Merry Christmas!

 Every year, I swear that this will be the year that I take an adorable picture of the kids, print cards and send holiday greetings near and far. Every year, I get the adorable picture and then...nothing. Then I say something lame like, "Here's the picture that you would have gotten if I had sent it in the mail."

So, once again, pretend that this came in the mail. Pretend that it was on high quality paper and said Merry Christmas.

I do have a funny story about this picture. We went down to our lake and were walking around and I found this log and made all of the kids sit on it and smile. Jones was not having it. He was upset and ready to go. We snapped our cute picture and were on our merry way.

A couple of weeks later, Uncle Noah and Aunt Mia came to visit and we took them to our lake. We happened to walk by our photo spot and look what we found. I took a picture because it was dead. Not five minutes later, Landry climbed up on that log in the background and as she jumped down another snake, alive this time, came out with her. I didn't get a picture of that. As we continued around the lake we found two more live snakes.

I made my kids pose in the middle of a snake den. That's why the dog was freaking out. Once again, mother of the year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Evidence that my children have watched too much tv...

So...I'm in the running for "Mom of the Year" in case you hadn't heard.

My kids may or may not have watched a little tv this summer. It's mighty hot outside...

That's my excuse anyway.

My kids are inserting commercial slogans and jingles everywhere! Landry was taking her turn praying over dinner the other night and ended her prayer with, "Dear God, pleeeease let me get a Build a Bear workshop for the my birthday, where friends are made. Amen."

I was wrapping something in foil in the kitchen and Gib came in and said, "Mom, from the people that brought us the tortilla maker, there is now a Wraptastic!"

Hayden was asking for a pair of shoes called Stompeez. "I really need these Stompeez! With every stomp you're friends come to life!"

Good thing school is about to start. I think their brains may be mush.

Summer Stories

The boys played hard today - fishing, hiking around the lake in the heat, just generally being boys. Grace went to volleyball practice and got all stinky. The parents took a wiff off all that stink and off to the showers they went!

The beauty of summer is that we are slightly...er...a little bit...er...a whole bunch of lenient during the summer.

Landry managed to slip through the cracks of doing enough outside to warrant a bath today. So...she just kept really quiet and no one noticed.

Except Hayden.

"Eew! You stink!" he told her.

She went to my bathroom and got the "girl spray" aka my perfume and took care of that problem. A half bottle later...

"Don't I smell great, Mom?!"

She's getting a bath first thing in the morning.

San Jacinto Monument

This summer I took the kids to the San Jacinto Monument. The state park houses the monument, the battlegrounds of the famous San Jacinto battle that defeated Santa Anna and won our Texas independence as well as the Battleship Texas.

The monument itself is SO tall! We rode an elevator all the way to the top and then had a chance to look at breathtaking views. 

After we watched a couple of educational videos, gaped at blue skies and lush green landscape, and toured the museum, we headed out for the hiking trail that is maintained by Texas Parks and Wildlife. We enjoyed looking at the swamp land and birds and didn't even get eaten by mosquitoes! It was a good day!

Summer Canning

This summer I decided to tackle canning. When I was a kid, we canned and preserved all kinds of produce all summer, but since I've grown up, I just haven't. I don't really even have a reason...

Anyway, this summer I decided that it was beyond high time...

I met up with a friend of mine and we canned her batch of cucumbers and turned them into pickles. I also took advantage of some great sales on strawberries and made a bunch of strawberry preserves. (Hayden is a HUGE fan. Strawberry anything is his favorite.)

Then I moved on to peach preserves. These just happen to be Shane's favorite. I have made several batches and would say that we have plenty to keep us for a while. Gibson has proven to be a great help in the kitchen when it's time to can peaches. He can peel and slice with the best of them.

Of course I had to make cobbler. That many peaches around just screams flaky crust and vanilla ice cream! Yum!

It's extremely satisfying to have little jars that I made myself!

My baby is not really a baby anymore...sigh...

As we were eating pizza for dinner, my youngest jumped up from the table and ran screaming to the bathroom.

