Don't Come Any Closer

I've got to believe that's what Kensi is saying to this singing bug thing. Her facial expression kills me!

How Slow Can Four Days Go?

I bet I'm about to find the answer. Today starts my last week at BWI. I'm sad to be leaving the people I work with, but I cannot wait to start student teaching. I started taking classes last summer to get my standard certification and student teaching is one of the last major steps!

BWI will always be my first "real" job out of college, but I was not made to sit at a desk and work all day.

So to answer the question of how slow can four days go, probably slower than a snail on crutches. (Major props I you know what show that line is from!) What will make it even slower is the fact that I want to be with this little bit rather than working! Can't wait to see her this weekend!!

Merry Christmas!

So my mom and I spent Christmas morning in Plano with Bonnie, David and Kensi. I know she had no clue it was Christmas, but I did. And I wanted to spend at least some of Christmas with my favorite person.

David, Kensi and Bonnie. First Christmas!

Love this adorable look. 

She's a rein"deer" alright! Little half grin in her sleep!

Kiss from Mommy!

Kensi and me on her first Christmas with her Christmas presents! I got her a few ornaments. That's my plan. Every year buy her a Hallmark ornament. 

The little deer grinning. 

The four Hutson girls! Gran, Aunt Bets, Mommy and Kensington. I love all of these ladies so so much!

Turning 24 Is Grand

I'll be honest, I didn't do anything for my birthday to celebrate really. I spent it with my mom, sister, niece, dad and little brother. We did have a photo shoot with Kensi. Which is all I needed! Here are some of my favorites. WARNING: Massive amount of pictures coming!

The Best Birthday Present Ever...

Arrived on December 18, 2011. And was absolutely perfect.

Smitten is an Understatement!

To say I was smitten or just in love is arguably the understatement of the year. I seriously could sit and hold Kensi for hours, and truth be told. I have. :)

And can I just say, there is nothing sweeter than a baby sleeping on you!

Kensington wearing the "K" onesie Aunt Bets made her. ( I am Aunt Bets, just for the record) She loves holding her arm up by her face. My sister says it's because that's how she was the whole time in the womb. And she also likes to curl her feet up to her stomach. She really liked being rolled up in a little ball. 

She watched her first Disney Princess movie with me.... "Beauty and the Beast"my personal favorite. She went to sleep so I'm not sure if that means she thought it was boring or not. ;)

And we all knew this was coming, but she has me EXACTLY where she wants me. Her holding my thumb melted me even more, if that's possible. 

Whoever says newborns don't smile is nuts! I love this little grin more than anything else about her. She does it at the most random times, mainly in the middle of sleeping or taking a bottle and about to be asleep. Whenever it happens, I just get tickled and have to laugh at her. My sister and I are shaking with laughter sometimes. 

Welcome To Our World

Welcome to the world Kensington Elise! My sweet, adorable, precious, perfect, beautiful (I could add lots more adjectives to describe her) niece was born December 18, 2011 at 4:19 p.m. She was 7 lbs 14.3 oz and 20 inches long.

And I. AM. IN. LOVE!!!!!

Getting to hold Miss Priss for the first time! Not proud or anything. ;)

It was a long day from heading to the hospital at 7 in the morning and being there until 7 at night. But OH SO WORTH IT! God worked everything out to where I was able to be with my sister all day and not worried about rushing 3 hours to get there in time. I am so thankful I was able to be there. 

Aunt Bets is already putting bows on her. But she is awfully cute!

This was what I came into the room to see after she was born. Awake and already trying to hold her head up. 

Kensington, you are love so very much, more than you could ever know! You bring such joy to our lives and I do not know what I would do without you!

Day 6-30

Ha! So much for keeping up with what I'm thankful for in November! So I'll just make a compiled list, including the first 5 days.

Day 1: God and my salvation
Day 2: My mom and dad
Day 3: My big brother
Day 4: My big sister
Day 5: My little brother
Day 6: My grandparents. All four of them are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!! Ask me about it. Seriously. They rock.

Day 7: Ryan. He is there for me when I need him to be. At times when I'm trying to be strong for everyone else, he lets me be weak. I am so thankful every day that we met. :)
Day 8: My aunts and uncles. I am thankful they are loving & supportive & that I get to see them regularly.
Day 9: My cousins. I have so many great memories of growing up with all of them. And the sweet new ones are so much fun as well!
Day 10: Connie, Mackenzie and Meagan. They are my family, even though we're not related. I love this and miss getting to see them all so much!
Day 11: My friends. The old and the new.
Day 12: My church family.
Day 13: My Sunday school class. I enjoy getting to teach young women about God every Sunday.
Day 14: My Wednesday night class. God uses the youths to minister to me as much as I to them.
Day 15: My co-workers. I have made some great new friends through my job.
Day 16: My future job. I'm working on my teaching certification and I cannot wait to finish!
Day 17: My friends in Argyle. I am thankful God placed my in Argyle during my years in college. The friendships I made there are such a blessing to me.
Day 18: Education. I am thankful I get the chance to learn new things.
Day 19: Books. I love to read.
Day 20: Technology. I am thankful I can see and keep in touch with people who live far away.
Day 21: Pictures. I love, love, love taking pictures of all the sweet people I know.
Day 22: My house. I am thankful I have a roof over my head. I love my house and the work on it is coming along great.
Day 23: A car. Some people have to walk everywhere they go. I am thankful I don't.
Day 24: Food. I cannot imagine what it's like to be hungry and have no options on how to get food.
Day 25: Mercy, love, understanding and forgiveness. Where would we be without these?
Day 26: Freedom. I cannot express just how much it means to me.
Day 27: Those who protect our freedom. We owe them everything. I couldn't have anything in this list without their sacrifice.
Day 28: Heat and air conditioning. Especially in Texas.
Day 29: Laughter. It is the best medicine.
Day 30: All the small things I take for granted everyday. Too many to name. I'm mostly just thankful for this life that God chose to give me.

