Hello again

Ok, so normally I despise it when people forward videos and messages and nonsense to my email.  I received one today; however, that I absolutely feel changed by.  I thought I would share.

Here is what she forwarded, and then watch the video:

A son asked his father, 'Dad, will you take part in a marathon with me?'


The father who, despite having a heart condition, says 'Yes'. They went on
to complete the marathon together. Father and son went on to join other
marathons, the father always saying 'Yes' to his son's request of going
through the race to gether. One day, the son asked his father, 'Dad, let's
join the Ironman together.'


To which, his father said 'Yes' .


For those who don't know, Ironman is the toughest triathlon ever. The race
encompasses three endurance events of a 2.4 mile (3.86 kilometer) ocean
swim, followed by a 112 mile (180.2 kilometer) bike ride, and ending with
a 26.2 mile (42.195 kilometer) marathon along the coast of the Big Island
.? Father and son went on to complete the race together. View this:

Click Here to View the View of the duo_

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=8cf08faca5dd9ea45513

Brittany week!!! (lots of photos)

So much to tell, but I should be sleeping as I have to take Miss Brittany to the airport in 1 hour and 45 minutes and I can't sleep!  But, this is a good glimpse into the week we have had.
  

  
  



    

  

  

  


  
  


  
  

Not a Girl...not yet a woman

My little girls grew up just a bit today.  Kierstin discovered high heels and this is Miss Kyra in her gear to head off to Cheer.  I just love to look at them both and can't wait to see where their little lives take them.  I don't have anything exciting except to say that I am once again so grateful for the incredible blessing and privilege it is to be home with my children.  I never get it all done, but I sure do get a lot done...and in the middle of all of that are my favorite people in the world.  I will always be grateful for the time I had to work and be in a business that taught me a lot of lessons, but for the life of me I can't imagine being away from them like that again.  Trust me, they remember and they tell me all the time that they don't want that again.  So, today, I am grateful and happy to know that Larry comes home tomorrow and Brittany gets here next week and the moon is big and beautiful tonight.  :)

And yes.  I did quote Brittany Spears for this.  Go Britt!

One more thing!

I am in the beginning of planning the Fall Festival for our elementary school.  I know, you're jealous.  I am only sharing this because I am looking for sponsors for the event.  If you know of a business  or family that might be willing to donate a little money to the cause, please let me know.  It is a PTA function and I am...in charge.  Scary thought.  It was loads of fun last year and I am hoping for even more this year.  But we need to raise about $10,000 to make it happen.  How much do we have so far?  Not much.  Any help would be appreciated, particularly from local businesses.

That's all.

Good night!

Fun for all mommies

So, it is late enough that I should be sleeping, particularly since I was kicked around and woken up so many times by my two not so little boys who HAD to sleep in my room last night.  But, no.  I am here, where I usually find myself distracting myself from the things I should be doing.  I can say that my house is clean, but I must also confess that my beautiful, clean, folded laundry is sitting in baskets now for the third day.  partly because I don't want to take it all upstairs to mostly cleaned out closets that still need some attention, which makes the task of putting away the clothes a little more time consuming...but more because IF I do put these clothes away, that means that they will wear them.  again.  get them dirty.  again.  And they will somehow, after a few requests, find their way back to the laundry room.  That is a fate worse than...well, for laundry loathers like myself...just about anything.  I don't really know why I dislike it because I have not had a hard time getting this all clean and folded.  Maybe I have a fear of finishing a job.  That would explain a lot.  Truly.

Oh.  More laughter for you to enjoy.  I don't personally want these, but I think that you will at least get a kick out of it.  Funnier than the idea...someone actually thought of it AND manufactured it AND put it up for sale.  You'll see what I mean.

mama merit badges

Just smile and know that IF you were to succumb to this tempting award system...you would win them all.  And I do mean, all of them.  

Fun times

It's Monday.  IT's MONDAY!  The kids have 6 weeks left before they go back to school.  Larry has been gone for two weeks and I have not left the kids for alone time in nearly 4 weeks.  Mom wants to know if I am stressed.  :)

Actually, I am fine.  I did get a little discouraged last night, but I think that is just what happens when you haven't had a pedicure in 6 weeks.  I know...I'm spoiled.

Our morning started early today with a trip to a doctor's office to have a Cat scan.  Kimball, as some of you know, has been sick for some time, to varying degrees, with an as of yet undiagnosed stomach ailment.  It was less than pleasant for Kimball as he had to drink that barium liquid nastiness...which of course, means it was unpleasant for me.  But, he did it and we should have the results back tomorrow.  Let's hope there will be some answers provided by this latest test.  

I am happy to say that Larry comes home this week and then Brittany is coming out next week to spend a few days with us.  I can't wait to see those babies of hers.  And Brittany of course.  I always like it when we get to hang out for a bit.

You know, it's only 10:30 in the morning.  I am sure that there will be more to report later.  Maybe with some pictures of happy kids.  For now, you can enjoy this picture that Kaden took of me whilst cleaning out the girls closet the other day.  You can see that I am tired in this one.

We are at the middle of the summer/ middle of the year!

Holy cow.  I just realized that the kids go back to school in 6 weeks.  That's pretty close people. 

Today...I am tired.

I think that I may have peaked too early this week.  I have had such grand plans to be going to bed this evening in a clean house with all of the laundry washed and put away, with peach cobbler cooling on the stove and the pantry neatly restocked from my grocery trip.  But alas, I have clean laundry neatly folded in baskets on the counter in the kitchen with a full load of clean dishes to unload and a sink of dishes waiting to be reloaded.  I now have all of the necessary ingredients for my homemade peach cobbler but, as of yet, the magic has not been mixed together and baked.  The children are; however, all sleeping.  Not drowned in the big tub as I earlier thought they might be by the end of the day or hung by their toes in the attic.  I am grateful for the "almost there" in my day though.  I can take pride in the work that was accomplished and in the fun that was still had today, which was for all intents and purposes, a work day at home...you know, Saturday chores before Sunday.  

