Our Sweet Madness

Football Reigns....

2009-09-08T12:52:00.003-05:00

Here are my boys, minus one, leaving Saturday evening for the opening UT game here in Austin against Louisiana-Monroe. Granted, UT was slated to win 40-0....be that as it may, it was all about the excitement, energy, sights, and sounds of the beginning of college football here in the heart of Texas. I would have had many more pictures of this most thrilling experience, however as I tried to hand off my camera to my dear husband, he proceeds to read me the back of the ticket and the fine print clearly states "no cameras or video recording devices allowed". There was no way he was about to "break the rules"....of course, at the game they see everyone posing for pictures in front of the field and in the stands, obviously this rule is not enforced at all and I see blogs/facebook posts of cool football pics inside the stadium everywhere...oh well, next time. The boys had a BLAST, and now my husband is seriously thinking season tickets are in order for future seasons....as you can see he can hardly contain his excitement! This, however, pales in comparison to the anticipation of the first NFL season game this Thursday night when his Steelers play the Titans. One minute he can be calmly walking around the house, then the next he will just randomly scream out at the top of his lungs "STEELERS FOOTBALL THIS THURSDAY NIGHT BABY WAAAHOOOOOO!!!!", scaring the mess outta whoever might be close by. And so it begins...again. Oh and did I forget to mention today is Jordan's first football game, and tomorrow is Noah's? Don't feel sorry for me ladies, only what, five more months at the most? :)

My Friends Twins:)

2009-08-26T18:36:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit my friend Elizabeth who just had twin boys only four weeks ago! Doesn't she look great??! I can't get over how tiny they are, even though they are good size weights, everytime I hold a newborn it amazes me at the tininess:) On the left is Nolan, and on the right is Logan...right Lis? They both have their own little personalities and looks, it's just so cool.....to me Nolan looks like his brother Nathan and Logan looks like his sister Maddy:) I can only imagine how having twins has got to be SO demanding, and she also has two other little ones at home too (and two in school)...she amazes me and is such an awesome mother. No matter what, she always has a smile to give, one day when I grow up I want to be just like her....I love you girl!!... (ahem, and pray you move back someday). Thanks so much for letting us hold your sweet little babies, they are sooooooo worth it, aren't they?? :)

Emmy's First Day at Dance

2009-08-26T14:37:00.002-05:00

Today was Emmy's first day in her ballet/tap combo class. I wanted her to have something to do during the week while her siblings are all in school, so I signed her up with her best friend Reese and off they went into dance! They were super cute, and since they have each other they went willingly and (for the most part) happily...woohoooooo!!! Look how cute they are:)

First Day of School!

2009-08-24T13:28:00.008-05:00

Back to blogging....and to the fact that it is hard to blog without a camera. Yep, I sold my camera...AGAIN. For those of you who know me well, you know I do this about once a year and then spend about two months researching cameras before I get a new one. Anyway, I couldn't just go without, so I went to Tarjay last night and bought a cheapie digital pocket camera so I can blog and take pics of the kids. I just couldn't miss capturing this momentous first day. I do have to say I love this little camera though, and the portability factor is something I know I'm going to love!

Well, here they are in all their dressed up glory:) JOrdan is starting the 8th grade, Noah the 4th, Jonah the 1st, and my baby girl Avelyn is starting kindergarten:( It's just me and Emmy here now and it is QUIET...that will take some getting used to. Randy took the day off to help me get them ready and he said they did great. Especially Avelyn, whom we thought we might have severe issues with...walked right in and sat down in her seat....NO TEARS!!!! Miracles, they do happen folks! Later Randy went up to have lunch with her and the first thing she told dad was, "I LOVE school DAD!!" This is why I'm having a great day...all is right with the world when my kids are happy....not sure how long it will last, but I'll take what I can get;) But here's hoping they stay that way for a while....

Summer!

2009-08-24T12:41:00.011-05:00

It went by so fast...but I think we gave our kids one to remember! The boys were able to go to scout camps for a week each, and Jonah had his birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's in July. We spent a quiet fourth of July, just me and the kiddos watching the fireworks while dad was at work. He worked quite a lot this summer, but it was to send our family on a vacation we will never forget and was definately worth the sacrifice. We drove two days and spent nine in Orlando at DisneyWOrld. On the way, we stopped off at my dad's to spend the night. He lives on a lot of beautiful land out in the country with horses and a pond to fish in...my kids LOVE going to Grandpa Tommy's house. In Florida, we stayed in a fabulous two bedroom condo that had a huge pool with a sunken pirate ship in the middle. We took our time and went to each park with a day trip to the most beautiful beach on one of our days off from the parks. Disney was just so magical, that it is very hard to adjust to normal life once you get back home:) I'm so grateful we were able to give our children these memories...they really had a wonderful time. Now it's back to school and more of a scheduled existence. Jordan is starting his last year of Jr. High and Avelyn is starting kindergarten, with the other two in fourth grade and first grade, so a grand total of four out of five kids officially in school. That just leaves little Emmy at home with mom. First day of school pics will follow this post, but for today here a few from the summer 2009...

Little Trophy....BIG Kool-aid smile!!!

2009-06-10T19:10:00.002-05:00

Finally got his trophy....he was so proud!!!

Forgot to post....baseball season after-partay!

2009-06-10T18:39:00.006-05:00

We had our party over at Coach Mike's house....it was beautiful right before, but started raining when we got there. Sure enough, the sun came out right as we were leaving...but the kids sure had fun!!!

Megan's Senior Pictures (Miss Meggy I love you!!)

2009-06-10T18:14:00.022-05:00

These are from Megan's photo shoot...not All of them (we have 75), but some of my faves. Isn't she beautiful??? I'm going to miss you girly:(

Summer is here!!