Day 5: I'm Thankful For...

Today I'm thankful for my little brother. He made me a big sister and I am so proud of who he has become. He wants to join the Air Force after he graduates college. He just got accepted into the University of Texas. It has been his dream to be a Longhorn since he knew what a Longhorn was. Last night, he led the mighty DeKalb Bears to a District Championship. I cannot wait to see what he accomplishes in the coming years.

Day 4: I'm Thankful for...

I'm thankful for my big sister. She has more strength and courage than anyone I know. She has faced some difficult things the past few years and even though I know she struggles, she is still standing and strong. I love her so much and would do anything for her. She is definitely one of my favorite people in this world.

Day 3: I'm Thankful for...

Today I am thankful for my older brother and his family. The past month has been hard on them. They lost my niece at 5 months pregnant and had to deliver her. She was beautiful and perfect. And our hearts were broken. But I know that no matter what, if I need something, my big brother will be there. He makes sure I'm safe as he has gotten me both mace and a 20 gauge shotgun. =)

Day 2: I'm Thankful for...

I am thankful for my family. My parents are the most amazing parents a person could ask for. They accept my faults and love my unconditionally. They go above and beyond what I deserve. My dad will come and help me whenever he can and will help me do anything I need, such as remodeling the house that I'm living in right now. Which, he also bought and is buying the tools for the repairs. Just today he went to home improvement stores with me for 4 hours. He makes me laugh all the time by being goofy. As the picture below shows.

This is a hat, my dad does not have a ponytail, he doesn't even have hair. 

My mom is the most amazing mom ever too. Over the past year I have established a relationship with her that I love. She is one of the people I go to when I want to talk. And I enjoy it. She is a great teacher and I hope when I become a teacher I can be half the teacher she is. She is calm in times of trouble and the example of the mom I hope to be. 

My mom and I around 1988. <3 this picture. 

I'm Thankful for....Day 1

So back to blog posting. =) I'm horrible at this.

Today I am thankful for my salvation. For God's never-ending mercy. For His abounding love for me, even though I don't deserve it. I'm thankful for the cross that covers all my sin. Without Him, I am nothing and life is hopeless.

The Most Important Part of February

So excited this weekend if finally here!

Junior won the pole and also wrecked it, so he'll have to start at the back. I'm still hoping he makes it to Gatorade Victory Lane Sunday!

The Event That Changed My Life

As I've been watching the Daytona 500 coverage the past two weeks, it has been covering the tenth anniversary of Dale Earnhardt's death. He was killed on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 on February 18. That event did not affect me. I was no race fan at the time. I know for those whose driver was Dale Earnhardt, it was devastating. I remember hearing on the radio what Mike Helton said. "We lost Dale Earnhardt." Little did I know how much it would make me into the person I am today.

I was in seventh grade and had the best science teacher ever, Mrs. Catoe. I was in her study hall and she turned on his memorial service during school. I saw Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and I just thought he was so cute. I asked her who that was and she told me. She also mentioned that he was a racer too.

Cue infatuation with Junior.

I loved him. Everyone knew it. If I didn't get something Junior at Christmas or my birthday, it was a big deal. In fact, if I got something other than Junior merchandise it was odd.

Case in point. (Taken 2008)

I remember my first attempt at a Cup race. It was April 2002 at Texas Motor Speedway. It rained it out. I didn't get to see it.

The next year I did get to go to Texas Motor Speedway. Beautiful day. Awesome race. Junior finished second. Let's just say if I though I loved NASCAR before I saw a race, I became passionate after that. There is nothing like the smell of rubber and the sound of 43 engines. I had goosebumps for 500 miles.

Fast foward five years. Because I love racing so much my friend thought I needed to meet a local racer because she thought we'd hit it off....

She was right. 

In November of 2009, I worked the fall race at Texas Motor Speedway. It was amazing. I thought it was the best weekend ever. 

This was taken during a Cup race. The cars were going about 200 mph. Yeah, AWESOME!

I was wrong. The following spring semester I go to intern at TMS. I met some great people. It was a great experience. And it made me love and appreciate NASCAR even more. 

And I got to back in November 2010. 

No, I am not obsessed with Junior anymore. He is still my favorite driver. Always will be. 

How I wish I could have seen Dale Earnhardt race. I am thankful that from such a tragedy to race fans came such a great story for me. I believe I would be a different person if I did not like racing. I love the sport. There is not another sport that has such pride. American pride. Driver pride. They always pray before the race. What other sport can say that?  

I will always be a race fan. It has brought so many good things and people into my life. And it still gives me goosebumps every green flag.