I am feeling a renewed interest in being more on top of the family mechanics; grocery shopping, money, cleaning...parenting.  That sort of thing.  I know that I should always be aware of such things, but sometimes, in the middle of a crowded street with noise coming from all directions, you can forget what you were doing there in the first place.  I think that sometimes I forget as well.  I always know the job of the day, but the goal of the day, or of the week, or of all of it can sometimes get muffled by the loudness of the job at hand.  At the same time, I am keenly aware of doing better for myself.  Of cherishing where we are and what we have and are now.  There are many things ahead, and a great deal behind us...but now, in this quiet moment on a hot Saturday night and the end of a lovely week, I want to appreciate those moments one by one, even though I am admittedly really tired.  Maybe it's all of the appreciation catching up with me...or maybe it was the really frustrating trip to Walmart.  :)

Okay, this is a digression, but I have to share!

Faster Than Kudzu

Ok.  So I have this link posted over there for your amusement in those times when you have nothing better to do.  But, you simply must go read this post from July 11th.  And watch the lion video, as cheesy as it is, because it is so cool.  I am a little addicted to this author's blog, so I should really pick up one of her books because I am sure that I would like them.  You will laugh out loud at some of her rant.  Enjoy!

Another Day, Another Adventure

Addendum:  I had to get this picture of Kyra dressed in her matching pajamas, brushing her new friends hair.  It is taken with my phone so it is not the best quality photo, but it is just too sweet.  

Another addendum:  I must point out that Kyra happily bought this little treasure with her birthday money.  I did supplement a little with another outfit but she was so excited to spend the money that several people had been gracious enough to give her for her birthday.  But, as I pointed out to Miss Kyra yesterday, I am considering her birthday officially closed.  (It was June 27th, and as Lindsey pointed out, it has been unending celebrating.)  She has had two weeks of birthday extravaganza.  She told me yesterday that next year's birthday would have to be 3 weeks.  :)  Um, NO.

So this has sure been a busy week.  Today's adventure started with a trip into Dallas to the new American Girl Store.  I can't say that I ever thought that Kyra would care about this doll, but now that she does, it is great fun.  We walked into the store with Kyra, Kierstin, Grandma and myself.  It was a little like walking into the FAO Schwartz in Vegas for the first time.  It was magnificent, and flooded with little girls and their mommies.  (There is a subject for another time in that whole concept of the mommies at the Dallas Galleria as it was a culture unto itself.)  Moving on.

Kyra quickly found her "Just Like Me" doll and named her Amy.  :)  Oh, but there are two glaring differences between Kyra and Amy, Amy's ears are pierced and her hair is a bit more blonde.  Now, Grandma gave no suggestions for the earring thing, but she did suggest that Brittany could either darken Amy's hair a little when she comes to visit, or she could highlight Kyra's hair.  Which do you think that Kyra chose?  

Back to the adventure:

She picked out an outfit and even a little doggie named Coconut.  Meanwhile, Kierstin was a little overwhelmed.  She wanted only to play with all of the pretty things.  I was very tempted to get one of the Bitty Babies for her as well.  But I restrained, for now.  Think Christmas.  We did attempt to eat at the Bistro upstairs, but evidently the other mommies knew something I didn't...reservations help.  There was an hour wait that we concluded would be better spent at The Grand Lux across the way.  Kyra actually tried Chicken Tortilla Soup and liked it.  She also ordered something new for her...a cheese quesadilla.  We must thank Grandma Teresa for that down in San Antonio.  I think I have gained 5 pounds just eating those things at home since we got back.  Another indulgence for the summer.  

All in all, another fun activity, and a new adventure for this crew.  As you can see in the pictures, Kyra has not left Amy's side and has even set up a new little area for her things.  They are in the same pj's on the couch as we speak.  I have to say that I do love that this little girl has gone back to little girl play for awhile.  I thought I might lose her to video games and computers, but for just a bit longer, she is enjoying playing with her doll.  A cherished moment indeed.

And Then There Were Blueberries

 Summer fun, part 2:

We went on to The Berry Patch, where we picked the last blueberries of the season for this beautiful farm.  The babies didn't take long to figure out that they could abandon the buckets for easier eating...right off the bushes.  I am not at all sure how many Kierstin ate as she wandered through the aisles and aisles of blueberries bushes.  She did not discriminate between blueberries, ready or not.  She did learn relatively quickly that if she chose the bigger BLUE berries, those were sweet and yummy.  The kids were all so funny as we stood literally melting in the heat while they searched for what they called the ultimate "score".  Afterwards we headed to a foodie destination called The Fried Pie Company in Gainesville.  The food wasn't great...but Oh. My. Word. These little fried creations are yummy. Sinful, even.  

All in all it was a fantastic summer adventure where for a few precious moments there was only the sound of laughter floating on warm air in the middle of nowhere, Texas.

    

What Summer Looks Like Today

Summer fun, part 1: (more to come)

Early this morning, we started on a journey that would lead us to finding lots of ingredients for summer. We started, of course, at a donut shop in Corinth where we filled up on energy building sugary dougnuts and headed north to find the Red River Peach Orchard near Gainesville. It was a beautiful drive. Once we got there, the fun began. I know that there are a lot of pictures, but they were too cute. 

(And the peaches are fantastic!)

         

                                                                                                                      

  

And, for the record, the babies kind of stole the show on the cute factor, thus so many pictures.  :)