She was in complete hysterics from the other room. I had her come back and she had a mouth full of blood. (She hates bleeding of any kind more than anything in the world. She has a very real fear that her body is "leaking" and that she will die.) As she was showing me her mouth, she just reached in and yanked out the whole tooth. I didn't even know that it was loose! The crying continued because now her teeth were "broken."

Dinner was full of drama as she was finished eating and asked a million questions.

She wanted to know if I still thought that she was beautiful.

Then she let me know that she has lost part of her "collection" of teeth. She has names for every. single. one. of. them. The one that she just lost is Jade.

The tooth fairy will be making a visit tonight!

Gettin' Old

Landry has been looking forward to her birthday since Christmas was over.

As her birthday is the last day of August, it has been 8 months...

For 8 months she has been talking about the toys that she is going to get, the cake that she will have, the cute and sparkly party that is going to happen...

Cut to this morning.

I was brushing her hair and she was crying (nothing new). 

"Landry, you are almost 6! You can't cry when you are almost 6!"

This just made her cry harder.

"I don't want to be 6!"

I asked her, "You don't want to have a birthday?!"

"Yes, I want to have a birthday! I just don't want to be 6!"

"Well, why don't you want to be 6?"

"Because it's just so old..." she moaned.

Sister Weekend 2013

The highlight of my summer, so far, has been Sister Weekend 2013. 

I am the oldest of 8 kids (for those who may not know), and there are 5 girls and 3 boys in our family. Dan married, so that adds another sister, Naomi. 

This last weekend, we were able to get all of the girls together for a very fun filled, and fast, trip. They all came to our house and we swam in the pool, lounged at the beach, shopped along The Strand in Galveston, ate LOTS of food, and just generally had a great time. This is a must-do for each summer, I think.

As usual, I got busy having fun and then forgot to take pictures...sigh...

I did get a couple at the beach and so did Mia, so I'll share what I've got!

 Here are all of the girls. From left to right: me, Esther, Judith, Mia, Bekah, and Naomi.

 Lots of sunning was going on, especially since the jelly fish were really bad. I have never seen that many come in at once. We had a few casualties of our own.

 The jelly fish made us look for lots of shells and beach goodies...

 And of course, there must be snacks!

Mia took these pictures and did a great job capturing the afternoon.

 Hayden

 Landry

 Aunt Bekah and Grace

 This was all of us scooping a jelly fish in the bucket and then trying to avoid the tentacles and get it to the trash.

There were some mad chess matches happening throughout the weekend.

We had a great time. I love my sisters and can't wait until we can do it again!

How Hannah Got Her Groove Back

This is the story about how Hannah got her groove back.

Does anyone else remember that movie?

The movie was How Stella Got Her Groove Back, not me. ;)

I actually never saw it...

Anyway, after lying around for a few days and feeling like I could never move again and having not an ounce of energy, I have brewed up my very favorite iced coffee recipe. With an iced coffee in one hand and a bottle of spray cleaner in the other, I am taking on the world today!

This is definitely one of my most favorite summer indulgences. It takes a full pound of coffee to make a batch, but considering that buying two coffees at a coffee shop is the monetary equivalent to making a full gallon of this nectar, it's definitely worth it. The quality of the coffee beans definitely contributes to the quality of your brew.

This scrumptious picture is from one of my favorite bloggers, The Pioneer Woman. We are kindred spirits. She just doesn't know it. :)

You can find her recipe here. This is how I first started making mine and she offers several variations and lots of gorgeous pictures to guide you along the way to finding coffee bliss.

Here are my very simple directions. I make mine a little stronger than she does.

This can be made two separate ways. Long ago, when I was the only one drinking iced coffee, I would make it in half batches. Now that my daughter has joined me in the obsession, I have to make a full batch. 

We are on a full caffeine buzz around here.

Okay, on to the directions.

• Fill a large bowl with a gallon of water (1/2 a gallon for a half batch.)

