The Fish Hook

Wrestling...wouldn't be a good dad if he didn't show the boys how to do the "fish hook." :D

GO WESTLAKE FIRE!

Baylie's first volleyball game was today. It was a close game but they pulled through and WON! The school is thinking about changing their mascot...is fire a mascot anyway?? (Please...there is just something about hearing in the stands, "go flamers!")

Noise Putty

With the way the market is going today it makes one think. Is it fair that millions of Americans who overreached and borrowed more than they could afford are now being bailed out by the government and lending institutions to stave off foreclosure? Why shouldn't these people be made to pay the consequences for their poor judgment? When my husband and I purchased our home, we were careful to purchase only what we could afford. Believe me, there are much larger, much nicer homes that I would have loved to have purchased. But, taking responsibility for my behavior and my life, I went with the house that we could afford, not the house that we couldn't afford. The notion of personal responsibility has all but died in our country. Here are a couple of economic rules we try to make our kids stick to.
1. I will not buy toys for no reason. Birthdays, yes. Christmas, yes. Rewards here and there for a job well done, yes. But, we're standing in line at the drugstore and you see a toy that you want, you need, you have to have -- no way.
2. If my children want a toy for no particular reason, they are perfectly welcome to buy it themselves, with money they earn from doing household chores. And if you read the fine print, "chores" are defined as anything they do to help around the house that is not already expected of them. For example, they will not earn money for cleaning their own room, or for cleaning up messes that they make.
Ben and Nolan decided they need money. They each went outside and picked weeds. For each plastic bag they FILLED, they earned 2 dollars. Ben earned $2, and Nolan $6. While out shopping for much needed Sunday shoes for Nolan, we happened upon Noise Putty. Noise Putty is a blob of goopy fun that you can take with you wherever you go. Okay, here’s how it works… squish your fingers into the goop and as the air escapes around the side it makes a gastronomical noise. Noise Putty is fun, safe, and comes in a variety of different colors. Oh, and it’s also odor free! Both boys decided they HAD to spend their hard earned $$ money on this gem. Of course they did not bring their money with them. It is amazing that a store can charge $2.50 for a pile of crappy goo anyway. (no pun intended) By the time the boys had paid their 10% to church, upon reflection, Ben did not have enough to buy the crappy putty. But then he looks at me, expectantly, his little eyes filled with longing. And what do I do? Well, in the interest of avoiding the massive tantrum that would cause my entire world to collapse on the ride home, I do what any good government would do. I bail him out, and give him the extra .70 cents. He will pay me back...it's just a loan, just like Freddie and Fannie said.
And the whole way home was filled with waves of giggles and flatulence noises! Even Baylie, the way too cool pre-teen smiled!

Kindergarten Art!

Just a few of Nolan's kindergarten creations from today...I wish I could save all 236 that he has brought home so far...(just shy of 1 month of school...wow, now that's ALOT of paint!)

Our little Cub

Ben had a boy scout pack meeting today. He earned 5 belt loops, (his favorite to put on his belt) and a couple badges. I even got a pin...that Ben pinned on!

Kindergarten Spanish

Here is what Nolan has learned so far in Kindergarten spanish class.

Oh geesh...

This is ALMOST Baylie and I...she now has TWO blogs to my one! Okay...we are going mom/daughter date this weekend!!

baylie's high school experience

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Just say NO!

Lately, I've been feeling over committed. Stretched too thin. Overwhelmed. Considering the summer was supposed to be down time, this is not good. Considering it's just the beginning of the school year for the kids...this really is not good.
So I've decided I need to cut back. But that is easier said than done! There is always something I need to do or want to do. So what does that leave to cut out of my busy schedule? Things I haven't said yes to...yet! Since I have the disease to please, like most women (and some men!), I often commit myself to things because I feel badly saying no.
Not anymore!
Just say NO.
So after reading an article with a few ways to say no politely, I decided to share it, just in case you too need to stop saying yes to things that add additional stress to your life.
Ten Ways to Say No
1. My family comes first and they keep me very busy!
2. I have too much on my plate right now.
3. I can't do "X" but I could do "Y."
4. Maybe next time.
5. I really need to cut back right now.
6. I'm going to have to skip that this year.
7. Thanks for asking, but I'm going to have to pass.
8. I don't have time to breathe, let alone take on one more thing!
9. I wish I could, but I can't.
10. No, thank you.
This list will probably not help me to stop being over committed...they all sound way too rational and far too nice for me. For some reason, I probably still will feel the "Yes" word slip out occasionally but this is a start eh?

PTA again...urghhh

I’m not trying to launch a political career or anything, but now that my 3 kids are all in school full time, I’ve decided to join the PTA again at their school. I enjoy being involved in my children’s schools; my kids get so excited and feel so important when their mom is in charge of something, and I like the feeling of being a part of the community. But that being said, it’s not always easy to fit in the meetings, or to find the time for yet another responsibility. At our preschool, the Parents Association was pretty laid back. You did what you could, you came to the meetings you could make, and they were grateful to have any help at all. But at the "real" school, the PTA is run like the United States Army. Meetings are held on the first Monday of each month at 8:15am. Each committee is expected to give a brief and succinct report. Receipts must be turned in within thirty days. Unlike the harried mothers of two and three year-olds at the preschool, the grade school moms seem to be professional parent volunteers, and they take their jobs extremely seriously. The attitude is not one of gratitude, but rather, of expectation. As in, ask not what your school can do for you, but what you can do for your school. Or, to be more exact, as in, your child attends this school, and if you want your child to have a good experience here, then you’d better get off your lazy arse and pitch in, or else don’t even think about complaining. I’ll be honest: it’s more than a little intimidating.

