Spring Break

During Spring Break this year, Matt used the whole "vacation" to study at home while Michael and I took a trip to Nana and Popie's house. (That doesn't seem quite fair, does it?) My nephew and neice, Cole and Kylie, were visiting that same week, so we got to do lots of fun things with them like visiting the Austin discovery center, riding a train, and attending the Georgetown Library's tea party for the second year in a row. Cole and Kylie especially loved the dancing!

Michael loved playing in the grass, leaves, sand, etc. wherever we went (I don't let him into the grass at our apt. complex--too many dogs and cats around.) and swinging on the swing set where he knows how to hold on all by himself.

Look at my big muscles!

I love this clip of the kids playing peek-a-boo with Michael.


Matt caught this one last Sunday. Michael naps better if Mom is next to him and that means Mom gets a naps too!

Michael is now officially a "toddler." He's walking everywhere! He especially loves going outside. He brings me his shoes and then bangs on the door to say it's time for a walk! I caught this clip yesterday.

Another Compton is Coming!!!

The picture should be worth 10,000 words. Gender unknown, names undecided. Due date is late October/early November. We'll probably have to induce again, so we're looking at October 21st to keep with the tradition of birthdays on the 21st of the month so far...

Birthday Boy Turns 1!

We just celebrated Michael's first birthday! I can't believe he's a year-old already, yet in other ways it seem like he's been with us forever!

On his actual birthday, we met up with some family at the Houston Zoo. It was Michael's first trip to the zoo, and he was surprisingly complacent about it. He looked at some of the animals, but I think he was more interested in the people walking around.

He did, however, love the train ride we took at the end. It's just outside the zoo and takes you all around the park.

We celebrated his birthday this past weekend when my family and Matt's family could all come up. It was sooo nice having everyone here.

We had never given him cake before, and it took him a few seconds to figure out what to do with it, but the picture speaks for itself!


Also last week, Matt and I took Michael to the Houston temple for the first time. We wandered around the beautiful gardens, which are especially beautiful right now with the azalea and tulips in full bloom. Michael was most impressed with the fountain.

Valentine's Surprise

Can I just brag on my husband again? In addition to roses and chocolates for Valentine's Day this year, Matt made me a web site dedicated to his love! It's so sweet I have to show it off. http://www.ilovejennifercompton.com/

Wow, I'm sooo behind!

Okay, so I'm way behind in updating this thing. What can I say? I'm busy being a mom! But here it goes:

In early January, Matt's sisters, Sarah and Lisa, came to visit for a weekend. We visited the Arboretum and had lots of fun "appreciating" the trees.

This is a great action shot. We came across a termite-eaten tree, and Matt and Lisa enjoyed kicking part of the bark off.

Lisa conquers the vine!

Matt and Jennie sitting in a tree . . .

We're not sure what Sarah's doing . . .

We also went to visit the Battleship Texas, a real battleship that fought in WWI and WWII and is now retired.

Bring out the big guns.

Ahoy there!

A few weeks later, my mom came to visit to work on our family history. My grandmother was an avid genealogist and collected tons on information. So, my mom and I are trying to get it all organized on the new Family Search program. It didn't take long for me to catch the genealogy bug. I'm now dedicating at least an hour each Sunday to it.

Last week, my sister Alison was here in Houston for three different job interviews. We loved having her here and Michael enjoyed the extra attention. By the end of the week he would point from one to the other of us and we'd have to say Mom-Alison-Michael over and over. The last day she was here, we visited the Museum of Fine Arts downtown, including the sculpture garden. If you've never been, it's worth a trip just to see it. They have a fabulous collection!

I love this guy! Matt got not one, but two judicial internships for this summer, covering first and second terms. We would have felt lucky for him to get one, but two is amazing. And, they're with two of the judges he most wanted to work with. He'll be taking classes on top of the 40-hour a week internships, so he won't get much of a summer break, but the experience will absolutley be worth it!


A Michael update: Michael said his first word, "Mama," a few weeks ago. It made this mama very happy! About that same time, he took his first steps! He's been toddling around a little since then, but mostly he just takes a few steps and then falls. I think by his birthday, though, he'll be getting around better.

Just some funny pictures:

Hey mista', can you spare a dime?

Don't hate me because I'm cute.

Michael enjoys feeding himself yogurt and green beans.

Like my new do?

Christmas & New Years

We had a fabulous Christmas with Matt's family in San Antonio! We stayed with them for 5 days and loved every minute of it. Michael got a ton of toys and clothes. He had a little trouble getting into the whole wrapping paper business. He wanted to eat the paper more than tear it off, but I think by next year, he'll be a pro.


Michael had a blast playing with all of his grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins (and the cats, of course). Matt and I especially appreciated all of the willing babysitters!




A few days before Christmas, he developed a funny little elephant walk. He is also starting to stand on his own. The longest he's stayed up is about 20 seconds so far, and he seems to stay up longer when he's distracted by something else and not thinking "Hey, I'm standing!"


Matt had a blast playing with some miniature helicopters with his brothers.


