My boys

I have gotten to spend a lot of time with the boys together these past few weeks. It is so amazing to me that two boys who share the same parents and who resided in my womb only 25 months apart could be so different.



Matthew: Age 6. Brown hair. 50% for height.
Thomas: Age 4. Blonde hair. 95% for height.

Matthew: Talking in sentences at 18 months. Presence in a room is definitely noticed! Loud carrying voice.
Thomas: Started talking a lot a 2. Quiet presence. Quieter voice.

Matthew: Never had the patience to play with toys. Would much rather be running around.
Thomas: Has great concentration for games/puzzles/blocks, etc. Will play for hours. He is a whiz at memory and beats me legitimately most of the time!

Matthew: Not inclined to be very physically affectionate.
Thomas: Very physically affectionate. Loves hugs and kisses!

Matthew: Strong willed, but takes criticism and discipline well. To my knowlege has never said the phrase, ".....hurt my feelings."
Thomas: A bit of a stubborn streak. Criticism and discipline crush him. Very sensitive.

Matthew: A homebody. Loves to stay home with me if Bryon goes out.
Thomas: Loves to go out. Going out with Bryon is one of his greatest joys. Is crushed if Matthew leaves without him (other than school).

Matthew: Great offensive player in football, soccer, and basketball.
Thomas: Great defensive player. Loves to tackle or defend the goal!

Matthew: Extremely competitive in sports and in life.
Thomas: I have watched him let his brother and/or sister "win" to make them happy. He has said recently, "You go ahead. I want you to win today."

Matthew: Believes there are 3 adults and 2 children living in our house. People are constantly commenting on how old he acts.
Thomas: Loves to be babied.

Matthew: Very coordinated. Good at sports. Always lands on his feet.
Thomas: More clumsy. You can bet that if he is holding a drink, there is a good chance it will be spilled!

Matthew: Very intense personality.
Thomas: Happy-go-lucky.


Regardless of these differences, the boys really enjoy being together. Of course, they do have their moments of deriving great pleasure from annoying one another, but it doesn't usually last long! I think they enjoy the differences in each other because they fill the other's need. Thomas loves to be babied and Matthew is only to happy to "parent" him! I enjoy both of their personalities so much and feel blessed to be their mother.

Beautiful day for an outing

Today, I decided to take the kids to the zoo. Since it is 84 degrees (not a typo) and sunny, why not head outdoors?

We went with a good friend of mine whose daughters are best friends with my sons. It was good for all the kids to be around kids other than their siblings and Matthew really hasn't left the house since his surgery. We had a great time, but Matthew was definitely worn out by the end of lunch.


Things are very, very slowly getting better. Nights are always hardest. I think he still is mouth breathing so the sores get really dried out at night and he cries everytime he wakes up. "When is this ever going to stop hurting?", he asked me last night at 3 in the morning. I hate seeing him in such misery and hope that he feels like himself soon.

I am loving having nothing to do this week. I am such a homebody and would be thrilled if I didn't have to leave my house most of the time! Yesterday, we never even got out of our pj's! It will be nice to get back on a schedule next week, but until then, I am savoring every nonscheduled minute!

Roll Tide!

For 4 gut wrenching, heart palpitating hours, the kids and I have been watching the Cotton Bowl. Alabama, who has one of the best defenses in the country played Texas Tech, who has one of the best offenses in the country.

Tech didn't score a touchdown until the final few minutes of the game tying it up. Jamie Christensen, who by all accounts is a mediocre kicker at best, kicked an ugly career long field goal that barely made it through the uprights to win the game for the Tide! This after only making 1/3 attempts today. My brother and dad were there. Mom and I watched the end together via the phone and Matthew couldn't stop kissing the screen!


Ironically, Christensen won 3 games for the Tide in the final play of the game this year. I guess he came through when it counted!

The good news is, I cleaned out most of the drawers in my kitchen with all my nervous energy. Bryon called and told me to rewind it and watch it again while I clean the office!

Reasons why I love January

New beginnings.
Resolution time.
Long nights, short days.
Lots of chili.
The possibility of snow days.
Relaxed social schedule.
Not a lot of need to spend money (Always nice after Christmas!)
My house always looks clean and decluttered after the holidays.
Alabama in the Cotton Bowl today. Roll Tide!

Happy New Year!

Well, I rang in the new year by falling asleep at 9:15 reading a book! I feel like I have a newborn again because Matthew has been up a lot at night with throat pain so anytime I sit down, I feel the sleepies coming on!

The best New Year's Eve of my life was 1997/98 when Bryon and I celebrated at Times Square. The windchill that evening was -5 degrees and we were stuck standing in a crowd for hours, but I am happy to have had that experience. New Year's Eve from then on haven't quite lived up to that!

I stayed home with Matthew this morning while Bryon took the younger two to church. After church, my parents and grandmother joined us at home for a New Years feast complete with black eyed peas and chocolate crossaint bread pudding.

As I look back on 2005, I can say that our family was blessed. It was a quiet year without a lot of big changes. Since I am someone who doesn't like change, I guess it was a good year! This year will start off with two big changes in our family. I will gain a sister in law in March and a nephew in April.

We all have fallen in love with Jilinda, Michael's fiance'. We couldn't have handpicked a more suitable companion for Michael. She is beautiful, fun to be around, and loves my kids. Seeing Michael so happy and complete has been such a blessing to our entire family.

This year, we will also celebrate our 10th anniversary. It should be a fun summer!

I wish everyone a happy and blessed 2006!

Some of my favorite posts of 2005

Copying Donna.
Here are a few of my favorite posts of the year. I haven't looked back at any of them, so it was fun reliving some of the year!

Uncontrollable Laughter at Inappropriate Situations
Embarassing Moments
Changing World
Barefoot At Walmart
Night at the Rodeo
When Professional Pictures Go Very Wrong
100 things about me

I have to add in a few of my favorite "Kids Say the Darndest Things" posts as well!
Thomas
Matthew

Today

Well, we are in Day 2 of recovery and so far it hasn't gone as smoothly as I expected. We had to call the surgeon last night and have him call in nausea medicine for Matthew because he couldn't keep water down. You have got to love a kid who knows that he is going to get sick and makes it to the toilet every time (knock on wood). God bless him!

Matthew has been very clingy and teary eyed which is polar opposite of how he usually is. This morning, he looked at me with tears in his eyes and said, "I am having a really bad day." He went to sleep several hours ago and I am about to wake him up because his teacher is coming by with ice cream. Seeing how Mrs. B____ is his main squeeze, I know it will brighten his day. Many kids call their teachers "Mom" but Matthew calls me "Mrs. B____!"

Other than taking care of Matthew, Bryon and I have been quite busy overhauling our house. He took the week off and we have been painting, doing yard work, repairing dry wall, cleaning windows, and taking down Christmas decorations. We repainted the boys room last night while they slept in our bed and put on new bedding. It turned out really cute and Phase 2 of big boy room is now complete!