But nonetheless, I enlisted. Well, okay, technically, I was recruited. At the end of last year, I was called by the former vice PTA President, who is now president, who explained that now that I have had practice for a year I should take on a committee chair again. I told him that I was slightly wary of committing to something like that, since I also have 3 kids' homework, a church commitment weekly, boy scouts, girl scouts, volleyball, karate, etc. But he assured me that the PTA was friendly towards busy moms. And I was like, well, that’s just fantastic. Here we go again....

The Law of 3's

If you have children under the age of 8 everything spoken must be said three times. For example; "Nolan put your shoes on. Get your shoes on. PUT YOUR SHOES ON NOW!" It is also important to note that the intensity of the spoken word increases with each repetition. This is also true of the children. For example; "Mommy can I have a cookie? Mommy I want a cookie! COOKIE NOW!" Although not scientifically proven, it seems that by repeating any request three times it greatly increases the listeners ability to hear it. I wonder if this would work with husbands too? Hmmm.

big sucka's

Okay...here are some things they don't tell you when you visit a tropical island... the insect things are GIGANTIC. I tried to get a photo of the most ginormous cockroach we had ever seen but those suckers are not only FAST but they fly too. This slug looked like it had the outside skin of a kiwi. Nolan and Ben would have loved one for a "pet"

Green Sand Beach

Today we rented a jeep and did a little off-roading. There is a green sand beach that you can only get to with a 4-wheel drive vehicle. (or you can park and hike 5 miles in and 5 out) There is an emerald colored crystal in the coastline here that makes the sand green. It is so pretty. Very sparkly. The pictures do not do it justice.

hApPy iN hAwAii!

We swam in waterfalls, ate quava off the trees, and topped it off with a luau too. We are really missing the kiddos though.

Hiking in the Hawaiian Jungle!

The waterfalls and views were spectacular!

flabdominal exercises

Being on vacation without children and with Chris working daily, I have the time now to "work-out." I hate exercising and I always will. Everyone that tries to tell me... "I feel like I have so much more energy" & "when I work out I feel so much better" Yeah right, I am here to tell you it doesn't work. I've done it for 2 whole days now! All lies. I try and be kind to my flabdominals these days-- after all, that area of my body successfully housed three healthy babies and even did me the enormous favor of stretching to Goodyear proportions without leaving a single stretch mark behind -- but sometimes (a LOT of times, if I'm going to be honest) vanity wins out, and I stare at myself in the mirror thinking, DAMMIT. I wish I could get back some of that self-love and peace about my belly that came with pregnancy. You know, without the pregnancy part. By the way, to all my preggo peeps(which there are a TON of you lately)...eat and enjoy your belly while you can!!

ALOHA

We are here... on the beautiful island of Hawaii! There were 3 tiger sharks spotted on the beach outside our hotel so the beaches are closed. One was 12 ft! Yikes. So that means our Wednesday dive & snorkle is out of the question. We will hike the volcanos instead! Lookin' for hot lava baby!

dumb bird! fly away!

For about a week now we have had this dumb bird thinking it is trapped in our garage. Why it can't just fly out the same way it flew in... I don't know. Everytime someone walks into the garage, it'll swoop at you. Dumb bird, I just want my garage back! Bird seed doesn't work. I know Uncle Nate has experience with birds in the house....Help us Uncle Nate!! hee hee

deee-lish!

My friend Sonia sent me this recipe for the BEST chocolate chip cookies ever. If you like 'em soft you will love these! It must be the pudding in the mix. (It is pathetic I am making cookies everyday when we leave for Hawaii on Sunday.... add a little more love to the love handles!?)

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups chopped walnuts (optional)
Cooking Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour and baking soda, set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the instant pudding mix until blended. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips and nuts. Drop cookies by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Edges should be golden brown.
Yield: 72 servings

Rock Climbin' Boys

The boys tried rock climbing for their first time on a 25 foot wall. It is alot harder than it looks. Ben made it to the top and rang the bell.

This is for the birds!

We fed the birds at the zoo...they are so cute!

fOrT wOrTh, tX zOO!!

Here are just a few of the boys and I at the Fort Worth Zoo. You will notice that Chris and Baylie aren't in any photos....the fact is they decided to just mope around the house all day. Baylie said the zoo is hot and sweaty and smells like poop. Whatever.....the boys only mentioned those 2 things maybe 5-10 times throughout the day. The highlight of the day was Nolan's facial expression when the gorilla puked right by him...how cool. (it was actually so gross- of course the gorilla had to eat it again)

Nolan scooping ice-cream

Nolan sings while he does everything. He sings while showering, riding in the car, coloring pictures, going potty....well you get the gist. Today while scooping himself some ice-cream, Baylie captured a couple of seconds of the end of his song "ice-cream rocket" (Beware: my butt looks GIGANTIC in this...I promise it is the skirt I was wearing. I have always heard the camera adds 10 pounds- but this is ridiculous!! Baby got back!)