Another highlight of the trip was getting to see Matt Sr. sworn in as an attorney. It was a joyous occasion after a lot of hard work! It was a nice reminder for Matt and I that, in just a few more years, we'll be there too!


What a beautiful family!





From San Antonio, we headed up to my parent's place in Leander. We had a wonderful, relaxing time with them too.


One of Michael's gifts was a lego set. (Initially, I think Dad had a little more fun with it than Michael did.)


One day, Matt went up to the ranch with my dad to help feed to cows. He even got a picture of our cow, #42.


As per tradition, Matt and I got up to see the sun rise New Years morning. (Call us whimps, or just tired parents, but, no, we did not stay up the night before.)


Matt taught Michael how to hold onto a swing and he loved it!


We got back to Houston late last Friday. After being gone for 10 days, I wondered if Michael would remember home. --No problems there! He got back into the swing of things without missing a beat!

Birthday, Books & Thanksgiving

We joyously celebrated Matt's 30th birthday this month! Michael and I suprised him by decorating his cubicle at school. He came home early and we enjoyed a lovely walk in Memorial Park and had an early yummy dinner at a Thai food resteraunt. And before he got his last present that night, he had to find 30 hidden kisses, each with an attached reason why I love him. (Thank you Megan for the great idea!)

Thirty Things I Love About Matt

1. I love your sense of humor.
2. I love you because you bring me flowers “just because”.
3. I love hearing you make Michael laugh.
4. I love to sing with you.
5. You’re the world’s best fajita maker.
6. I love you because you don’t mind leftovers.
7. I love you because you do your home teaching faithfully.
8. I love that you take out the trash without being asked.
9. I love that you make the bed every morning.
10. I love you because you keep up with my car maintenance.
11. I love your gift for poetry.
12. I love learning new things with you.
13. I love you because you help with the dishes.
14. I love your dedication to providing for our family.
15. I love your puns!
16. I love your buns!
17. I love your manly physique!
18. I love your beautiful brown eyes.
19. I love you for serving others.
20. I love that you never criticize me.
21. Your mathematical mind amazes me.
22. You’re a handy-dandy handy man.
23. I love going on "adventures" with you.
24. I love our long walks in parks together.
25. You’re a totally suave dresser.
26. I love your musical taste.
27. You’re my personal computer genius.
28. I love it that you don’t mind giving me pedicures.
29. I love your back massages.
30. I love you for being you!

We spent Thanksgiving this year with my family. As always, my mom out-did herself with tons of delectible dishes, but the best part, of course, was being with each other. With all of the extended family driving and flying in, we had over 40 people there for dinner! We were especially excited that Matt's family drove up for the occasion. (I meant to get pictures of all of the food. --All of the kitchen counters were packed, not to mention the dessert tables (yes, that's plural!)

One exciting event: Michael had his first "major" accident at Nana's Thanksgiving night. I had laid him on the bed to change his diaper and turned for a quarter of a second to get the diaper. Before I could grab him, he was off the other side. He hit his head pretty hard on the bedside table and it swelled into this ugly purple bump. But by the next day, it had gone down considerably (as the picture attests) and now it's almost completely healed. (Thank you to all the other mothers present who reminded me that 1) falling off the bed is a right of passage for all young children and 2) I am not a bad mother for letting it happen.)

Friday morning, we headed down to San Antonio to spend a day with Matt's family, and Matt & I were able to slip away to attend the temple there. Michael had a blast playing with Grandma and Aunt Sarah and chasing around Aunt Rachel's two cats.





We came back to Houston Saturday and life is pretty much back to normal. Matt is bearing down even harder as finals begin next week. I know he'll do great, but he's understandably stressed.


I put up our Christmas decorations on Monday and Michael is fascinated with the Christmas tree. We walled it off in a corner with furniture and boxes, but he can just reach a few of the branches. It's enough to keep him satisfied, for now.


Within the past few weeks, Michael has started "cruising" along furniture and today he even held his balance standing up for 5 seconds! I'm assuming he's going to be walking by Christmas, so Nana and Rachel: consider this your warning for the beloved pets in your lives! We also discovered upon our return that Michael's top teeth are coming in. One has poked through completely, and the other isn't far behind. He is turning into a pro-eater and, while he doesn't always enjoy eating new foods, he certainly loves playing with them!


Michael has also developed a passion for reading! Several weeks ago, he started turning the pages to books as I read to him. And when we get to the end, he immediately flips it back to the beginning and we have to start all over. Now, he's even bringing books to me. If I don't notice right away, he gives a little whimper until I pick him up and start reading to him. As you can see from the picture, this past week, he's also discovered the fun of pulling all of the books off the book shelf in his room.

Last thing: Stacie and Tina, as promised, here is the recipe for Vern's Sugar and Spice cookies. Enjoy!

Sugar & Spice Cookies

3/4 c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. sorghum or molasses
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
3/4 tsp. ginger.

Cream together the sugar and shortening. Add the egg and molasses. Mix in the rest of the ingredients. Roll into small balls and dip in Turbinado sugar. Bake for 10 mins. at 350 degrees.