25 random things...

I haven't seen this before, but enjoyed reading Lissa and Chelsea's....so I'll give it a shot.

1. I absolutely love being a teacher and a coach. Middle schoolers are so fun to form mentor/student relationships. I try to teach them more about life than about science, but usually they end up teaching me a whole lot more!!

2. NEVER tell your 7th grade athletes that you were not at school because you had to go to a sex education course...they think that is a door opened to ask so MANY questions...I simply respond, "Go ask your mother!"

3. Everyone thought I was absolutely crazy to date a man with two children...I might have been, but it was one of the best decisions I ever made.

4. I was baptized, twice. The first time I was young and I think I was doing what everyone was doing...when I was 16 I realized why I needed to be baptized and did it again for the right reasons.

5. I spend more time with my mom then anyone else (outside my own family) and I love it!

6. Sometimes I am loud on purpose and "accidently" wake Malachi up because I can't wait to play with him.

7. I call Isaak and Jordenne my "bonus" kids because they were just an added bonus with Tony. I HATE referring to them as my step-kids because I don't like the way it sounds. They both call me mom and that makes me smile.

8. I don't know what I'll do if my kids don't want to play sports--that's all I've ever known.

9. I really, really, really want to have another baby, but my cardiologist said no. I keep telling myself that my kids need me and that it would be selfish to have another child because it might leave Tony with 4 kids by himself...but I haven't truly convinced myself yet. It's hard to see pregnant girls because I want to be one. I'm scared to get a second opinion because I think they would just say no, too.

10. If I were ever able to adopt, I would want a girl and I would want to name her Adrienne. First off I just like the name, but the "enne" is also on Jordenne's name.

11. I convinced myself that I could be a "pet" person, so I got the kids a dog for Christmas and I'm realizing more and more everyday that I'm just not a "pet" person.

12. If there is anything in the world I hate, it is being COLD!!!!

13. I like to eat. I really like to eat. I wonder why I can't lose weight and it's because of my love for food.

14. I am an organized mess. My house is messy, my classroom is messy, my office is messy...but I know where EVERYTHING is. I make lots of checklists and keep my calendar up-to-date, but I can't seem to put everything where it is supposed to be :)

15. I met Tony at a party after an ACU football game. I was the DD that night so I was completely sober. I can't say the same for Tony :) He wrote my phone number down on a piece of paper with a purple marker. So, who keeps up with a piece of paper when they have had extremely too much to drink? Well, that would be Tony...he called the next night and I didn't answer...he called back 45 minutes later and the rest is history!

16. I wish I was laid-back. Tony is extremely laid-back. I feel like I worry ALL the time. Maybe the two huge fever blisters on my face show that I do worry. I worry about money, the bills getting paid, my kids (were they good at school today?, are they nice to other kids?, is Malachi okay being at a baby-sitter?, is he getting enough to eat?, am I doing enough as a mom?, is it okay that I can't be a stay-at-home mom?, etc.), my basketball team, my daddy....I am always worrying about something!!! Why can't I just let go and let God?

17. My brother has come and helped me with my basketball team this year. I swear they have learned more from him in the few days he's come and helped than they've learned from me all year. He is such a good coach and whatever boys are in his future sure are lucky!!

18. I absolutely love watching The Young and the Restless. My mom and I talk about it like they are real people! Dad and Tony just laugh at us at the dinner table.

19. For the last year and a half Tony and I have lived next door to my parents. Every night we all eat dinner together. It is such a blessing for me to get to sit down and talk to my parents every night. It is also a blessing for my kids to be next door to their Grammie and Pops. I bought my in-laws a frame for Christmas that said, "Grandparents hold our hands for a little while, but our hearts forever." I think that is so true. Luckily, I still have my grandparents and I sure will miss them when they're gone.

20. Tony and I have "visited" the church we go to for 2 years now...I guess it's time we place membership :) I want to be more involved in our church.

21. I am soooo pale...always have been, always will be...it really used to bother me, but as I got older I realized that that's just the way God made me!