In book news, I finished Memoirs of a Geisha on Tuesday. It was a wonderful book and I couldn't put it down. Those kind of books are priceless! I am now going back to finish the Rebus series by Ian Rankin. Rankin is rated the best crime novel author in the world and I have loved this series! It is about a policeman named John Rebus and they are set in Edinburgh, Scotland. I have been to Edinburgh twice and my ancestors are from there so the books are particularly interesting to me. This is my 12th one out of about 16 in the series and so far so good.

I am hopeful that by tomorrow, Matthew will start to feel better. I am pleased to report that his voice hasn't changed since the surgery. I have been told that it happens from time to time and I was sad thinking about that loud, hoarse being a memory!

Tonsil and Adenoid Free!

After a long morning, we are finally home! Matthew is doing OK. He has been throwing up fairly regularly since the surgery, but says he is feeling much better.

Matthew was a trooper through it all and went through the halls of the hospital with his Batman robe on telling everyone he saw that he was getting his tonsils and adenoids out that morning. His good spirits kept me from getting too upset when they took him away.

I am looking forward to spending the rest of the day pampering him and bending to his every whim! Isn't that part of the Mommy Constitution?

Tonsil and Adenoidectomy Day

Say a little prayer for Matthew this morning. He will be in surgery at 9!

It's all over.

Well, all the presents have been unwrapped, all the calories have been consumed, all the miles have been driven. Christmas is officially over.

We had a wonderful time! Mom really knocked herself out and we had a fabulous meal 4 nights in a row. We also enjoyed having Jilinda join our Christmas festivities for the first time.

The only downer of the whole holiday occurred on the 23rd. We had workmen over repairing drywall and our tree had to be moved. It wasn't anchored down very well and when Matthew went to show Thomas an ornament, the tree came crashing down shattering several of my favorite sentimental ornaments. Yes, I cried but quickly stopped when Matthew looked at me with huge tears dangling in his eyes and said, "I am so sorry! Now Santa won't come."

I spent Christmas Eve morning cleaning up broken ornaments, putting the tree back, and retrimming the tree. What a pain. Matthew and Thomas got right to work making new ornaments including one Matthew colored that said "1999" since one of the broken ornaments was a "Baby's first Christmas 1999". When the tree was finally up again, Matthew began dancing around saying, "Yeah! Mommy saved Christmas!" It was the least I could do.

Now back to the good stuff. As per tradition, we ate Mexican food on Christmas Eve and watched "A Christmas Carol". Then we went back to the house and arranged the things for Christmas morning. When the morning came, Lauren, Josh, Mom, and Dad came over at 7:30 to watch the kids discover the Santa gifts. The highlight of the morning was watching Mary Beth with her toys. I bought her a few things so that Matthew wouldn't think Santa had slighted her, but had no idea that she would squeal with delight and dance her heart out to all the music!

After the Santa gifts were sufficiently played with, we headed over to Mom and Dad's to eat breakfast, open gifts, and eat turkey and dressing. We all had a great time and enjoyed being together. I am always so sad once all the gifts have been unwrapped and the tree looks so bare!

After an incredible dinner prepared by Mom, we headed down to Conroe to open presents with Bryon's parents. We were all pretty tired at that point! Matthew did manage to lose a tooth while we were down there. Of the 7 teeth he has lost, 3 of them have been during visits to Conroe!

We got back home a few hours ago and are starting to sort through toys and take down a few decorations. I know most people keep their things up through New Years, but it makes me sad looking at the tree and garland knowing that the fun is over.

I hope everyone's Christmas was merry. I added pictures to the album to the right of the screen.

Christmas tag

More than likely, my last post until after the holidays. Have a Merry Christmas everyone!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Egg nog. I hate eggs but this stuff makes me weak in the knees. I allow myself one or two sips a night! Great with ice cream and nutmeg.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Santa does not wrap gifts. Everyone has a pile with their stocking laid out beside their stash.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White, although they were colored when I was little.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Never

5. When do you put your decorations up? The weekend of Thanksgiving. I like getting the full season out of them!

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Mexican food Christmas Eve. Turkey/dressing/sweet potato casserole with so much butter and sugar that it should techically be called a dessert! Holiday breakfast casserole on Christmas morning.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? My favorite memories as a child revolve around Christmas. It was just magical. Dad was off from teaching at ACU and spent a lot of time with us. The anticipation on Christmas Eve. Watching A Christmas Carol which we do every Christmas Eve. The smells in the kitchen. Waiting by our bedroom door while mom and dad took forever lighting the fire and starting their coffee. Hearing Dad say every year while we are waiting by our door, "I think Santa made a mistake! He left way too many presents for just the three of you!" We still make him say it every year! Doing a big Christmas puzzle that sits on our table. Nonstop Christmas music. Reading the Christmas memory book that Mom has kept since we were little. I wish I could bottle it and bring it back every now and then.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? Second grade. Diane McKissick
told me. I was told not to tell Michael and Lauren because Santa would stop coming. I still haven't told them.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Never! I hated this when I was a kid but now it makes me happy to anticipate Christmas morning. Christmas Eve, we eat mexican food and watch A Christmas Carol. Christmas morning, we would play with our Santa toys, eat a little breakfast and begin the slow process of watching everyone open gifts.

10. What kind of cookies does Santa get set out for him? Sand tarts or sugar cookies

11. Snow. Love it or Dread it? LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT! I live in the WRONG state!

12. Can you ice skate? Tried it a few times in high school and loved it. Haven't done it since.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? Cabbage Patch Kid. Mom told me that it probably wasn't going to happen so it was quite a surprise. She and a friend went out at 5 in the morning one morning and got one for my sister and me! I got a new bike one year and a microscope in 5th grade that I was crazy about.

14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Replaying the traditions that have been a part of me since my very first Christmas. Getting to relive childhood through my children. Great food. Being with the whole family.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Pecan pie, our traditional cookies, white hot chocolate.

16.. What tops your tree? A star.

18. Which do you prefer Giving or Receiving? Giving.

19. What is your favorite Christmas Carol? Have yourself a Merry little Christmas, Merry Christmas, Darling both by Karen Carpenter.

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? If they are sitting around, I will eat one.

Sliding into home

Well, the craziest 5 weeks of the year are coming to an end. Starting with Nov. 18th (Matthew's birthday) and ending on Christmas Day, I have the boys' birthdays, Dad's and Grandma's birthday, various Christmas parties, room mother duties, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I always joke that starting with Matthew's birthday, the race begins and I don't sleep until January! The stress and busyness have started to take their toll this week; however, and I am feeling like I am running on fumes. I feel like I am crawling to the finish line!

I have spent much of today running errands and dragging my poor kids store to store. I bought a new mailbox and lantern today. We are having a difficult time getting in touch with the girl who wrecked our old one. The only contact information I had on her was her mother's place of employment. The mother has been avoiding our phone calls the past two days and finally called me last night at almost 11 o'clock, not to apologize, but to gripe me out for bothering her at work. Apparently the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I was raised with the value of taking responsibility for my actions drilled into me and I find it amazing when others don't share that same value. I will keep you posted...