• Add a full pound of ground coffee beans to the water and stir with a wooden spoon making sure that the coffee mixes in with the water. (Half of the bag for a half batch.)

• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave on the counter for 12-24 hours. 

• Strain the coffee grounds. (I actually use my coffee filter from the coffee maker and then just strain straight into my pitcher that is designated for my iced coffee in the fridge.)

• And that's it! Add whatever you like to put in your coffee and enjoy!

You will thank me. Now I'm off to buzz around the house and do some DEEP cleaning. I think that I probably will need another coffee.

First and Last Day 2012-13

Here was the first day of this last school year.

It was still dark outside, so we had to take the picture inside before we left. As usual, Landry was being her fantastically jovial self when it's time to take a picture.

The kids were exhausted after a summer of sleeping in and then being jolted back to reality with a 6 a.m. wakeup and 6:30 a.m. leave time. I had a gallon of coffee before we got to school.

During this school year we have accomplished SO MUCH!

The older three are all moving on to 7th, 3rd and 2nd grades. Landry is going to repeat kinder. Her August 31st birthday didn't do her a whole lot of favors. While there was great progress, another year won't hurt her. Thankfully, she's tiny and just now looks like she should be a kindergartner.

We have participated in field days, awards ceremonies, tests, programs and performances, lots of playtime with friends at recess, packing up all of our classrooms and moving to a new campus mid-year (that was a big one, folks!), schmoozing with the cafeteria ladies (That is Gibson's favorite past-time. He has those ladies wrapped around his pinky finger.), and just generally living big.

Before we hopped in the car for our last day, I made them all come and pose for a picture. I would say "smile," but not everybody did (Landry.) I think that she is squeezing out a "cheese" between clenched teeth.

This summer feels a little different for me. Before every past summer that I can remember with the kids, I have had all of my museum passes lined up, have researched all of the great "kid-friendly" things to do in our area, filled out a calendar, and have generally had a plan. This summer I am going to be the "mom bum."

I have no plans.

No agenda.

We are going to VBS in July. Grace is going to church camp in July. That's it.

Our big goal is to make sure that everyone gets their teeth brushed twice a day. I think that I may have set the bar really high...

I'm Leaking!

While driving home from school, Landry was suddenly screaming hysterically from the back seat, "I'm leaking, I'm leaking!" There was a time when I would have come close to wrecking the car, thinking that she really was dying. She had scratched her leg and the tiniest drop of blood had barely oozed out of her. She has a flare for the dramatic.

Life Rules by Landry

While eating dinner, Landry took it upon herself to educate the rest of us in her list of life rules.

RULE #1 - Don't sit in Dad's chair.

RULE #2 - Don't look out the window when Santa is coming.

RULE #3 - Always be nice to your husbands. (Notice the plural.)

RULE #4 - Always watch movies at night, not grownup movies. (As she points at all of us with her longest finger, while Hayden screams, "That's the bad finger!")

RULE #5 - No talking about toilet stuff at the table. (I have said this one SEVERAL times.)

RULE #6 - No talking in the kitchen. (At the table. Evidently, I am a hardcore mother.)

There were more. The game went on for awhile. :)

Daddy and Daughter Dance 2013

Shane took the girls to the his first Daddy and Daughter dance last year and it was a huge success. The girls were both really excited to go again this year. Last year was a princess theme complete with horse drawn carriages, a paparazzi lined red carpet, dance floor and more. Word got out and this year was packed!

My husband must really love me because they went with a Downton Abbey theme for this year. (how cool is that?!)

They arrived with "servants" to take their coats at the door and then walked up to take "tea." The girls all put on hats and corsages. They still had the carriage rides, dance floor and of course lots of food.

 We bought new dresses for the occasion.

It always helps to have other girl friends when you go out with your dad!

Kindergarten Fun

I have always loved my kids kindergarten year. I appreciate their teachers and how hard they work to make mundane things seem so very special. At my kids current school, they have Gingerbread Man day and the whole school gets involved with making a huge gingerbread man that escapes from the oven and then the students travel the entire school on a scavenger hunt to find him. The scavenger hunt is to actually help the new students find their way around the school.