2009-06-10T18:06:00.002-05:00

Finally school is out!! We have been so busy, I have been looking forward to this for awhile. I have my little brother with me for the week and so have lots of fun stuff planned. We have gone shopping, to the movies, and swimming....I think tomorrow we will go down to SeaWorld for the day, and maybe cap the week of with a round or two of paintball before he goes home on Saturday. (Jordan wanted to play paintball for his birthday, it's this weekend). Next week is Noah's cub scout day camp, followed closely by Jordan's week long boy scout camp after which I leave for a week to go be a leader for girls' camp. Who says summer is a break? BUUUUTTTTTTT.........I DO have one thing to help get me through, later this summer we leave for our family vacation, and it involves going somewhere I've always dreamed of going.....we are all SO excited....I'll give you a hint.......

Twin's Baseball.....Little League Spring 2009

2009-05-20T09:18:00.006-05:00

We have had a great season and this is our last week to play:( We have clenched the number two spot in our league and are VERY proud of the boys!! This year we've had a problem with the photographer who took all the parents' money (even cashed their checks, ours included) and has yet to deliver our pictures and it doesn't look like we will ever see them:( The league has turned the issue over to law enforcement and they are investigating the matter. Anyway, I keep forgetting to bring my camera to the games, what with hauling three lawn chairs and all the baseball gear not to mention four other children. So last night Elias's mom, Tina, took these pics after we won our game. I'm so glad we finally have a team picture!! AND can't wait to get the best team pic this Saturday when the boys are holding the coolest most awesome 2nd place trophies...OH YEAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! I just love these pics and all these boys!! { and ummmm.....hellooooo Coach Randy, humma humma }

Penguins....by Noah

2009-05-20T09:09:00.002-05:00

I found this in Noah's backpack and thought it was so cute! See the little egg under the daddy penguin? We were watching "Planet Earth" on Discovery channel the other day and it showed how the penguins take care of their families, with the dad staying home to protect the egg and the mom going away for food. Anyway, I thought it was sweet for him to think of drawing that:)

Happy Un-Birthday Jonah!!

2009-05-19T08:59:00.004-05:00

This week Jonah's kindergarten teacher is giving each kid whose birthday falls over the summer a chance to celebrate with the class. Yesterday was Jonah's day, since his birthday is July 18th. She had all of his classmates make cards for him and emailed me to see if I could bring cookies or cupcakes. Well, it was the perfect opportunity to make these cupcakes that I had found on a blog last week...they were soooooooo cute!! And although very easy, it was SUPER time consuming....but WORTH it!! I can't believe I forgot my camera when I took these up to the school....but the look on his face was priceless:) I kept them a surprise so he had no idea. All of the kids kept asking if they were having popcorn, they really do look like the real thing! Nope, just marshmallows.....tons and tons of white and yellow marshmallows.....(on top of the cupcakes) it's really amazing what us moms will do have a smiling happy kid:)

Dylan....{my little brother}

2009-05-08T09:38:00.002-05:00

This is my little brother, Dylan. I took this picture while we were visiting family on Easter Sunday. Can't believe how grown up he looks in this picture...he used to be my baby:( Well, he IS sixteen now...I was fifteen when he was born, it seems only a few years ago. And to think...he was premature and only 3 pounds when he came into this world! You never would be able to tell it now:) Wish I could see more of him.....I love you SO much Dylan!!!

My oldest....Jordan/JC

2009-04-27T11:38:00.010-05:00

*Warning-----this post contains weepy, sappy, and hormonal outpourings of affection from a mother about her child. If you are a man, proceed with caution....don't make me say I told ya so.

Well, I just realized that Jordan is hardly in any of the pictures that I posted and it's not because I'm purposefully trying to keep him out of the pictures, it just seems that he quietly slips out of frame right before I snap. You know the old I'm almost a teenager, my mom is crazy and hopefully nobody sees her trying to get pictures of me....? Yes, a teenager. In just six short weeks, I will become a full card carrying (literally....he gets ID cards at the Y and for the neighborhood association) mother of a teenage boy. I'm slightly diffused by the fact that he is, indeed a boy and not a teenage girl. That would be another situation entirely, I recognize that blessing for what it is...although I will get my chance eventually.....times two. Somewhere along this road I've called life the past thirteen years, my baby has metamorphed into this smiling young man you see above. When did this happen? While I wasn't looking, my pudgy little baby boy has grown into a truly remarkable young man. A lot of times people close to me will hear me grudgingly complain about his absentmindedness or lack of responsiblity....and not often enough do I outwardly focus on his positive attributes....I just never want to seem as if I'm bragging or am afraid if I voice it out loud, he will turn around and do something to completely negate any of the positive uplifting things I said. With that said....I do want to let him and everyone else know that I see and notice all those choices and things that he does that make him truly special. He was born with a sense of compassion the likes I haven't seen since my dear mother left this earth...I can see her in him daily. He truly has a special spirit....even when he was a small child people that would spend time with him, would afterwards come up to us and say that's a special kid and follow it with a little act or comment Jordan had done or said. Of course every parent thinks their kid is special, and I do think all of mine are...but Jordan has a uniqueness all his own. As a baby, he was so very easy going and content to observe the world around him. He possesses a sense of intuition that even seems to outdo what I thought was one of my best abilities, knowing when someone is sad or hurt even if they put on a cheerful shell, he can see through it. Always he was willing to share and receive love and affection...he LOVED to be held and cuddled...we just couldn't bear to put him in a crib, and kept him with us until, well...fairly recently. He doesn't like to be alone and loves being a part of this family, although sometimes the responsibilities of being the oldest seem so unfair to him, although I always counter that he has more priveleges than his siblings, it still doesn't quite seem to even out for him. In school, his teachers always remember him and you can tell he's a favorite...maybe not the student with the highest grades (although he's never NOT been on the honor roll), but he would be the one that could tell if the teacher was having a bad day and would ask her how she was, or to be the one to crack a joke at just the appropriate time, so that his teachers always told me what a joy it was to have him in their class. We still keep in touch with a few of his elementary teachers to this day. Now he's about to complete the seventh grade (did I just write that?) and is taking all honors classes in which he has excelled. We always said we would push our children to do their best and set their goals high...and we encourage him with the knowledge that we KNOW he can do anything, and he's never let us down. OK my hands are starting to shake.... I see now that I'm losing him. More and more he wants to be with friends, all the signs are there. I'm comforted by the fact that we still have our little talks...about life, love, politics, science, religion, you name it...although, they are becoming less and less. Sometimes in my prayers, I choke up with the gratitude that I have to my Father in heaven for bestowing upon me and my husband this special spirit that is our son. That we were chosen to be his earthly parents and were entrusted to teach him the path back to live with Him again. That we have been blessed to love and be loved by this boy, soon to be man, is one of the most precious gifts that we could be given in this life....in short, it is.....JOY. We have found it....here in this house, in our family, in our son...my son, my baby. Years I yearned for a daughter....never realizing that the relationship I was craving all that time, the special connection between me and my son is not even describable in words...it is something I would hope all women could experience, if not in this life, then in the next. So here's to all us mom's who have sons, and cringe at the thought of turning them loose someday to the cruel world outside...for a bit longer, at least, he's still mine and I cherish every moment. I found an old journal of mine the other day and wanted to share an excerpt..."March 10, 2000...(Jordan was 3 and a half)....Dear Journal, When I got out of work yesterday, Randy and the boys were waiting for me in the parking lot. He said they were done at the doctor's office early, so he thought he would stop by and see mom to surprise her. Jordan wanted to ride home in the car with me (Randy took Noah in the truck) and he talked to his mommy the whole ride home. I just love our little talks, he says..."Mommy? You are soooo booootiful! and Mommy? I your heart?? I tell him Mommy loves him SO much!! We even have a song we sing...(it's not the words, but really the way we sing it that is special)...it goes..."I love you so much, I love you so much, I can't even tell you how much I love yooooooouuuuuuuu...(big deep breath)...you're special to me, you're special to me....I love you so much and you're special to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!" "-------reading this journal reminded me........that I can't remember the last time we sang this song together:(

