On the Road Again

The kids sitting in R's "bell box". I don't know where the name came from but that is what it is called. Basically it is a big hard silver suitcase that they fill with food to snack on while they travel. I'm not sure if the kids wanted the snacks or thought they might sneak away with dad.

He did leave yesterday after lunch and will return on 17 Jun. We were sad to see him leave so quickly (after just returning 58 hours earlier ) but he did end up making everyone happy by working some magic to be home for A's birthday, M's dance recital and able to go on our family vacation at the beginning of July. What a man! I think he is getting tired of packing suitcases also. I'm sure he will have plenty of time to relax on vacation. Ha ha! He'll do well to get any sleep with 4 kids ages 3-7 and 2 women who haven't seen each other in a year (we did a great job of non-ending conversations even when we did see each other daily). In fact, one of our kids once got in trouble for interrupting. When told they need to wait til we stop talking then ask their question, the child said but y'all never quit talking. I can't wait- fun friends and beautiful scenery.
The rest of us have been keeping busy while R is traveling. His is a picture of A with his best friend at pre-school. This was the end of the year picnic (Wild West theme). Don't see nearly as many cowboy hats here as we did in OK. A has this last week then he is finished until Kindergarten. Unfortunately, his friend will be attending a different school than A. He has met several kids from soccer that will be in his class so he is really looking forward to the fall.

Here is M all "bedazzled" thanks to Mawmaw. The best part is you can reuse them so there is no end in sight. M did my hair for a soccer game one day. You can imagine how jealous all the other moms were, especially those with only boys. Just remember not to let your child do their own hair before a soccer game because you have to remove them and that can take a few minutes. SO anyone looking for a new hair style/look head on over and M will hook you up for free. Be sure to book in advance because her schedule is filling up quickly (not with clients but with other activities). She has 2 more weeks of school then she'll be a 2ND grader.

This weekend continued our Sat of 2 soccer games and a birthday party. Next weekend we add a dance recital practice and a church event all without a second adult. I must be crazy! I always say that the weekends are the longest when R is out of town but no more because time flies when you are having fun! And how can cake every weekend not be fun?

Busy, Busy

On Mother's Day my brother, sister-in-law and niece arrived for a week long visit. It was great to have family since R was out of town. This is my niece and sister-in-law at the park. She looks just like my brother did when he was small.
A with his cousin. He loved having her to play with all week. He said "She is fun." He even went as far to ask for a little sister but that won't be happening. I explained how it wouldn't be so fun if she was there all the time. It was fun for me to play with a 13 month old for a few days. Even more fun not to have to change diapers, worry about her naps, get up in the middle of the night or fix her when she was upset. Cute but no more for me. My motto has always been " two hands, two kids".
Cousin all ready for school with M's backpack on. Everything she did was just cute. Watching her eat was the best. Made me realize that my kids really are growing up.
We just recently bought M a new bedspread and I bought curtains but they didn't go at all. I wasn't sure what to do but my sister-in-law said "let's just make some." Well, being the sewing kind of person I am not, I informed her I had no sewing machine. She assured me that wouldn't be a problem. We went to the fabric store and what do you know 24 hours later, she had made these and had them hanging. The valance spells out her name and is not ugly. She did a great job! M loves them. A is now wanting some for his room. Hey! When are you guys coming back???? I told him I would try but no promises. Stay tuned for that journey. I have never made any type of curtain before so it could be interesting.

Soccer and birthday parties continue to be our Sat fun. Looks like we have a break this weekend then back to it the next. Swim team starts Tues. It should be interesting since it is STILL not warm here. I wore pants, long sleeves and a jacket again today. Lows in the 40's (plus lots of rain) so I bet the pool water is not warm and toasty. They keep telling me, just wait a few weeks and it will be too hot. Bring it on!! I am ready.

R was home for 3 days and this morning he left out again. He did vote "no " for a fill in husband or wife. Looks like it will just be me. Sorry kids. I think they might be ready for a break from me.

Husband for Sale?

Tonight while getting A ready for bed, I told him we had to start earlier since Daddy was out of town it would take me longer by myself. A said "Why don't you just buy another husband to help while Daddy is gone?"
I told him I would have to check with Daddy first. So R when you read this what do you think?

If R approves I'll need some recommendations so please let me know any candidates you think would work with my family. Why didn't I think of it myself. I'll start a new "trend" one wife, many husbands. I mean I am from Texas .

Shoot and Score!

Soccer is in full swing and keeps us entertained on Saturdays. Both kids are loving it. They both scored a goal this weekend. No pic of that because I could stand there all day ready but never happen. Therefore, I sit and snap random shots during the game. M scored the first goal of the game and I missed it trying to fix my chair. Her age plays 4 on 4. She runs and plays so tough. She has really improved since last spring. She is in blue and number 19. She picked that number because it is her number in her class. They can pick any number they want. The whole team can be the same number if they want. Here is A in action. His age plays 2 on 2. He is always laughing about things that happen on the field (that the other players do). He is number 11 on red. He picked this number because his good friend from OK was 11 years old. Not a day goes by that we don't here about the 11 yr old. It was a hot day but they both gave it there all. R told me I was embarrassing with all my cheering/yelling for the kids. That was at A's game so I tried to keep it down at M's game.
Here is what the other part of our weekend involved. Me hard at work.
M also hard at work. R mowed but the grass was damp and so we had clumps of cut grass and M would not rest til all the clumps were out of the yard. She must get the love of yard work form me. Where are those boys?
Oh, here they are goofing off in the garage. NO, he was not riding that bike and he did not fall. R and I were organizing the garage (trying to make space for the top of the Jeep) when we heard A ask "Is this called sideways riding?" Where does he get that stuff? Yes, you are correct- from R. I think we have another future class clown on our hands. He comes up with some funny things for a 4 yr old.
That was all Fri evening and Sat. Sunday involved lots of rain and almost 2 hours of kickball after the rain stopped. It was R and me versus the neighborhood kids. Wish you could have seen my skills! R wasn't too bad either. I'm sure you will see more soccer pics as it does not end til the end of May.