Matthew's class Christmas party was yesterday and went well. I am happy that tomorrow is the last day of school and I can enjoy all the kids home for a while.

Yet another fabulous reason why teenaged girls shouldn't be drinking and driving at 2:30 in the morning.

Fortunately for me, I have next to nothing going on this week so making this top priority shouldn't be a problem. Said tongue in cheek.

Merry Christmas, blog family!

Opening gifts

Do you open gifts Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?

Excited and nervous

I found out today that Matthew will have his tonsils and adenoids taken out the week after Christmas.

I have been asking his doctor for years if we could get them out. I think I bugged her enough this past checkup to get a pediatric ENT consult!

Matthew has suffered for years with stuffy nose, snoring, hoarse voice, and tonsils the size of an adult male! Unfortunately (or I guess fortunately) he has never had a throat infection so my doctor never considered taking them out.

When we went today, I explained all of his symptoms. He took one look in Matthew's mouth and said, "When do you want to get these guys out of here?"

I was happy to hear that he would take the tonsils and adenoids out, but got slightly nervous when he made me sign the consent form showing every possible post op problem. I know they have to do that for legal reasons, but scary none the less when thinking about my baby.

Matthew got scared talking to the doctor and cried from his office to the car. He always does much better when we can sit and talk it out and once I explained to him that after the surgery he could have all the ice cream he wanted and that they might use laughing gas on him, his disposition completely changed! I don't know if they use laughing gas at all, but he was thrilled at the prospect.

I am excited that they will be able to get him in in two weeks since Bryon is taking the week off.

Other than that, I have stayed busy (like everyone else) baking for parties and getting ready for Matthew's school party. So busy, but so much fun!

Ghosts of Christmas Past

No more sweaters with goofy images on them!

This picture taken at Holiday in the Park at Six Flags makes me laugh.
We (Mom or I) buy Christmas sweaters for the boys every year after Christmas for the next year. I guess last year was the last year to do that!

Matthew has put a ban on "sweaters with goofy snowmen on them"! Thomas looked adorable in his, Matthew refused to wear it with the snowman showing. He would much prefer to wear in inside out and backwards (notice the tag in front).

I forced him to wear a different one to church this morning. Jilinda asked Matthew what was on his sweater. He huffed and puffed and covered his sweater immediately.

"Plain sweaters from now on, Mom!"

I wasn't expecting the "I am too cool for you" business for a few more years!


You tell me which one looks goofy! ;)

Happy Birthday, Thomas!

Tomorrow is Thomas's 4th birthday and I wanted to say a very happy birthday to him!

Four years ago tonight I was in utter agony. Of my three pregnancies, this one was the worst. Sciatica was a huge problem and I couldn't move a foot without pain. I was a little depressed thinking that I had more than two weeks to go before my due date on Christmas Day.

The next afternoon, Monday, Dec. 10th labor started! I was so excited! Not only was I about to not be pregnant, but it was my Dad's birthday and I couldn't think of a better present for him!



I went to the hospital and everything went smoothly. Of all my pregnancies, this was the easiest labor and delivery! The only funny conversation I had was with the delivery doctor. I had been telling my doctor for weeks that Thomas was bigger than Matthew and he said probably not. The delivery doctor (not my normal O.B., who was at a Christmas party) checked me right before Thomas came and said that he might be 7 pounds. A few minutes later, out popped my 9 lb. 3 oz. beauty! Goes to show mothers know better than doctors sometimes!


From the moment he was born, Thomas was a completely different child than Matthew. I remember telling my mom that when he was 6 hours old! The nurses had to "mess" with him a little to get him to cry. He just seemed so content and easy going.
Fast forward 4 years later and he still is the same way. I can honestly say that he has never given us any trouble and has been a joy to raise. From my fat Gerber baby, to my beautiful 2 year old with a headful of blonde curls, to now my sweet and sensitive 4 year old, we wouldn't trade him for the world!











Thomas is the perfect middle child. He is just as content tackling Buddy playing football as he is holding ME on his lap and kissing her. He is also very sensitive to the needs of his siblings.

"I am so excited about Christmas! Buddy will love getting presents!"

Also, he never gets out of the minivan until I have taken out ME.
"I don't want her to be lonely when everyone gets out of the car."

Thomas has always been a ray of sunshine in our lives. The child who delights in giving us the "warm fuzzies". We couldn't love him anymore!
Happy Birthday, Sunshine!

Need to vent

Not in the best mood this morning! I was so excited about the snow/ice storm coming our way. It is one of my favorite things. I love being forced to stay home all day with nowhere to go. What a luxury! All day the temperature kept dropping into the 20s. I knew that Matthew's school would get cancelled.

No such luck. I woke up this morning and it hardly looked snowy/icy at all. School wasn't cancelled, it was just delayed 2 hours so instead of me staying home and Bryon taking Matthew to school, I have to get everyone bundled up to take him 2 hours late.

Mother's Day Out; however, was cancelled. I was counting on today because I had a hair appointment that I made in September for this morning and lots of Christmas shopping to do!

Aaaaarg!

2 cakes, 2 birthday boys, and 1 confused almost 4 year old

Several weeks ago, we had the boys' friends birthday party. This was confusing for Thomas because Matthew turned 6 the day before the party so he technically was 6 at his party.

"So am I 4 now?" he asked.

"Um, not exactly. You will be 4 in a few weeks."

He did get to open some presents a few weeks ago from my in laws while they were in town. This helped pacify him.

Tonight, we had birthday cake for Thomas and my Dad, who shares the same birthday as Thomas. My sister and her husband are leaving in the morning for New York and Dad is going out of town Thursday, so this was the only night we could do it.

"So, now and I four?"

"Um, not exactly. You get to open a few more presents tonight but your real birthday isn't until Saturday."

Poor, confused Thomas!

This year, I decided on a red velvet cake. Thomas has been obsessed with the color red for most of this year so I thought it was pretty appropriate. I had never made one before but a good friend of mine makes a great one so I used her recipe. I guess I missed a step or the planets weren't alligned but it was a total flop. Tough, not sweet, soggy, yuck.

In the trash can it goes! I had 30 minutes until I had to pick up the kids so I ran to the grocery store to buy more red food coloring and they were out. Aaaaaargh!
Picked up the kids and went to another grocery store. Success!

When I got home, ME was very fussy and into everything so I had to hold her throughout most of the baking process with RVC #2. Fortunately it was a success and I was able to present it to my family without humiliation.

When I cut into it, he got so excited! Definitely the right choice this year!

Monday

Yesterday evening was lots of fun. First, Matthew had his first piano recital! I was completely nervous for him. I remember being petrified before all of my ten years worth of recitals so I think I was projecting on him! He was oblivious to the possiblity of getting stage fright and he played his two pieces perfectly. Never have I heard a more awe-inspiring interpretation of Old McDonald! ;)

Matthew reaction, "This was the first time I have been on stage and had an audience!" I am sure the first of many! We now have a one month break before lessons start again. Hallelujah!