Whew! Finally back to blogging...

2009-04-27T10:54:00.007-05:00

I can't believe it's almost been a MONTH since I updated my blog!! I thought a blog would force me to keep on top of my life and make me want to document EVERYTHING...nope!! It seems the more busy my days are, the more apt I am to feel like I can't stay up with what is going on and what a HUGE chore it would be to bring my blog up to speed. SO, I'm going to follow this post with a few pictures of what has gone on in the past month. These past few weeks have been filled with detective exams, Easter holidays, girls' camp meetings, skit/hike planning, form collecting, leader searching, field trips, TAKS testing, Dyslexia conferences, baseball/t-ball games, freezer meal planning/cooking, playgroups, homemade roll baking, surprising discovery of a local political nutcase, garage sales, shopping, dance classes, church ward campouts, scout meetings/banquets, photography, cleaning, shoe searches, birthdays (my little girl turned five!!), visiting friends, resurgence of the kit kat obsession, groundings, class projects, missing checks, book reading (Secret Life of Bees...buy/borrow it, read it....DON'T watch the movie first), awareness of VERY exciting new blogs (hehe), condolences, weiner dog races, babysitting, meal deliveries, hair appts, swine flu mania, thwarted nicknames, heated spats, and apologies......not in any particular order. Up to speed? Now, I can start fresh and feel that April has had a chance to have the screen time it deserves:) On to the pics....

Our SeaWorld Spring Break:)

2009-03-30T17:17:00.007-05:00

FINALLY got all the pictures downloaded from the trip. Of course, my camera battery ran out just before we left on the second day...SO, I missed pics of the sea lion show, our hotel, AND our trip to the Alamo on the last day:( Here is what I did manage to get...we had SO much fun, even with the crowd. We can't wait to go again now that we have the season passes!

Dangerous Invasion....

2009-03-30T08:43:00.002-05:00

The other morning as we stepped outside to take the boys to school, we found this cute baby bunny on the back patio, shaking and looking so lost:( Noah picked it up and we took it over to the side of the fence to set it free. A few days before, a friend of mine one street over from our house had a strikingly different encounter on her back patio. She came in from work in the evening to find a snake slithering around on a pile of rocks they had on their patio. Upon further inspection, she recognized its diamond shaped pattern and saw a small set of rattles on its tail. Her hubby came to the rescue and the snake is toast, but in our neighborhood newsletter it warns that rattlesnakes have been spotted on her street, my street, and two streets on either side of us.....SCARY!! My other friend found a rat snake in her yard last week too, although those I wasn't too worried about, but RATTLESNAKES????!!!!! I mean, I know they exist around us...but this seems crazy that they seem to be overtaking our corner of the subdivision...I'm scared to let the girls play outside in the grass, in our own backyard! Randy says its because of the construction going on nearby our side of the neighborhood, and it's spring, so they are all out and about looking for food. SO, it make me think of the bunny in our backyard and how this part of the neighborhood is overrun by bunnies too. You can't even drive down our back alley at night or early morning without seeing bunnies scatter everywhere. Sometimes even during broad daylight, they just hop right out in the yard or hop right down the street! I've never seen so many bunnies....then it hit me....all the bunnies having babies equals a feast for the large reptiles in close proximity to the boom....aaaagggghhhhh. Got. To. Keep. Bunnies. Away. That poor baby bunny you see in the pic probably ended up as dinner:( And anyone who knows my husband is aware of his one fear and giant phobia........SNAKES!! ANY snake, but he about lost all color when he found out venomous snakes were seen all around us. Now he won't walk out of the house without first kicking, banging, rattling, and yelling at the door in hopes of "scaring" the snake waiting patiently just outside the door ready to strike him down. Before he goes to the bathroom, I've seen him carefully inspect the toilet bowl as if a serpent could be waiting for him there ready to swim up and bite him? He even keeps going in to work late in the morning, with the excuse that he is staying to help get the kids off to school, but I'm secretly wondering if it's just because he doesn't want to leave when it's still dark...hmmmmm. It's a sight to behold, that's for sure...the man is deathly afraid of snakes and over the years it seems to have created this "snake karma" that follows him wherever he goes. He has had more personal encounters with snakes, just by happenstance, than anyone I know! He's even stepped right on top of a snake.....TWICE! I could tell you so many good stories, and probably have if you know me well...hehehe:) The poor guy...just hope either the bunnies move on and the snakes follow them...or the snakes eat them all up and go back to where they came from, because I know...heaven forbid we find a snake in the house....we will be moving! Broken lease and all he would NOT come back....so pray that doesn't happen!!! :)

Cookie Friday with Reese and the Girls...