22. I LOVE tennis shoes! I would have 30 pair in every color to match every outfit if I were able. I can't wear tennis shoes if they don't match what I'm wearing. Tennis shoes are my favorite things to buy my kids :)

23. I studied abroad in Europe for a semester. It was again one of the best decisions I ever made. I had been 19 for a week when I left to go to England with no friends or family. It made me grow up so fast. It also made me rely on God so much more because I didn't have my friends or family as a crutch to hold me up. (I need to remind myself of those days when I start worrying!) I was able to go to England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, France, Austria, and Italy and see amazing things like The Louvre, Stonehenge, the Roman Colosseum, Dachau (concentration camp site), and many more.

24. I LOVE being a mommy!! Nothing is better than your baby wanting you when they are sleepy or when they hit their heads (which Chi tends to do quite frequently). There is nothing sweeter than hearing "mom" come out of their mouths for the first time (and the million times after that!). My favorite time of the day is when I come home after practice and all my kids yell "Mommy!" and come give me hugs. My children have taught me so much about life. I hope I am able to be half the mother that my mom is!!

25. I hope that everyone on this Earth will allow themselves to experience GOD. There are so many times in my life when I wouldn't have made it though the day without my God. The day we got the phone call that Junior was killed, they day that the cardiologist walked in and told me that I had congestive heart failure and I could have no more children, the mulitple days my daddy literally can't catch his breath. My God is there and he always does miraculous things to show me He is working. My wish is that everyone can feel God working. I know I really need to work on my #16!!!

"I didn't realize that was you, Anna..."

I'm sure everyone that reads this knows that I am the middle child. I have an older sister, Anna, and a younger brother, Ryan. I am a typical middle child for the most part... I am very lucky because we are very close and have always been there for each other.

Growing up I remember always waking up in the middle of the night with Anna leaning over me to make sure I was still breathing. I remember her begging me to go make a pallet in the floor in our parents room because she was scared. When I was in the first grade, I got my name on the board for talking (imagine that!!) and I wasn't embarrassed until Anna saw it. I remember thinking I was so cool when I went to Junior High and Anna would say hi to me in the hallways. In high school, I remember Anna pushing me so hard in basketball practice and getting SO mad at her for doing so. I remember huge fights in the locker room and fights at home that were mostly over clothes and the phone. I remember her covering for me when I was at places I shouldn't have been. I never had my own room until she left for college, which I thought was cool until I realized that I actually missed her! I remember the tough times during the next few years. And then I remember when she met Eddie :) I remember her poking my eye with mascara trying to do my makeup in the 10x10 room on the cruise ship 10 minutes before my wedding. I remember at her wedding standing behind her trying to zip up her wedding dress telling her it was fine when I truly didn't think it was going to zip up. I remember finding out I was pregnant and being SO excited about being pregnant at the same time as her. Now we get to share "mommy" stories about all of our kids.

Until I left for college where not many people knew Anna, I was known as "little Anna" or "Anna's little sister." Oh, how I hated it...I never had my own name. Anna was so smart, so pretty, and so athletic...I could NEVER live up to her. Teachers, coaches, and boys always compared me to Anna and the majority of the time I was on the bad side of the comparison. One time in middle school a boy came up to me and said, "Can you come to school tomorrow looking like your sister?" There were many incidents like the one just mentioned...

So....

Last night we had to go fit Isaak for uniforms for baseball and the couple's house we went to we've gone to church with our entire lives. Since I've been back from Abilene, people really don't realize who I am until they see me because of the change in my last name. We had been at their house for over and hour talking, mostly about baseball and a little about our kids, and then as we were leaving she said, "I saw Isaak's name, but I didn't realize it was you, Anna!" She went on and on about hearing my name as Anna with my married name and she didn't realize that was me :)

I did not correct her because I did not want to embarrass her in front of her family and mine. Since we will be around each other much more now that our boys are playing ball together, she will figure out I'm Katie :)

After we got in the car Tony asked me why I didn't correct her. I answered with the fact that I didn't mind being called Anna. That it is an honor to be called someone who is a great mommy, daughter, wife, sister, teacher, and friend! That I wish I could take back all those years that I hated being called Anna. She is a genuinely kind person that has great intentions in everything she does. She is a great sister to me, but more than that she is my best friend! She is still so smart, so pretty, and I'm sure she's still athletic :) We don't talk every single day, but I do think about her daily. I know that if I was in a crisis, she would be the first one to me and the one worried most about me. When I was in the hospital with my heart problems, she couldn't be there the entire time, but I know that she thought about me and prayed for me more than anyone else (well, maybe except for Mom!). I am so blessed that our children will be raised together and I know that we will always stay as close as we are now.