This was one of my favorite recitals to attend. Twelve kids played and it was over in 20 minutes!

Afterward, Lauren and I took him to Fazolis for a celebration dinner.

While Aunt Lauren, ME, and I were at the recital, Thomas went to Nana's to make sugar cookies. He had a great time cooking and spending time with Nana and Deedah.

A fun evening had by all!

Gift of a weekend

Recently, our preacher preached on gratitude. One of my favorite "nuggets" from that sermon was to consider small, wonderful, unexpected happiness as a gift from God. I feel like this past weekend was a gift! We had only one thing to do and the rest of the time was spent having quiet family time at home. A calm before the Christmas storm, if you will.

The highlight of the weekend was Historic Waco's Breakfast with Santa and Santa Wonderland. One of SG's and my good friends headed it up and it was lots of fun! The kids got to eat breakfast, watch monkey tricks, meet Santa, go on a horse drawn carriage, ride a Christmas train, get their faces painted, etc.

The highlight of this event was not meeting Santa, it was meeting Shawn Bell, the quarterback for Baylor. For those of you not familiar with Baylor football, you have to know there wasn't a huge line to see him. We almost had a winning record this year which is better than the last, say, 10 years. Despite all of this, my boys idolize Shawn Bell. They have his jersey. Matthew writes about Shawn Bell in his journal at school incessantly. Matthew cried when he didn't start the UT game.

Several of the Baylor athletes were in a line ready to sign autographs but the boys were locked in on Shawn Bell.

"Are you the real Shawn Bell?" asked Matthew, eyes wide as saucers.

"I am sorry you didn't get to go to a bowl game." said Thomas always ready to make someone feel better.

"Wow you played great in the Oklahoma State game." said a still awestruck Matthew.

Shawn, who I am sure is not used to so much idolization, hollered over to his father, "Dad, you have got to meet these kids!"

The boys talked to Shawn's father and then when it was time to leave, Shawn gave Thomas a hug.

"Shawn Bell hugged me! Shawn Bell hugged me!" Thomas said jumping up and down.

What a sweet moment! The boys then proceeded to get their faces painted. Not with bugs, butterflies, or other things the kids were doing but with BU #11. They then rushed back over to show him. I think he was genuinely touched as were the boys.

The rest of the weekend was spent watching football, cooking, and me getting over the second strep infection in a month. No one in the family is getting it but me. My doctor seems to think that Matthew is a carrier. He is picking it up at school and transferring it to me without him getting sick. Talk about the gift that keeps on giving!

70-3 Texas!

Apparently, Matthew is now a new recruit to the Longhorns fan base. After their stunningly large victory over Colorado for the Big 12 championship yesterday, Matthew wrote

70-3
TEXAS

very largly in black permanent marker on Thomas's back! I am just about ready to send him back to the boy store!

Making fudge with Nana!

Unfortunately, my Dad was out of town so there are no pictures of Mom with Matthew but I still think these pictures are cute! Mom has had lots of fun with Matthew tonight painting, watching Christmas specials, and of course, making fudge! I will try to take some in the morning when we pick him up.

Pajama Time!

Today was pajama day at school. The kids got to go to school in their pjs and also bring their pillow and sleeping bag. I had to scrounge to find a pair of pajamas for him. PJs for Matthew usually consist of a pair of underwear! Matthew was so excited that he didn't have to get dressed today!

He woke up, got his pillow, sleeping bag, books, and stuffed animal together and left. The next thing I know, Thomas quietly went and changed into the identical pajamas that Matthew was wearing, put a stack of books together, and brought them into the living room while holding onto his favorite stuffed animal! He was trying to be just like Buddy!

Pajama Day was fun. Another mother and I came in to read stories to the kids and I made red and green sugar cookies for the kids' snack. What a fun day!

Christmas cookies!

Tomorrow night, Matthew is going over to my parent's house for his annual date with my mom to make fudge. Since he was 2, this has been a special tradition. When I ask Matthew what his favorite thing about Nana is, he always says, "Making fudge with her!"

This year, Thomas is going to join the tradition by going on a separate night to make red and green sugar cookies. Thomas, my football junkie, is excited about making Baylor and Alabama cookies! Mom's plan is to find a special Christmas cookie that she makes with each of her grandchildren.

Every year there are 5 cookies that are found in Mom's (and now my) kitchen. Christmas wouldn't be the same without them!

1. Red and green sugar cookies-These aren't the ordinary sugar cookies. She uses powdered sugar rather than regular sugar. These are probably my favorite!

2. Sand tarts-The little snowballs of joy! We were always instructed to put the whole thing in our mouths so as not to spew powdered sugar everywhere! These are our friend, Paul's, favorite cookie.

3. Fudge- I am not a big fudge lover, but I love Mom's (and Matthew's) fudge. The best I have ever tried!

4. Peppermint bark- I loved it as a little girl because it is PINK!

5. Almond toffee- Stick-to-your-teeth good!

Every year, new items are introduced. Some don't make it back. These are always there year after year.

What about you?

A lesson in humility in order

One thing I have always loved about Matthew is that he travels to the beat of a different drum. He likes being with everyone but doesn't feel a need to "fit in". When I ask him who his favorite friend is, he usually says, "Everyone!"

Imagine my surprise when we were walking down the hall recently. Several kids came up to him and said, "Hi, Matthew!" He looked at me with a smug face and said, "I am so popular! I have waited my whole life for this!"

Who loves ya, Baby?

I love this picture of ME. Her new favorite thing is to kiss by puckering her lips as far as they can go (think duck bill), lift her head high, and lean in for the kill! She makes a face afterward like, "Aren't you glad I graced you with my presence and offered up one of my famous kisses?" She kisses everyone in sight. If she is restrained by her carseat, she will air kiss repeatedly! I guess she is a lover, not a fighter!

A visit from Riders of the Son

I love my church. I feel like the members at Crestview really have a heart for the poor in our community. Every year, we have a toy drive to benefit Mission Waco. This is a wonderful organization in town that helps give the poor and destitute a hand up. A toy store is opened during Christmas and the poor are able to buy the donated gifts for their children at drastically reduced prices. This helps give the parents ownership in the process.


I love how the toys are collected! On the first Sunday after Thanksgiving, a group of motorcyclists known as The kids get a kick out of all the noise and they are able to take pictures on the bikes. It is always fun hearing the roar down the street in anticipation of them coming!