2009-03-28T15:56:00.004-05:00

After school on Fridays, Jonah and his best friend Luke take turns going over to each other's houses to play. They look forward to it all week because they just love hanging out together. Yesterday was Friday and it was Luke's turn to come to our house, but when it's our turn to host I just can't resist having his little sister, Reese over too:) It's become kind of a monthly tradition to have Reese over to bake cookies with the girls on those special Fridays. She is one of the girls' best friends, they just love her and so do I:) She calls me 'SuperV' and I think that is just too cute, since she can't pronounce our last name. Anyway, yesterday I had to make a dessert to take to the RS Birthday dinner at church, so since Reese was coming over, we just made cookies. They usually like chocolate chip, but I was out so we made peanut butter cookies that I let the girls roll into balls then roll in a bowl of sugar. They all wore their little aprons and just had a blast rolling the dough into balls and playing in the sugar (it took me an hour to rid the kitchen of the scattered sugar). They turned out great and Reese took some home to share:) We just love having our little ReeseyBoo over on these special Fridays, and as soon as she is gone, the girls start asking about when she's coming over for the next time:) It makes me so grateful that we are able to raise our kids in a great community and neighborhood, with truly awesome friends! We love you Reesey!!

Western Day...A Comparison....

2009-03-27T09:26:00.007-05:00

So, after we start getting ready for school this morning, Jonah informs us that for Kindergarten it is Western day. That means they get to dress up in western clothes for the day, even though there isn't any note anywhere that I can find informing parents of this. I'm a little skeptical, but Noah then says he overheard another child telling her mom the same thing yesterday, so I figure it's legit;) Now, I'm trying to figure out how to throw a cowboy/western outfit together in five minutes, but Jonah says, "don't worry mom, I'm going to wear my vest!". This is the leather vest my Aunt Ginger made that Jonah wore for Halloween when he was three:) He was ready to go!! I had to snap this pic before he left, he was so proud:) I had to think, though, that it's too bad that this is all we can come up with for western wear in the boys' closet....and we are in Texas....we don't even own one pair of cowboy boots, how sad!! Although, not sad enough for me to go shopping for western clothes.....I mean, didn't I get enough of that when I was little?? If it was up to my mother, I would have worn clothes like this every day...and I did for the first few years of elementary!! This is my first grade picture (and I assure you it wasn't supposed to have a "western" theme). I am Jonah's age in the pic...it even looks like the same vest! Now do you see why I'm scarred for life when it comes to dressing my kids?? Someone should have pulled my mother aside and gently explained to her that I AM A GIIIIRRRRLLLLLL!!!!! Seriously.

Give Me....

2009-03-25T09:31:00.002-05:00

a cheesy grin any day, and I will take it!! Especially from a sweet three year old:)

First T-Ball Game of the Season...

2009-03-25T08:56:00.001-05:00

Time-Out!

2009-03-18T10:57:00.002-05:00

This past weekend a few friends and I had the pleasure of attending a Time-Out for Women's conference in Houston. This is like the only picture I got of us, because I didn't feel like taking my giant camera out of my bag and lugging it around. It was super cold and wet!! Besides the weather, it was a great trip. I was able to see some friends that I haven't seen in a long time and some of my family too. It was good to see everyone, listen to some awesome speakers, and hear some uplifting music that I have never heard before:) We all had a great time, even if I did gain five pounds from all the eating out;) Oh, and a bit of good news when we got home too! See my friend Elizabeth in the picture? She's the one wearing the white shirt...she found out at her ultrasound on Monday that she is having twin BOYS!!!!!!! We were so excited all weekend for her appointment on Monday when she would find out what they were:) Congrats girl, and I'm so glad you went with us, cause it will probably be the last one for a while...hehe:)

Dental Drah-Ma and an EXTRA dose of Drah-Ma...

2009-03-11T08:37:00.004-05:00

So on Saturday night, we awoke to the screams and whines of our youngest daughter, Emberlyn. After many attempts at deciphering what was bothering her, she finally revealed her tooth was hurting:( She has a cavity on the bottom left in one of her molars that we've known about since her last dentist appointment, but since she was only two and a half, they wanted to put her under general anesthesia to fill the tooth. I wasn't comfortable with that and asked if we could wait six months or so and try again, thinking maybe she would mature just enough to sit through the procedure. The dentist agreed and said we were taking a chance, that hopefully it didn't become infected or painful before her next visit. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best, but we didn't make it....or so I thought. Let me also preface this by saying that this is her only cavity and all my other children have really healthy teeth, with maybe a tiny cavity here or there over the past twelve and a half years. Never had a kid with this large of a cavity before, it makes us feel terrible as parents that we didn't prevent it and keep it from getting bigger:( Anyway, I called Monday morning and made an emergency appointment with our pediatric dentist. We took her in (Randy met me there) and could not believe the difference a few months makes!!! She was a little apprehensive at first, but nothing a little bribery couldn't fix;) She let them clean her teeth, examine them, and even let them take x-ray pics!! We are so proud of her, I can't even begin to tell you the ordeal we had last time we took her in. The difference was like night and day! (they prescribed her antibiotics and we have to take her back to be sedated for the root canal/crown or extraction, whichever they end up doing)