At Christmas they make gingerbread houses before their Christmas parties.

For the 100th day of school, they have to cover a t-shirt with 100 of something. I die cut butterflies from vinyl and covered Landry's t-shirt with 100 butterflies.

The very next day is the 101st day of school (naturally) and the kids and teachers dress as Dalmation puppies. You can't really tell from this picture, but she actually has big dots on her t-shirt that I, once again, cut out of vinyl.

How can we forget Dr. Seuss' birthday?! I also love the fact that I am on campus with my kids and get to poke my head out and see them in action during the day. I was hurrying past during my busy day and found my little love in the cafeteria with this cute little get-up. I was happy to snap a picture because by the end of the day all of the cute whiskers were gone.

How can you resist the cuteness?!

Party Bath

While we were cleaning up the pool and supplies, we ran across our fountain that we use in the pool during the summer. Landry was so excited about the pool and swimming that she nearly jumped in the still green water with her clothes on. Dad took her inside, filled up the bathtub, turned off the lights and she has been taking "party baths" for the last two weeks. She has her own personal light show and sings at the top of her lungs until she's wrinkled and pruny.

A Rough Week

Hello...Is anyone there?...

I have been absent for quite a while...

Spring Break is finally here and maybe I will have a chance to catch my breath and fill in the gaps since Christmas! We have been busy!

This last week was a little rough. Gibson has been practicing some new tricks on his bike. One of his tricks ended with him head first into his handle bars. He hit the front door as if he had been shot. Blood was everywhere. (Dang head wounds.)

He and Dad took off for the clinic and stitches.

They ended up just gluing it together and putting some tape on it. We could have done that! He has had a cool injury to show his friends at school. His injury happened on Monday.

 On Sunday night, Landry was jumping in the backyard with the kiddos and fell off the trampoline. She cried a little bit, we inspected her arm and shoulder, she ripped off her shirt and wrestled with her brothers, and she went to bed. The next morning, she was favoring her arm, crying that it hurt and couldn't move it very well. I had to take her to get x-rays and sure enough, she fractured her clavicle. She has spent this last week in a sling. Once again, there's not really anything that they can do. She has been a trooper and we have loaded her up with ibuprofen.

I'm hoping to stay injury free for a bit!

Christmas Happenings Part II

We had so many activities in December, that I didn't squish them all into one post.

 As part of our Snowfest festivities, Shane always makes sure that there is a great fireworks display and this year was no different. As soon as the switch was flipped to light the community tree, a choreographed fireworks show complete with music followed. It was very impressive and was met with tons of "ooh and ahhs."

 The kids met up with our personal Santa - Santa Joe. In fact, they never question whether he is real or not. He has a beard year round and we run into him at a couple of different events each year. He always has a petting zoo, remembers the kids' names and brings a reindeer in December. He is fantastic!

 Hayden lost his first tooth and had his first visit from the Tooth Fairy.

 This year we started a new tradition that was really special for the whole family. We went out and bought stuff to make "kits" for the homeless people that we see regularly in our area. We filled each kit with toothbrushes, toothpaste, flashlights, snacks, and other goodies.

 Shane and the kids filled them while I fixed dinner. Then we took off and delivered them. It was truly one of my most favorite things that we have done as a family.

 Landry had several really great days at school, but this one was by far the best. 

 In addition to pajama day (and they all watch The Polar Express and drink hot chocolate), the day of their classroom parties, they get to make gingerbread houses. All of the teachers help them with their antlers and paint their noses red like Rudolph. It is just about the cutest thing ever.

We enjoyed our church cookout, light watching and hayride. It was super cold and I have decided that if the temp outside is not above 70 degrees, I may die.

We attended our church's Christmas Eve service and it was really special for all of us.

 We finished all of our special holiday happenings with a favorite - sausage rolls. I can't say that Shane married me for these, but they sure have helped to keep him around! :)