This year, Matthew and Thomas asked that everyone coming to their birthday party bring toys for Mission Waco instead of giving them to the boys. They were so proud this morning to hand the toys to the bikers knowing that many of them were donated by them. The head of Mission Waco talked to Matthew and told him that many little girls and boys would be happy because of his decision to give his toys. He was so happy!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful this year for:

God, who continues to shower me with blessings.
My three happy, healthy, beautiful, funny children who keep me hopping!
My husband who loves me and works so hard to support our family.
My mom and sister who, along with Bryon, are my biggest support system.
Friends who help make life fun!
My brother finding a fiance' who is beautiful, funny, and a great addition to our family!
My daughter who finally started walking!
Dave Barry
Bryon loving taking the kids on little dates to the movie store, hardware store, grocery store, etc. It gives me a 30 minute respite which helps replenish a little energy.
Matthew's kindergarten teacher who lets me help in Matthew's class and always happy to fill me in on his progress.
Thomas's MDO teacher who goes above and beyond to make class fun for the kids.
Thanksgiving
Christmas coming up.
My digital camera.
Diet Coke, coffee, Diet A&W root beer
Birthday cake (I have absolutely no will power with this!)
Rediscovering frozen cappuccinos at the local coffee house.
Bryon being off for 4 days!
My nephew who is healthy and will be joining our family in April!
Matthew constantly cracking me up with what he says.
Thomas snuggling with me and enjoying taking care of his sister.
Matthew and Thomas's close relationship.
ME and her funny personality.
ME dancing everytime she hears music.
TiVo.
Food Network.
Having lots of hobbies I enjoy.
Oprah, Grey's Anatomy, CSI, The Office.
Rediscovering my love of the piano this year.
Living close to my family.

Even when life is hard and I am mired down in work, I have so much to be thankful for. Thank you, God, for all of my blessings!

Thanksgiving memories

I love Thanksgiving. Maybe because it is my favorite time of year. Maybe because it is a good excuse to be with family. Maybe because I love the food. I just love it.

We have spent every Thanksgiving since we were engaged in Conroe, where Bryon's family is from. They have graciously invited my parents to come every year to celebrate with them, so I get to be with both sides of the family on Thanksgiving.

This year my mother in law asked me to bring the dressing. Dressing is my favorite part of the meal so I feel an extra burden to make it the best I can. My mother cooks it "in the bird" and I think it is so much better that way. So....I bought my first turkey yesterday for the sole purpose of cooking my dressing inside! I will freeze the meat and eat it next week.

I am so excited about cooking my first turkey and dressing. It is a no stress way to venture into the most famous meal of the year.

Having the cornbread in a big bowl on the counter brings back so many memories. When we were growing up, Thanksgiving wasn't a big extended family affair. Our closest relatives lived more than 800 miles away, so it was just the 5 of us. From the first memories of Thanksgiving, my mother cooked the entire meal for the 5 of us. No going to a local cafeteria. No pie from the local grocery store. Everything was homemade. Our holiday was quiet, but magical thanks to our wonderful mother. We always enjoyed watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while Mom cooked and we could smell the turkey, dressing, sweet potato casserole, and rolls cooking when Santa Claus appeared on the TV ending the parade.

When I met Bryon, I was introduced to the "35 members of the family Thanksgivings" that I had always seen on commercials. Bryon's mother always enjoys having the entire family at her house.

We usually go to Old Town Spring on Friday with my parents and go shopping. We eat at Wunsche Brother's restaurant and watch the A&M/UT game and buy a few holiday decorations.

I am looking forward to the holiday weekend and excited/anxious about my Thanksgiving turkey and dressing debut!

Signs my boys are obsessed with football

*Matthew brings home a paper today that he signed "Dru Bledsoe"

*Matthew wants to change his name to Drew Bryon Bledsoe.

*When the boys are fighting about who gets the green cup and who gets the blue cup, Thomas says, "I want to be Baylor, not SMU!"

*Most of the journals Matthew writes in school have to do with Shawn Bell, the quarterback for Baylor.

*Matthew recently saw a sign for BBQ and he said, If you turned the letters around, you would have QB which stands for quarterback!"

*I recently took the highlights out of my hair. When Matthew saw me, he said, "I hate the Aggies and I hate your new hair!"

*Thanks to my brother-in-law, who is a huge Georgia fan, Matthew now sings "Glory, Glory to Old Georgia!" at the top of his lungs whenever possible.

*Thomas makes me participate in Baylor cheers at home. "I say Baylor and you say Bears, Mama!" Or he says, "B-A-Y-L-O-R, Baylor Bears Fight!"

*The boys live for the weekend to watch football. I can usually hear one of them screaming, "Go, Baby,Go!" at the television.

*Both the boys can tell you who Baylor beat this year.

*The only book the boys wanted from the book fair this year was My Brother's Side about Tiki and Ronde Barber.

Party weekend

We had a great birthday weekend! Friday was lots of fun. Thomas, ME, and I brought doughnuts to Matthew's class and he enjoyed his "King of the Universe" status! He got to be line leader and lead most of the songs during the day. He kept saying, "This is the best day of my life!"

The party on Saturday was my favorite party that we have thrown. Since Thomas's birthday is in a few weeks, we decided to have a joint party as many of the same kids would come regardless.


It was a camping theme and it was on the nature trail near our lot. We couldn't have asked for better weather: sunny in the 70s. Perfect campfire weather! The kids enjoyed making walking sticks that quickly turned into light sabers, eating hot dogs, making s'mores, and going on a nature walk. Parties are always a great reminder of how much I love my friends and family who love my children!
The afternoon was spent watching football. Bryon, his dad, and brother took the boys to the Baylor game. They won! I watched the Alabama game on TV. They lost! Quite painful to talk about, actually. Thank goodness I had a lot to do to keep my mind off of it!

Saturday evening, the boys opened their gifts from Bryon's parents who had to leave early. Then my family came over and we ate eggplant parmesan and pumpkin gingerbread trifle. Then Matthew opened more presents. Thomas will get to open his on his actual birthday! Our house looked like Christmas morning! Everyone left at 8 p.m. and I was dead asleep by 8:30!

Today was spent playing with all the new toys and resting from a busy day yesterday. A funny story: Bryon took the boys to the grocery store and Matthew noticed that egg nog was for sale. Matthew ADORES egg nog and talks about it frequently during the year. Bryon bought a small bottle and Matthew had a chug tonight. After his first sip, he exclaimed, "This is just like old times!" What a hoot!

Happy Birthday, Matthew!

Six years ago today, my life changed forever when I became the mother of Matthew Bryon.

When I think about this day six years ago, the first word that comes to mind is LONG! The birth story began the day before when I went in for my 39 week appointment. I was expecting my doctor to say that I was 5 centimeters dilated and ready to give birth. What he told me was that it looked like I had at least another week and that it would be after Thanksgiving before Matthew arrived. I proceeded to burst out crying in front of my doctor! I am not a big crier so this event still makes me laugh! I drove home in tears and was too depressed to go to church that night.

Fast forward 12 hours later to 3 a.m., Thursday, November 18th. Regular contractions started and I was very excited about going into the doctor that morning and telling him he was WRONG! I was admitted to the hospital knowing that Matthew would be born on the 18th.