Now for the DRAH-MA! Ok, so after the appointment it's like 1:30 and Randy met me there with his truck. He's like, you take her straight home and I will take the prescription to Wal-Mart to have it filled. Oh, and since we are both starving, you should call us in some grilled chicken sandwhiches at Chili's (which is right by our Wal-Mart) and I will pick them up after I get her script. Sounds great!! This day is actually turning out not to be so bad. So I'm following him along the highway and just after I turn on Brodie and he kept going straight, I hear the dreaded stomach-lurching-upheaval sound coming from behind me. I pull over on the side of the road and get her out of the car seat, all the while she is continually wretching and gagging. I manage to pull my cell phone out and call Randy who turns around and arrives as I'm trying to wipe her up. We had to take her dress off...note, the pretty dress she is wearing in her pics...totally ruined, even if I could get the stains out, the bad karma associated with the "puke dress" is enough to keep me from ever dressing her in it again. Her car seat is unsavable. Which is actually a good thing, since I've been wanted to buy a new one anyway, so Randy pulls it out of the car and throws it into the back of his truck to dump later. We switch her over to Avelyn's car seat (Avelyn is at my friend Jessica's house), and say our goodbyes again. I call Jess and tell her to have Avelyn waiting at the curb, cause I'm in the puke car and my daughter is naked...no time to stop! Pick up Avelyn, finally get home and Emmy is hungry so I make her a light snack (she hasn't eaten since breakfast and of course her tummy is growling having emptied itself of all its contents earlier). At this point, I'm getting ready to shower both me and Emmy, slightly wondering where my husband is, as he should be getting home soon with our lunch and Emmy's medicine. Just then, my phone rings with an unfamiliar number showing on the call display. I say hello, and it's my lovely husband telling me that he made it to Wal-Mart, but that there is a slight problem. When he parked and went to get out of the truck, a gust of wind came along and blew the papers he had in his hands all over the parking lot. We're talking the dental papers and Emmy's prescription...it was very windy on Monday. So, off he goes...running here and there trying to trap down all the papers, looking like a crazy nut....finally gets them all gathered, walks back to his truck, only to realize that the wind blew his door shut...with his cell phone, wallet, and keys locked inside......HELLO.......Seriously?????!!!!! He had to walk inside, ask where the pay phone was, it was ripped out of the wall, so he had to walk over to the HEB and use the pay phone to call yours truly. He told me he called our insurance company and they were sending out Pop-A-Lock, but that it would take an hour and that our Chili's food needed to be picked up, as it had been an hour since we called. Unbelievable!! I had to dress the girls, two of us still unbathed, and pile them back into the reeking puke car to go pick up our now soggy chicken sandwhiches at Chili's. We got home just in time for the boys to walk through the door from school. Randy finally came home around 4pm, right in time to grab Noah for baseball practice. All this, and I didn't even have Americal Idol to look forward to Monday night!! That is why, yesterday, I swore I wasn't leaving my house and I was going to have a drama-free day, but that was not to be either. I'll spare you the details, but it involves a friends' sad news, a dog fight, the neighbors, swearing in front of children, flying remote controls, and formal statements to the Kyle Animal Control officer. Today is a new day, so........BRING IT ON!!!!!!

Reconnecting with Friends:)

2009-03-11T08:30:00.004-05:00

This past weekend was nice, seeing friends we haven't been able to hang out with in a while:) I'm so thankful for all our friends that we have made here in the years we have lived in Kyle (even if some of my BEST ones move AWAY!!!!).

Fire, Wind, and Miracles...Bastrop, TX Wildfire

2009-03-04T10:30:00.007-06:00

This past weekend my Granny and Uncle Paul, who live off of Hwy 71 in Bastrop, had a deputy knock on their door telling them to evacuate immediately. There wasn't even time to grab any belongings other than to snag some pictures off the wall on the way out. A few minutes before, they say they heard sirens and could see smoke over the trees, but never thought anything about it being an out of control wildfire heading straight for their house! By the time they were following the patrol car out of their driveway, the black smoke was so thick they could barely see the road and the flea market across the highway was completely engulfed in flames.

They drove to the top of the hill and pulled over to the side of the road and watched the billowing black smoke for hours...along with other residents that also had to make a run for it. My uncle called me and I was trying to give them updates from the web and tv, because no one was talking to them or giving them any information. They left their house at around 2:30pm and finally about 8:30pm or so, Uncle Paul found a deputy that could identify their house and told them that, yes it was still standing....but that the highway was closed down and no one would be allowed to go back that night. They were on their way out of town anyway, so they just trusted everything was fine and left on their trip to SE Texas, where we have family.

I couldn't sleep knowing that they didn't actually see visual confirmation of their house and found out the next morning that Hwy 71 had been reopened, so we packed up the kiddos and headed out on Sunday morning to inspect the damage. What we saw was incredibly amazing...all around their house was black, the house behind them (though vacant, their neighbor lived in it until a few months ago when she passed away) was completely burned to the ground, the flea market was gone and the only damage to their property was part of their fence was charred and the new riding lawn mower was partially melted. The crazy thing is, that the fence was burned so bad, but then it looks like it just stopped. The deputy told Uncle Paul the night before that his Jeep looked ok in the yard, and my uncle was like "I don't own a Jeep", so all we can figure is that some good samaritan was driving out and stopped, unrolled the waterhoses that were in the yard and fought the fire back from their house. Their waterhoses were stretched out all across the yard.

When we arrived Sunday morning, there was still emergency personnel everywhere, even in their yard...firefighters were walking around spraying the hot spots...there was still some smoking coming from my Granny's fence!! We were scared to leave it unattended since the fireman told us to keep the house wet, the situation was still precarious enough that if the wind shifted it could give some of those hot spots the strength they would need to rage again. Needless to say, my family had to come home from their trip to watch over their house and property.

