on her favorite spot -- the dog bed; only this time she happens to be sitting with Sadie. She is sharing her Elmo blanket. Wednesday we had a treat! Ava was at our house for the afternoon and evening! Jenni and Ava played during the afternoon. Watched Barney, and a few other shows, played with her cars, and evidently played with Sadie, too! Aren't they cute? Pictures courtesy of Jenni. She was staying with us that evening so that Jay and Sarah could go to the Dallas Symphony's performance of Pink Floyd music. I was excited to get home to have some time with her before church. We open the door, and see Ava standing by the coffee table. We both say "Hi Ava!". Ava looks up, gets very excited, throws her arms out wide and starts running towards us. I am just bending down to scoop her up, but she yells "POP!" and runs right past me into his arms. I just stood there with my jaw dropped! First time for ...

I am finally getting around to our Paris Trip. When we first set the dates for our trip, Mike began to study French. Or I should say, re-study. He has used French phrases our entire marriage. So, what can a good wife do but give him Rosetta Stone! He went through the first level very quickly. Then he decided I needed to know some French, too. So above you see how I learned phrases -- Mike posted them on the bathroom mirror! And I would practice every day. And he would laugh at me every day! We arrived in Paris on a Sunday. Really early. We took a cab to our hotel, dropped off our bags, and started exploring. (We could not actually check in until 3 p.m.) The Hotel Alessandra was in a little cul-de-sac. Right next to an Apple Computer dealership! Very close to several street markets. Walking distance to the Arc de Triomphe, good food, bakeries, etc! So guess where we headed first! As you can tell, it is located in a big circle. No way do you walk across the street! It m...

We are so fortunate to spend time with Ava every week! We enjoy exploring new things with her. We had a lot of fun taking her to see Alvin and the Chipmunks on New Year's eve. We have enjoyed going to McDonalds and Chick Fil'A to play on their playgrounds. So, we decided we were ready for a new adventure! When Ava came over last week, we asked her what she wanted for dinner. She didn't even stop to think, she just said "Pizza!" And that is how we ended up at Chuck E Cheese on a Saturday night! The first hurdle was just getting in the door! Slow moving line! But necessary. We finally got to the front of the line, and got our arms stamped. Ava did not like this at all! Mike had to hold her and I had to pull up her sleeve and hold her arm out for the stamp! Afterward, Ava thought the stamp imprint under the light was OK. Mike headed to the line to order the pizza. I love the fact that they escorted us to a table so that we did not have to hunt one down a...

Can you believe it! It snowed 3 inches in Euless this year! Started during the day on Christmas Eve. This is what our house looked like when I got home from work around 3:30 p.m. It was still snowing! Hard to tell in this picture! See the snowman? Rod made that! By the time we went to bed, the yard was completely white. And it had stopped snowing. This was our front yard this morning. Santa left his footprints in the snow for us. He couldn't get down our chimney without getting dirty. The Christmas tree before we tore all the presents open. All of Ava's presents were wrapped in blue paper with Santa Claus on them. She knows who Santa is. And I thought we could find her presents faster! This little girl really likes opening presents! And it only took one present for her to figure out all her presents were wrapped in blue. The Newlyweds second Christmas together! Ava and her parents arrive! Santa left their gifts unwrapped for them! Ours were accidentally wrapp...