Fast forward 20 3/4ths hours later and it was 11:55 at night. My doctor said that I was ready to push and did I want Matthew's birthday to be today or tomorrow? I said I had worked hard all day so today had to be it! Matthew Bryon was born at 11:58 at night!

Matthew was a happy baby and always had a 1,000 watt smile on his face. He didn't sleep through the night until he was 9 months old so that was a tough introduction to motherhood!















The toddler years were quite difficult. Matthew has several qualities: high intellegence, insatiable curiosity, and lots of energy, that would converge quite frequently into a perfect storm which left a path of destruction that kept me in tears on many days! It seemed from 18 months to 3 years old, there wasn't a day that went by where Matthew wasn't popping my car into gear and going down the driveway, putting my lipstick all over his body, running down the center aisle of church naked during the service, "making dinner", or writing on his walls. Fortunately for Matthew, his charm and cuteness saved him from my wrath and tears of frustration usually gave way to tears of laughter.

From the time that Matthew turned 3, we were much more able to reason with him and life began to turn around. He started going to Montessori at almost 4 which also helped satisfy his curiosity and energy.

I am enjoying Matthew being in kindergarten and watching him interact with his teachers and friends. Everyone knows Matthew and he acts like he owns the place! He shouts "Hello!" to everyone in his booming "Moses" voice.

During his 6 years, Matthew has become a big brother twice. I marvel at how much he enjoys the role of "Big Brother". He and Thomas are inseparable and watching him baby ME is so sweet.

I am proud of the person that Matthew is becoming. His exuberance for life, concern for others, love of family, and love of God are such wonderful characteristics and I can't wait to see what he will do with his life!

When professional pictures go very very wrong!

Today, I am thankful for

Watching a norther come in and bring the temperature down 40 degrees!

Driving down a secluded road covered with leaves that have fallen off the trees.

Throwing a shower for one of my best friends and enjoying a great meal (and cake!) together last night.

Hearing Thomas tell me that he is excited for Christmas because, "Buddy will be so excited to get presents!" What a sweetie!

Seeing my daughter take steps in her thick, pink, footie pajamas that I remember wearing when I was a little girl.

Remembering the birth of Matthew 6 years ago on Friday.

Getting excited about having a big birthday meal on Saturday for Matthew.

Getting excited about the boys birthday party on Saturday and watching them get excited too.

I am having a great morning and hope you are too!

Weekend happenings

This weekend was filled with a lot of cleaning, family time, and stomach viruses!

We continued to work all day Friday on the house. I worked on closets and Bryon worked on the driveway and back fence.

Friday evening, we did a retake of family pictures. Up to this point we had not taken a professional picture of the three kids. It was a valient effort on the part of the photographer, Bryon, and me, but I think we got a few cute ones!

Saturday morning, Mom and I went shopping. I wanted to get a few things for Matthew's birthday and the boys' birthday party. I also wanted to get Lauren a few little "boy" things to get her excited about having a son (as if she weren't excited enough!).

Saturday night, Bryon and I went to a friend's surprise birthday party. Usually when we go out with friends, it is "Boy's night" or "Girl's night". It was fun having all our couple friends together.

Sunday morning, I was up at church at 8:00 because my group was up to sing on the microphones during our service. When 9:00 rolled around I went into our class to greet our kindergarten class and Bryon walked in looking very flustered. This is very rare for Bryon who takes the three kids out a lot and never gets overwhelmed. He said that he had gone into Starbucks to get me a coffee and Thomas threw up. Matthew started gagging and almost threw up himself. Right about then ME had a blow out diaper!

I couldn't take Thomas home b/c I was singing and I needed Bryon to teach Bible class for me since we had 17 KIDS! Bryon is much better at crowd control than me! I sat out with Thomas during class then Bryon took the three kids home while I sang. During the middle of church I started feeling really bad but was able to stay until the end. Whatever Thomas had, he gave to me. I ended up parked on the couch all yesterday and up until 3 am this morning with a stomach virus.

Fortunately Bryon was home and we had a nice day yesterday all things considered. The boys' favorite book right now is My Brother's Side which is written by Tiki and Ronde Barber, twin professional football players. I sat on the couch with Matthew and Thomas and watched the NY Giants game and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game so they could watch Tiki and Ronde play!

I finished The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency yesterday as well. A very cute, easy read that I would recommend.

I am feeling much better today and am looking forward to a busy week with the boys birthday party this weekend!

I am going to have a nephew!

I am excited to report that I am going to be an aunt to a happy, healthy, active nephew! Lauren's ultrasound went great and the doctor says everything looks normal. He moved around a lot during the ultrasound which made Lauren think that he was going to be like Matthew!

Lauren is a great aunt to my boys so I know she will be a great boy mama! Matthew and Thomas are so excited. Matthew has already said that he wants to teach him how to exercise! If anyone can teach him how to move, it's Matthew! Thanks to everyone for your prayers on my nephew's behalf. I can't wait to meet him!

A break from cleaning

I am taking a few minutes break from cleaning to blog. Bryon took the day off from work since the courts are closed and we are using it to organize and clean the inside and outside of our house. The house is showing signs of neglect due to weeks of weekends full of soccer games and Baylor football!

In the next hour or two, we will hear about Lauren's baby. I can't imagine anything is wrong so until I hear otherwise, I am going to think positively. I can't wait to know what he/she is! Lauren is tough competition, but I think I am going to be the worlds most doting aunt! I can't wait to give Lauren a run for her money!

Matthew's soccer season ended last night. I am always so excited to start the season and always ready for it to end! This will be our last year to play in this league. He will be in the big city league next year. We will still be around the smaller league next year, though, when Thomas starts playing! How are we going to do both? I guess we will figure that out next year!

Well, back to scrubbing toilets. Have a great weekend!

My confident Mama's boy

While my younger two kids would prefer to be with Bryon over anyone in the world, Matthew is a bona fide Mama's boy. I find this to be quite interesting because he, too, was a Daddy's boy up until he turned three.

Anytime Bryon leaves to run an errand, Thomas superglues himself to Bryon's leg and ME holds out both of her hands, shakes with intensity, squealing for "Dada"!

Last night was fairly typical. Bryon got home and decided to go to the movie store for a rental. The younger two were in the car and Matthew came out to say goodbye.

"Please go with us Matthew! I want to spend time with all three of my kids."

"No thanks, I want to keep Mom company."

"Come on, Matthew. We will just be gone 20 minutes."

"I would rather stay home and give Mom the best 20 minutes of her life."

Bryon and I busted out laughing. You just can't argue with that!

At least we are raising a boy with confidence!

A prayer request

I got the news today that my sister, Lauren's, alpha fetal protein levels were low. This could be a sign of down syndrome. I have known several people who have had this test and it was a false positive. Apparently 60% of the time it is. If you have any words of encouragement for her, please drop her a comment.

She will have an ultrasound done on Friday and we will know for sure if my niece/nephew is healthy or not. And whether it is a niece or nephew!