It was a very scary experience for them and it made me really think about 72 hour kits and their importance. You really never know how much time you will have when you are told to evacuate..it literally could be less than two minutes and what would you do? I just knew that all of those irreplaceable photographs of my grandpa, mother, and uncle who have all past on, were lost forever:( I'm so grateful for those who prayed for them and sent a miracle our way...thank you so much. Ironically, my granny was on her way to put flowers on my grandpa's grave, because that weekend was exactly seven years ago that he left his love and this world.......thank you grandpa for watching over your sweetheart and her home...we know that he was there:)

On the way out the we watched the Blackhawk helicopter refilling his big water balloon tank thingy..whatever you call it. The kids thought is was pretty cool and so did we.

WHAT a weekend!!!! I'm just glad it's all over, that everyone is alright and that the house is still standing. The experience has given me a lot to think about regarding preparedness and getting our family ready for whatever should cross our path, be it a wildfire, storm, chemical spill...whatever it may be, you just never know...nothing can be worse than the vulnerable helplessness you feel when you are completely caught off guard and not prepared. There's no way you can possibly prepare for everything, I know that...but if we make a true effort, I feel that Heavenly Father will help pick up our slack. That happened this weekend, and for that I am forever grateful!! Love you Granny and Uncle Paul...more than you'll ever know!!!:)

Shrimptastic!!!!

2009-02-24T10:13:00.014-06:00

Ok....those of you who know me well, know that I have a thing for shrimp! Just like Bubba on Forrest Gump, I can rattle off at least fifty ways I love to eat my favorite seafood. The only exception being coconut-crusted shrimp...I don't know, something about it just throws me off...BUT never one to waste a shrimp, I just peel off the coconut and enjoy:)

Recently, I've discovered the Costco shrimp in their freezer section. It comes in 2lb. bags and is already peeled and deveined (with the tail still on). It has THE best taste, even though it's been frozen...and the best part is, it is $11.99 a bag! I think that is a good price considering they are pretty generous in size and they are already peeled/deveined. SO, since we are trying to incorporate a healthier lifestyle for our family, we like to have shrimp twice a week for dinner.

With that said, I want to share with you one of my favorite and quickest ways to prepare these tasty little creatures:) First, I must give credit to The Pioneer Woman for the inspiration and original recipe that I loved so much. Her spicy shrimp is soooooo good, but I thought we would have to give it up forever, since it uses SO much butter. In the south, a lot of people make their own version of this dish, sometimes calling it BBQ shrimp or cowboy shrimp...kind of like everyone has their own version of gumbo, tweaking it here and there to suit their regional palette.

What I did was similar, but all I do is spread my shrimp evenly in a shallow baking dish or jellyroll pan, drizzle with a minimal amount of extra-virgin olive oil, about five shakes of Worchestershire sauce, sprinkle with lemon pepper (to taste), and garlic powder (to taste). Maybe a little seasoning salt or sea salt, but not too much. Mix it all around with your tongs and put it under the broiler in your oven for about 7-10 minutes, checking every few minutes and turning with your tongs. This last time, I added a carton of fresh mushrooms for the last four minutes and it turned out just right, with the mushrooms absorbing just enough of the sauce, but not becoming soggy. Garnish with some fresh lemon wedges to squeeze on your shrimp, add a salad or baked potatoe and VOILA...quick, healthy, DE-LISH-IOUS dinner that everyone loves!! (at least in our house)

If you are a shrimp loving house like ours, try it and see what you think! It's very easy to tweak to your tastes, experiment and find out how you like to make it. I'm having fun trying to take some of the recipes we have always loved and make them healthier. If you have a favorite recipe you have done that to, email it to me to try out on the fam. I'm always looking for new ideas:)

P.S. Sorry Laschelle and Ryan, I hope you made it through this post without gagging...you two are the only ones I know who don't like shrimp! (not that there's anything wrong with that;)

Spring is in the Air...and Other Musings...

2009-02-20T10:26:00.004-06:00

We have had gorgeous weather this week! It's hard to stay inside on beautiful days like this:) I am so thankful that we've remained healthy (knock on wood) when there is so much flu/strep/lice outbreaks/stomach viruses going around all around us. I'm sure our time is coming, but this week, it was a blessing to be healthy:) Monday, we met up with some of our friends at the Buda park and the kids were able to play with friends that go to different schools and they don't get to play with often. We brought scooters and just let the kids run free! Wednesday is the day I watch Lusia and so we went to playgroup with our snacks. The weather was perfect but I did get a little too much sun and my face paid the price....Ouch! After we came home, we watered the grass and the girls played in the front garden. They found all these little snail shells and thought they were so cool. Also unearthed was an unlucky earthworm and a cricket that was just a little too slow. Poor things, they started out wriggly and full of life, but by the time the girls were through with them, I could detect no movement from our captive creatures:(

Today, we are going shopping for a carpet steamer so that I may begin my battle with our white, yes white, carpet. I HATE, loathe, detest carpeting in the house. If I had my way, I would rip up every stitch and live on bare concrete floors until I could afford wood throughout the house. Since this is a rental, I have no such option, so the next best thing is to steam the heck out of the carpet I'm stuck with. Dirty carpet is my pet peeve and I cannot rest if I see a spot. Worn areas in the pile drive me nuts too, so I have a method for combating that (an intensive process involving a steel bristle brush). I really hate it....and why does it have to be white???!!!! Ok Ok, carpet rant over...(for now)!

Anyway, I'm so glad it's Friday...I hope to be able to find someone to watch the kiddos so that I can go to the cannery in the morning, but it's looking pretty hopeless. I have limited resources when it comes to finding people to watch my kids and I harldly ever ask, but I really want to go tomorrow. The usual people I ask are either vacationing in Cancun or have a semi-lice scare going on in their house. Randy has to work Mardi Gras, it's mandatory (of course) and the only family we have to ask has to travel an hour to get here, but it doesn't matter anyway, because they are busy. Seriously, it's pretty frustrating! I can't wait until Jordan can demonstrate to me that he is responsible enough to watch his siblings for an extended period of time (longer than 30 minutes), but as of now, I just don't feel comfortable leaving them here when I'm so far away, and Lesley is not even home to keep an eye on the house or for the kids to run to if there is trouble. Oh well!!