BRI: In Greek mythology, Nike is the goddess of victory.

Shortest verus in the Bible: John 11:35. ("Jesus wept.")

Call of the Not so Wild

Yesterday we drove to Great Wolf Lodge for a little mini-spring break. I figured it is finally feeling like spring (but notice that we are STILL in long sleeves in the photo above!!!) plus R missed spring break and Easter. So off we went. This place is a hotel and indoor water park all in one. The decorations were neat- all log cabinish. We only stayed one night but you can use the water park the day you check in and the day you leave. That amounted to about 10 hours of non-stop fun for us. Being that we went during the week, there were NO waits. Which was great but that meant up the stairs (79 of them to one water slide but who's counting)over and over almost nonstop. R and I were wearing down but the kids never once complained about the number of stairs. In fact, the just kept saying "Can we do it again?" There was also a "lazy river" that most people lay on a float and leisurely float around but not A. He ran around the whole thing every time and only laughed when I told him he must think it is the unlazy river. It was nice to do a water park and still be warm. The water is 84 degrees plus the best part for my family is NO sunscreen! That saved me lots of heartache- no whining about putting it on again and again and no missed spots. M under the bucket that drops 1000 gallons of water down every 5 minutes. A was standing next to her until the warning bell rang but as you can see he quickly deserted his post. We never did get him to stand under it.
A coming down one of the smaller water slides. R was on the orange one on the right but just like he did on the slides in Altus, he got stuck and missed out on getting in on the photo op! They did all the water slides they possibly could (6 big ones and 3 small ones). A was not tall enough to do the "Tornado" but M did and actually enjoyed it once she got over the fear of the ride name.
Playing in the "fort" area. There was also a wave pool that we spent lots of time at. The waves were on a 5 minute on/off cycle. M would have me push her into the waves and she got dumped several times. A opted to dive into the waves or try to ride them. With his goggles in place, he was all action and never stopped. There was more but this is enough to give you the idea of what a great time we had. The kids can't wait to go back.

Welcome Back

R returned home after a 17 day trip to Eastern Europe. This is a photo from where he went. He had a good time but was glad to be home. He had the bonus of being greeted by 4 members of my extended family (aunt, uncle, cousin and cousin's husband). He got home around midnight and might of thought he could sneak in but no, we were all waiting for him (minus the kids-way too late for them). The kids loved showing off any talent any of the 4 adults would watch. M did some Irish dancing and some Hanna Montana singing. A stuck to more things like nerf guns and wii. He is not ready to unleash the rest of his talents at this time.

R was also welcomed by the cherry blossoms on our tree in the front yard. Who needs the Cherry Blossoms Festival when you can walk into your own front yard without any crowds. Sad to say a windy night has emptied the tree for this year.
R was also greeted the next morning by 2 very excited children! Not that they were tired of seeing me but now it meant that mom would do some cooking. But with the kids, come soccer games. They are both playing and really enjoying themselves. Note: We are also finally wearing short sleeves and shorts and smiling. That is true except for the last 2 days which has brought us back to long everything. But I have great faith that these days will quickly pass on to more sunny ones.

M has learned the art of tree climbing and cannot get enough of the neighbor's tree. She gets up and down by herself. I wouldn't let her go any higher that day. Again, warm enough for bare feet. I have worn flip flops 2 days and loved it. I did not however climb any trees.
A did attempt to climb a tree too. You know the saying "monkey see, monkey do" (well, try to do in this case). As you can see, he didn't get far at all. He is all smiles anyway. Maybe by the end of the summer he'll be higher too.

SPRING?

It is just not right! It is not right to have to wear coats and gloves to get to school in the mornings (36 degrees) and some afternoons. It is not right to walk out of gymnastics in April to find it sleeting outside. It is not right to NOT be able to wear flip flops and capris in April. It is not right for the high to be 44 in April. Who says I'm living in the south? This is not the south I know and love. I didn't expect to be wearing shorts yet but this is crazy! I'm to thin skinned for this type of "spring" weather. Oh, I hope our next assignment is not in the north because boy and I in for a rude awakening. (I know we just really got here but always need to be planning the next move.) I'm hoping that come July I'll be loving the weather here and I will have forgotten my lost spring. The neighbors assure me by May it will be warmer. However, most people don't do much swimming til July because the water is too cold. I think swimming should be from May-Oct. Seems like I might have a long 4 years ahead of me. Retiring in TX is sounds better by the day.

From BRI: Snow has fallen in every state including Hawaii.
Based on normal annual temperatures, the coldest states are Alaska, North Dakota, Minnesota, Maine, Montana and Wyoming.(These states won't be making my top 10 list any time soon.)