Please pray!

Happy anniversary!

Today is our 10 year engagemaversary! No, we don't celebrate it every year, but 10 years is a nice time to reflect on the night.

This night marked the end of the 5 most magical months of my life. The last 10 years have been wonderful as well, but there is nothing as magical as first falling in love! During those 5 months, I also went to Europe for 5 weeks and moved in with my best friend.

Bryon, who is horrible about keeping secrets, had already told me that it would be between Harding Homecoming and Thanksgiving. We had something planned every weekend between those two dates so I kept wondering when it would happen.

Saturday, November 4, 1995, Bryon was a groomsmen in his friend, Shawn's wedding. We spent most of the day in Dallas, and then it was time to go home. Bryon asked me where I would like to eat dinner, and I told him I really didn't care. I was tired from the day and would have been happy ordering pizza in my apartment!

He told me to get dressed because he was taking me to Waterworks. This was my favorite restaurant at the time which has since shut down. They had great steaks and seafood. This is also where we had our official first date. We were going there to celebrate the news that Bryon had passed the bar exam which he found out about on the 3rd and to celebrate 5 months of being a couple.

When he picked me up, he drove me to the law school. He parked the car and gave me a rose and said how thankful he was that he had decided to go to Baylor Law School because he met me. How romantic, I thought! NO CLUE what he was doing!

Then he drove me back to my apartment complex and gave me another rose. He said he loved my apartment because we had spent a lot of time talking and getting to know each other there. This is where I cooked for Bryon for the first time (Actually, my mother had cooked everything and brought it over to make it look like I had made it!) and where we kissed for the first time.

Then he drove out to my parents house. There he gave me another rose. We sat in the car and he told me how much he enjoyed getting to know my family. How much he enjoyed Dad being our Sunday school teacher and he looked forward to my family eventually becoming his family.

Then he drove me to church. He gave me another rose and said how happy he was that he decided to go to our church. That is where we met and the reason we got together. This is where he had asked me to lunch 5 months before that started our relationship.

At this point, I still had no clue. I figured he was giving me 5 roses for the 5 months we had been dating which was very romantic and fairly common for Bryon back in the day. I tried to guess where the last place would be.

Then we pulled up to Waterworks and he gave me the last rose. He said this is where our first official date was and where he had fallen in love with me.

Well, we went inside and enjoyed a nice dinner. At one point, I told Bryon I would like to look at dishes sometime soon, and he said that he really didn't want to think about dishes until after we were engaged. Any hope I had that this was the night were dashed.

After dinner, the waiter brought me one dozen white roses that Bryon had brought over while I was getting ready for our date. After the waiter left, Bryon got up, got down on his knees and asked me to marry him! I would love to tell you what he said, but I was in such shock that I have no idea!

What a night! What a relief! Weeks of anticipation had led to this point. Turns out Bryon was just waiting on his bar results because he didn't want to get married until his future was secure. We decided that night that August 3rd, 9 months later would be THE DATE.

Happy Engagemaversary, Honey!

The morning after

Well, I am feeling much better this morning. Yesterday, I was diagnosed with strep throat and, childbirth notwithstanding, I can say that I hadn't felt that bad in years and years.

Trying to take care of a 3 1/2 year old and 14 month old when I saw black spots everytime I stood up was scary. Thomas, bless his heart, was such a great helper! He would bring me the things I needed and moved Mary Beth when she was in harms way.

Two miracle drugs helped me on my road to recovery. Penicillin and Lipton noodle soup in the box. I always prefer the homemade version of everything, but something about the soup when I am sick always cures what ails me!

The afternoon wasn't too bad. ME took the longest nap of her life (3 1/2 hours) and Thomas had a movie marathon! I was able to get an hour nap which was helpful. Bryon came home around 4 to watch the kids so I could rest. He took them out as soon as he got home and other than dropping off the soup, I didn't see him until after church which ended at 8! Bless that man!

I am feeling much better today despite the fact that I can hardly move the leg that my penicillin shot went into. Those things hurt!

Say Cheese!

What a ham!

A visitation, a recital, and memorable Halloween memory

Yesterday was a strange day as you can imagine. I spent most of the day hugging my kids. A cold front moved in with tornado warnings and the atmosphere really fit my mood...cold and dreary.

A few things I am reminded of after the death of a friend's husband. We only are promised this moment. Live each moment like it was your last. Don't spend so much time worried about petty things.

After I dropped off the carpool, I ran home and got Matthew dressed in his costume for his first recital. All of the children and instructors from the Baylor piano program were to be in costume. We then raced over to Baylor to watch the recital. I had a few minutes between Matthew's individual lesson and the recital so I took the younger two to the Chilis and Starbucks parking garage on campus. Of course they had nothing like this when I was there! It was my first time in there and I stuck out like a sore thumb with two children in tow.

Off to the recital. Thomas, ME, and I had to walk quite a ways. Looking around the Baylor campus, I was reminded of my time there. So many fun memories. I also couldn't help to think of Jen. So much of her life revolves around Baylor.

Matthew's recital was a hoot. He was asked to make up a composition that reminded him of his costume. Seeing how he was a cop, he played the keys up and down several times to sound like a police siren. He played his pieces perfectly and insisted on doing it with his handcuffs on!

When we got home, Bryon was waiting for me. He came home early to help with trick or treating so I could go to the visitation. We got the kids all dressed up and out the door. Time for the visitation.

I got there 10 minutes after the doors open and the line was already wrapped around the corner. In the line were mostly college students as well as a who's who of Baylor 10 years ago. It was so nice seeing people I hadn't seen in 10 years although quite akward under the circumstances.

After standing in line an hour, Jen's best friend came through and showed me where Jen was. I wasn't interested in seeing Kyle's body, I just wanted to give Jen a hug. She looked so frail and helpless and my heart ached for her. Hard to describe the scene so I think I won't even attempt to.

I went to my parents to meet up with Bryon and the kids. We were laughing thinking back to Halloween 10 years ago. I was at Baylor and Bryon was in Temple. He called to say he was on his way to pick me up. This should normally take 30 minutes. He didn't show up for a hour and a half! I was so mad/relieved when I saw him!

I found out later that he had asked my parents to marry me. He would start on his prepared statement and then, "Ding Dong! Trick or Treat!" It took him a while to say what he had to say with the interruptions!

When I was reunited with my little family last night, I just looked at all of them and thanked God for them. I only have this moment. I am going to savor it.

Horrible news

My heart is so heavy as I write this. I was just informed that a friend of mine's husband, Kyle Lake, was electrocuted and died while performing a baptism University Baptist church in Waco this morning. Here is the Drudge Report article on it. The church was packed with people who were there for Baylor homecoming. He reached for a microphone and something went horribly wrong. My friend was there to watch her husband die.