SO, I am off to enjoy the weather with my two daughters, grocery shop, and to compare the features of various carpet steamers, I'm just glad it's finally the weekend...laissez les bons temps rouler!!!!!!!!!

Spiderman:)

2009-02-18T10:17:00.002-06:00

So, Jonah has been obsessed with Spiderman since he was three, he's now six and a half. I think that beats the longest running toy/hero obsession we've ever had including Jordan's Pokemon and Power Ranger phase. Noah never seemed to settle on one thing long enough for it to evolve into an obsession, who knows why? But since Jonah is my last son, it gives me a smile to still see him loving his Spiderman action figures so much (I just noticed this particular one is missing his right foot), I hope it lasts a while longer...I will miss it when it's over...we love you Spiderman!!!

Our Sweet Day!

2009-02-16T19:39:00.001-06:00

Alternative desserts

2009-02-10T10:55:00.001-06:00

Ballerina

2009-02-10T10:54:00.001-06:00

Market Days

2009-02-10T10:37:00.004-06:00

The Negley third grade class is studying economics and hosted a market day for the elementary students. They had to come up with a product or service to market and sell, set up their booth (desk) and sell their goods/services to the various classes. Noah chose to make and sell brownies. He made his sign, helped me find a good recipe, helped me bake them, and package them up in clear wrap with gold curly ribbon. He also wanted to sprinkle them with powdered sugar to "make them different":) I convinced him to carry this picnic basket I found at a garage sale and to sell them out of the basket with his sign attached. He sold each brownie (we made them BIG) for 50 cents each. We made 25 brownies and he sold every one! He says he wishes we would have made more because he ran out early:) They learned about the amount of work that goes into starting a business, start up costs, making a profit, the importance of advertising, and paying taxes. All of the money they made will go into the third grade fund and they will vote on what to do with it, like have an end of year party or buying something for the school. I thought it was a great idea for the school to give the third graders this learning experience and I know Noah will always remember it.

Busy Bees

2009-02-10T10:33:00.001-06:00

Our Little Girl!

2009-02-03T09:57:00.002-06:00

I felt bad for Emmy after I posted a picture of just her sister, so I thought I would post these of her yesterday with her wet Koolaid mouth:) She just turned three this past Christmas day and is full of sassy goodness...just like her momma;)

Our Big Girl!

2009-02-03T09:33:00.003-06:00

Avelyn is really starting to be a big girl! She just recently started to willingly go into Primary on her own and is loving her new dance class and the friends she is making there:) We are very proud of her! Here she is right before church this past Sunday, she looked so cute that I just HAD to take her pic:)

Down to the Wire: Superbowl XLIII

2009-02-02T20:08:00.007-06:00

So the day that we have been waiting for all season was finally upon us. Our beloved team had made it all the way to that pinnacle of games...the Superbowl!! It really is so exciting to watch and follow a team from the preseason to the playoffs and amazingly on to the championship matchup. The delight I see in my husband's face and the passion he has for this team and the sport, is very special to me....it gives me so much joy to see him so thrilled:) It's like watching your children open their presents on Christmas morning, that's the only way I can think of to describe the feeling.

At first, we were just going to stay home and watch the game since everyone around us were cheering for the Cards, but our good friends the Allen's invited us over to watch the game and promised to cheer for the Steelers:) So now, not only do we get to share the game with good friends, an added bonus was we would get to watch it on a huge flatscreen in HD!!!!! Since they live on our street, we just grabbed our desserts and walked up to their house.

When we got there, we had dinner and watched the pregame show. I thought Jennifer Hudson did an awesome job singing the National Anthem, and some of the commercials this year were really funny! Finally it was time for kickoff and from that moment forward we were on the edge of our seats the whole game! What an exciting Superbowl! Even if you're not a fan of football or don't have a favorite team, it was fun to watch. Steelers started out strong, but then the Cards really kicked into gear and I'm just surprised my nails survived. That final quarter, I was a wreck! I couldn't even stay in the room...I went into the front room to try to calm down and figure out how I was going to console my pile of a husband if we lost. I just didn't see how, with two minutes left, they were going to pull off a win. When I went back in to watch the last couple minutes, Randy looked at me and said, "you gotta have faith in 'em babe, don't lose the faith!!"...ha..haa...I was thinking that the poor man must be in denial, but was thinking it was cute that he was hanging onto his thread of hope. THEN, the unbelievable happened!!! That momentous catch by Santonio Holmes......are there any words that can possibly convey the unbelievable magic and jubilation captured in that one defining moment???!!!! AMAZINGLY MAGICAL!! His feet, beautifully touching just inside the end zone...two beautiful poised set of Steeler toes making history for their perfect placement!!

And so it goes...the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Arizona Cardinals 27-23 to win their sixth Superbowl title and to go down in history as the greatest football franchise in the NFL!! Head coach Mike Tomlin becomes the youngest coach, at 36, to ever win a Superbowl, and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger leads his team to their second Superbowl title in four seasons, becoming the second youngest quarterback to win two Superbowls!! The guy is twenty-six years old people!! So that means that Big Ben will be around to lead this team for many years to come (barring any unforseen motorcycle mishaps).

A BIG HUGE thanks to the Allen's for hosting our Superbowl experience and for supporting us in our passion for Steelers football. We feel closer to you guys now that you have seen us in our most vulnerable states;) WE LOVE YOU and are SOOOOOOO thankful for your friendship!

All in all, this season lived up to our hype. Now it's time to tuck football into a cozy bed and let it sleep until August! As much as I have enjoyed the trip, I am relieved that the stress is over:) I'm ready for a break, and besides..it's time to get prepared for the next sport of the season...little league baseball, of which we have two sons playing on two different teams, one of which Randy is head coaching....SO, let the games begin!