I hope that Anna will one day read this to Beckett when she is having a hard time being called "Little Elliott!!"

**I want to post some pictures with this post, but that will have to happen later :)

My little curly-headed boy...

So, I really wanted the pictures to be after the blog....but like I said, I'm new at this!!!

Malachi at 3 days old

Born a Cowboy Fan!
Big Sister, Jordenne!

Daddy, big brother Isaak, and Chi

3 1/2 months old

6 month pictures

take a look at those fat feet!!

10 months old

At Elliott's first birthday party! One Year Old!!


My Chi now--18 months old



I want to blog about all three of my children, but I think I will do them one at a time. I will start with the youngest, Malachi. Most of you know that he is my only biological child, but you would never know that if you were around my family!


Tony and I found out we were four weeks pregnant only four months after we were married!! I wasn't able to tell anyone I was pregnant for a couple of weeks because my sister was getting married and I didn't want to steal her thunder! I had a pretty rough pregnancy :( I was physically sick all but about 4 weeks of the pregnancy and then I had toxemia and they took him immediately (at 36 weeks). July 11, 2007, was one of the best days of my life!! I had a healthy son, Malachi Lavon Cunningham, born at 3:05pm coming in at 6 pounds 9 ounces and 20 inches long! He was (and still is) perfect!

Malachi had severe acid reflux and was very little for a long time until he decided that that throwing up stuff was not for him and boy did he gain weight!! We call him our little linebacker because he is broad and thick. My son has absolutely no ankles and his feet are so tall that he can't even wear sandals or crocs. Our little man is 32 inches tall and weighs 28 pounds.


Now Malachi is 18 months old and he is already a comedian. These are some of the things he likes or does:


--He knows how to say more, please, thank you, thirsty, and all gone in sign language.

--Because he knows those signs and he has so much family all around, he doesn't have to talk...so the only words he says are Mom (no, not even Mommy), Oh Boyyyyyyyyy (yes, he does hold the y that long!), and Oh Man!

--He thinks ANYTHING he picks up is a bat so he looks at you until you say "swing" then he gets in his batter's position and swings.

--He likes to think he is playing the Wii when everyone else is.

--He likes to give the puppy kisses.

--He doesn't really play with any of his toys except for his bats and balls.

--He LOVES his daddy!

--He hates when I spray gel in his hair, but if I don't you oughta see it!!

--He is either going to be a janitor or a plumber because he loves brooms and is very curious about the toilet.

--The only person in this world he has bitten is Jordenne (on several occasions), but I promise he loves her!

--He thinks his big brother, Isaak, is cool and does EVERYTHING he does! (I'm sure that will happen for a very long time!)

--He loves his cousin, Elliott!

--He loves to brush his teeth!

--He entertains anyone sitting behind us in church...we are going to start sitting on the back row!


Well, I'm sure I can go on and on about everything he does/likes, but I won't!!

Malachi's middle name, Lavon, is after my brother-in-law that was killed in a trucking accident in October of 2006. We love him very much and know that he is definitely in a happier place. Malachi is blessed to be named after such a great guy!


Needless to say, I love my Chi so very much and having a son has given me such a deeper love for our God who gave up his son for us!

Blogging...

So...I am going to try out this blogging stuff...we'll see how it works out! I started with a picture of my kids, because they are the main reason I want to do this blog. I would like to use this as a tool to keep in touch with friends, "write down" things that happen with my kids to look back on in the future, and to express my feelings and views.

Today I am not going to write much, just thought I'd start with a short one to see how it works :)

Have a blessed day!