Happy 7th Anniversary!

May 25th was Ryan and my 7th wedding anniversary! I seriously cannot believe it has been 7 years! Four jobs, Three degrees, two kids, a house, & a dog later we love each other MORE today than the day we married! I have the most amazing, supportive, and loving husband a woman could dream of. When I was little and I would dream of the man I would marry, I never pictured someone half as AMAZING as my husband! He showed me what the greatest feeling in the world is....BEING LOVED! He brings me more happiness everyday than I could have ever imagined. He is the greatest gift God has ever given me. I LOVE YOU so much Ryan....I can't wait to grow old with you!

So for our anniversary, my Dad and step-mom got us a room in Santa Fe and watched the kiddos for us. So we drove up to Santa Fe on Sunday afternoon. We checked into the hotel and then went to the plaza for dinner. We had a delicious dinner and then went and got ice cream and walked around the plaza. It was so nice to just be able to talk without having a child interrupt or hear screaming or fighting. And eat a meal without having to cutup someones food or take someone to the potty. It was AWESOME! Then on Monday morning we ate our free breakfast...Thanks dad...then went to the outlet mall. We mostly window shopped, but we did manage to buy Ryan a suit that was 80% off! Couldn't pass up that deal. Now he doesn't have to borrow his dad's suit anymore. He's all grown up now! J/K Then we drove back to ABQ, picked up the kids, and went to a BBQ at my mom's. THANKS DAD AND CINDY!!!!! WE LOVE YOU!

Memorial Day weekend '09

I worked most of Memorial Day weekend, so I missed my brother-in-law Kenny and his family's visit. They drove up from OK on Friday and stayed through Monday. The kids and Ryan filled me in on all the exciting events that happened. They had a poker tournament, celebrated Ted's bday and Jackson's 2nd bday, and just hung out! When the Merkel boys are all together it's always a fun time, especially when hosted by Nana! Sorry I missed the visit but I did enjoy our speaker phone chat. We love you guys and miss you already.

Rocco meets the family

It has been a week since we picked Rocco up from his mama! And in his first week hea has only had 4 accidents(1 on the tile floor), he has met the ENTIRE family, been to a graduation party, a birthday party, and two T-Ball games! He is the center of attention everywhere we go. We love him so much and are so excited he is a part of our family! Isaiah calls him his "little buddy."

Happy 1st Birthday Alex!

Today is my nephew's first birthday! It's so hard to believe it has already been a year since he was born. A year since I made Nicole walk up stairs and around block trying to get her labor going. A year since we found out that Alex had three heart defects and would need heart surgery right away. He is thriving now and lovin life! He is our little miracle man full of smiles and laughter. He could make you smile on any given day at any given moment. He brings joy to everyone he meets. We LOVE YOU ALEX! HAPPY HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY!

Mother's Day

I had a beautiful Mother's Day! I LOVE LOVE LOVE being a mom! It's the best job in the world! I have the most amazing kids and husband...each and every second with them is a blessing! When I look at the precious faces of my kiddos...I feel overwhelmed at how the Lord has Blessed me! I worked the night before, so I got to sleep in, which every mom appreciates. We went to my mom's in the afternoon. It was so nice. We ate dinner and opened the most beautiful cards and gifts in the world. My mom bought me a Pandora bracelet. I said, "Now, I FINALLY feel like part of the family!" Joking of course...I just had to give my mom and Nicole a hard time. However now I need some beads to go with my bracelet...HINT, HINT!! Their bracelets are weighed down with beads and they both have TWO bracelets! What they hayday....they should just 'Donate' some to me! Anyway We had a great time.

Isaiah got to help Grammy Plant Strawberries!!! He had so much fun after he realized he had to actually get his hands dirty! Too cute!




My Brother...The Grill Master! Yummy Yummy!




Takin a ride in the Lego wagon after a long day!

Mickey Hats

My brother and his family went to DisneyWorld for vacation and they brought back the cutest Mickey Mouse hats for the kids. They are so sweet to think of us. We got some great pics of everyone wearing the hats. THANKS Mark, Nicole, & Alex!

Kids & Their dogs

My friend Mariah and I met at a great park near Old Town with the kiddos and our puppies. Mariah has a chihuahua puppy around five months and it is so small that our two month old Rocco could have eaten him! The kids had a blast playing in the park and showing off their puppies to EVERYONE in old town.

Beginning of a new season

T-Ball is on it's way....two games a week and one practice a week! And they don't cancel a game unless it's lightening! So when it's pouring rain, we are still at the fields! It's crazy! What have I gotten myself into??? But Isaiah is having so much fun with T-ball. He loves it! Here is a recap of the last game...

End of One Season

So it's the end of one season...the soccer season! We had our last game on a. Isaiah's skills improved a little throughout the season. We'll have to see if he wants to play again next season. I think he did GREAT for it being his first season and only 5yrs old. It was his coach's first season as well, so the team got a chance to develop together. Isaiah had a lot of fun. And at the end of the season party (I forgot the camera) the coach said Isaiah brought "Respect and good manners to the team." Yes-I am doing something right!!!

He loved his teammates!





"Can I have your number???" He's starting early.....:(


Last kick of the season


Hope still has a smile even though her face is numb from the wind

Happy Resurrection Day!!!

We had a beautiful Easter. We started the day getting up early and heading down to Lobo Stadium for Sunrise Service. It was AWESOME! Randy Travis provided us with some wonderful worship. It only rained for about 10 minutes, so that was very nice. After service we headed to Frontier for some YUMMY grub! It's a tradition of ours every year we go with my mama. The kids were spoiled rotten by the Easter bunny! This was the first year that Isaiah REALLY understood what Easter was all about. He greeted everyone with "Happy Resurrection Day." At which point my heart melted. I love to see him Loving God! It makes me feel like I am doing something right as a parent. After breakfast we went home and I baked some cupcakes to take to Nana and Papa's. Then we headed over to Ryan's folks house and had an awesome time coloring eggs, eating some more yummy grub, and hunting for eggs (we had an inside hunt this year because it was SUPER cold outside, especially at nana and papa's!)! So here is our picture recap of our wonderful Resurrection Day!!!