This is AWESOME!!! Had to share;)

2009-01-30T20:14:00.000-06:00

The tragedy of domestic violence...

2009-01-23T09:14:00.005-06:00

So yesterday Randy was called into court to testify in a murder trial. The case involved a couple with a history of reported physical abuse and this past July ended when police were summoned to the residence to find the wife lying dead on the floor, stabbed repeatedly with a box cutter.

Now the defendant plead guilty, but Randy was called in by the DA to testify in the sentencing phase. Why? Because seven years ago in 2001, he responded to a 911 call at the same residence and dealt with this couple in an instance where she had been physically assaulted by the defendant. Randy took the man into custody, collected a statement from the woman, and took pictures of her bruises and injuries. At the courthouse, the DA told him she wanted to recount his experiences with them that night, and went on to tell him that police were called there more times over the next seven years, but that his arrest was the only one that produced enough evidence to charge him. The other times, they would show up and the woman would change her mind and decide not to press charges, because she didn't want him to go to jail. Now she is gone.

Talking to him last night about this experience, he expressed that he wished that when they respond to calls of this nature, the women (and sometimes men) would listen when the police tell them things could end much worse, even in death. They really have seen it happen time and again...they respond to these couples and warn them, until eventually someone has to leave or someone dies.

I have experience with the type of mindset these women are dealing with, and I can try to understand all the shades of grey that affect their decisions to endure the abuse. Many factors play their part, and often their self-esteem has become so low that they truly believe they can't make it on their own, or the thought of being alone scares them worse than the pain of abuse. When children are involved, the problems are compounded and hopeless is the only way she can think to describe her situation. As a result, unless they break the cycle, they will continue on to endure the pain until they die...or until their abuser dies.

Sorry about the lecture here, but this topic is very close to my heart in many ways and of the many legacys I hope to pass down to my children, would be to teach my sons to treat women and their wives with the utmost kindness, patience, reverence and love. And to likewise raise our daughters to seek out a mate with the same character traits that we hope to instill in our boys. And if they EVER find themselves in a situation where they are being abused, either mentally or physically, that we could raise them to have the courage to break free and never feel hopeless, no matter the outcome or what people may think of them. To teach them that God knows each of our hearts and will ultimately be the only judge that matters in the end.

Anyway, it reminds me how grateful I am to share my life with someone who has taught me that violence does not belong in a marriage, and he continually teaches me patience and humility, being a great example to our children of how a husband should treat his wife. Neither one of us is perfect, not by a SUPER long shot, but we have tried to break a cycle of dysfunction that existed in our lives before we came together, so that we may raise our children in peace.

Off my soapbox now, sorry to ramble...if you care to watch, here is the clip from last night's news story....Randy is on the stand toward the end of the clip. http://www.myfoxaustin.com/myfox/MyFox/pages/sidebar_video.jsp?contentId=8298542&version=1&locale=EN-US

Most Attractive Quarterback?

2009-01-21T10:18:00.005-06:00

Alright....you already know that we couldn't be more excited to have the Steelers going to the Superbowl!!!!! Woohooooooo!!!!!!!! But now we have football fans coming out of the woodwork telling us we are going to lose, Go Cardinals, Cardinals are cuter, etc.....We have so many friends from Arizona and I guess we will be the only ones rooting for the Steelers (except the Allens...thanks for taking pity on us;). So now this one friend and I have been debating back and forth over which quarterback is the most attractive, she said Kurt was cute, but didn't know what the Steelers quarterback looked like, so I sent her a comparison and she still likes Kurt. According to her, my allegiance to Pittsburgh is clouding my judgement....so she said I should put it to the blog and see what some other people think. My question....allegiances aside ladies....which quarterback is the hottest??? Leave a comment and let me know! GO STEELERS!!

New swimsuits in January?

2009-01-12T15:29:00.007-06:00

Yep, that's right!! Part of our new year's resolutions this year is to get in shape and tone these old bodies! We've been real lax in this department the last few months because of our move and the holidays, so my husband promptly went down and signed us up again at the YMCA (we canceled in September for the winter)....and with that means the kids can go to the indoor pool even in January and they LOVE it, even if we do have to completely dry them off in the locker room before we hit the cold air outside. Anyway, last week when we put the girls in their old swimsuits to go the pool, Avelyn's was way too stretched out from being worn ALL the time (she has a slight obsession with swimsuits) so since the spring lines are out in the stores, I decided to get her a new swimsuit and I just couldn't resist getting Emmy one too! I think they are cute and they can't wait to go swimming again in their new suits!!

Pittsburgh Proud!!

2009-01-11T19:58:00.011-06:00

Today I have the happiest husband around...his team beat the San Diego Chargers and now get to play in the AFC championship against the Baltimore Ravens next week. I wish I had a video camera so I could show you this "other person" he becomes while watching his team play...it's really unbelievable. I just hope the neighbors don't think too badly about us because of all the noise. For some reason, the Pittsburgh Steelers have always been his team since way back to when he was a kid. I remember when we were dating he ALWAYS wore this white Steelers cap (see picture...oh, we were young!) and I should have known then what was to come. Over the years, I have become a huge fan myself and really enjoy the whole NFL season, my team being the Colts...but I always root for his team too, I have no choice...no one in this house can be anti-Pittsburgh;)

This season has really been special to him though, because Jordan has started to really get into watching the games. It's amazing to me after all these years watching football with Randy, how Jordan knows so much more than I do after just becoming interested this one season. Maybe it's a guy thing..who knows? My husband could NOT be happier to A: have his team doing so well and to B: have his oldest son sit beside him (and sometimes next oldest son, although he can't make it a whole game) and cheer on his favorite team. Also, note the matching Steelers jerseys that momma had to track down through different sellers on ebay and cross my fingers they all made it before Dec. 25th...they are SO proud of those...now Randy wants one for Jonahbear too...even though at this point he could care less (he is majorly into "ROCKY"...that's another post;). GO STEELERS!!!