My friend, Jen, went to undergrad and graduate school with me. She took over my job when Matthew was born. As soon as she took it over, she became pregnant. We both joked that something was wrong with the seat at our desk. She had her beautiful daughter 5 years ago and twin boys who are 3. Matthew and Avery, their daughter, became friends at Mother's Day Out this summer because they both wore glasses.

I remember sitting with her the week after she got engaged. She told us all the sweet things Kyle had done to propose. I remember her calling me the day she found out that she was having twins. "Twins! Kyle and I thought we would have 2...maybe 3...I guess we are done!"

I am so angry about it. Why did this have to happen to a vibrant young preacher? Why did it happen when he was baptizing someone? Why did Jen have to witness it? Why is Jen a widow at 30? Why do her children have to live without their Daddy?

I am so angry and sad. Please keep Jen and her precious children in your prayers.

Happy Friday!

Another week bites the dust. I am ready for this weekend!

Bryon had to work a lot this week. He was out of the office most of last week and then came back and immediately was in trial all of this week. He has been putting in a lot of extra hours to make up for being out for almost two weeks!

The end of my P.T.A. campaign is today! We have been able to add over 100 books to our school library with this program. Last night, was open house at school and I wanted parents to see their children (and nonparticipating parents to feel guilty !;) so I hurriedly put up over 80 matted pictures of the participating children in a library display yesterday! What a task!

Open house was a lot of fun last night. It was great taking a peak into Matthew's new world. He showed us all the work he had done in his class as well as Music, P.E., computer, and Art. His P.E. teacher laughed with us about Matthew's booming voice. We don't call him the Voice of Moses for nothing! He was so funny walking down the halls like he owned the place, waving at all of his newfound friends.

In other news:
Little ME has made us laugh so often lately. She is developing quite a fun personality. Her Mother's Day Out teachers say she is very easy but definitely has her opinions! She has a very expressive face. When she is unhappy or looking at a person that doesn't agree with her, she has a huge scowl on her face. I will say, "Now, Mary Elizabeth! Put a smile on your face!" She INSTANTLY puts on the cheesiest, nose-scrunching, smile you have ever seen! She is quite the ham!

She is also saying more words. She says cookie, coke, baby, mama, dada, bear, moo! (for cow) nana, and deedah.

Just finished another Trunk or Treat!

Every Wednesday night before Halloween, we have Trunk or Treat at church. We eat dinner together and let the kids go car to car in search of goodies. The kids enjoy seeing their friends and the older members of the congregation get a chance to see all the children as well.

Every year, we try to get a picture of all the kids. This year proved to be the hardest!


We had a few "almosts" so I guess that is going to have to do this year!

Halloweens of the past

Tonight is Trunk or Treat at church. I will have many more pictures to add tonight!

Book news

I don't have a whole lot to report right now. I will tell you that I read And The Shofar Blew this weekend and I thought it was great. Francine Rivers is an incredible Christian fiction author. The book was about a young pastor and his wife. The pastor begins becoming more concerned with pleasing his flock than pleasing God. It was very interesting. I needed a good book after the last fiasco!

I made it!

Huge sigh of relief! Bryon has been gone since Wednesday at a conference in Arizona and is now home. Since Wednesday, we have had two soccer games, Fall Festival at Matthew's school, and Walk for Juvenile Diabetes this morning! I wish the powers that be would have consulted me before scheduling their conference at such a busy time!

Most of the past few days has gone well. Today has been a little hard since we had to be at the Walk early and then go straight to a soccer game. I think the kids are worn out and ready to see their Daddy. My mother, who is normally a tremendous help to me when Bryon is away, has been in Seattle the whole time Bryon was gone. My sister and Dad have stepped in to help.

This morning was the annual Walk for Juvenile Diabetes. SG and I are good friends with someone whose daughter was diagnosed at 11 months with the horrible disease. Our friend started the Walk 5 years ago and we love going. I spent quite a while answering Matthew's questions about diabetes while Thomas listened. I explained that the walk was a way to raise money so doctors can find a way to kill the disease so A.K. wouldn't have to get shots every day.

After the Walk this morning, Thomas asked me if we "got" the disease. He was thinking that we were walking to find diabetes! After we walked he started jumping up and down squealing, "We got diabetes! Now A.K. doesn't have to have shots everyday!" It was such a sweet, innocent statement from a child who has never had to suffer before. It brought tears to my eyes seeing him so excited that we had helped our friend. If only it was that simple.

We watched the Alabama game as a family today and enjoyed (or suffered through?) a nail biter! Bryon just took the kids out to get a toy and to eat dinner so I could have a little peace. God bless him!

In book news:

I absolutely love to read. It ranks right there with scrapbooking and cooking as my favorite pastime. I finally joined a book club that one of my good friends is a part of last month. Our first book was The Kite Runner. I can say that I appreciated it more than I loved it. It was an easy read and it really opened my eyes to the plight of those living in the Middle East. It made me think that people living there were suffering human beings and not all American-hating terrorists. I would recommend it if you are in the mood for something deeper than Mary Higgins Clark but not as difficult as Faulkner.

As you can see from the right hand margin, I am currently reading Julie and Julia. I hate it. I am about 1/4 of the way through and am thinking of abandoning it. What I had read about it was that it was based on a blogger who went through the entire Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child. Sounds interesting to a reader who love to cook, right?

Actually, the author loves to use the "s" and "f" words constantly and compares many of the cooking methods to what I consider inappropriate subjects. I keep skimming through trying to find chapters where she actually talks about cooking. Still having trouble with that one! The author was on the Martha show this week and it was very obvious that Martha didn't like her. She never laughed at her jokes and hardly looked at her. I DEFINITELY DON'T RECOMMEND IT!

Now, I am going to either finish the last few stories in the Chronicles of Narnia, read my next Rebus book, by Ian Rankin, read Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas (given to me by a friend) or Gilead, my next book for book club. I will keep you posted!

Question: Does anyone have a book that they highly recommend? One that they couldn't put down? It doesn't have to be something you recently read. If I had to choose my favorite books that I have read in the past 10 years, I would say Redeeming Love and The Mark of the Lion series by Francine Rivers. I couldn't recommend them more highly!

My son, Matthewouaeilsuoooupqai

I have just been made aware a way in which I have failed Matthew. I went up to his school to read to his class and Mrs. B pulled me aside and showed me several of Matthew's recent papers. Apparently, Matthew isn't happy that his name only has two vowels in it. "Mary Elizabeth has 6 vowels in her name, I only have 2!" Oh, the injustice!

He is now signing his name like such:

Matthewllaeiyellowuaaiiiopsyy
or
Matthewooooptsuulsaeiou
or
any other combination of letters that makes him have way more vowels in his name than the other kids!

Perhaps I should have looked up names with the most vowels when we were naming him? I can see it now:

Catagories for Baby Naming
Most popular
Fitting in and Standing Out
Biblical Names
Most Vowels

Mrs. B had a great laugh over this one! She said, never fear, she always know which paper is his!

Poor Matthew!

The next two weeks are going to be extremely busy with PTA stuff. I was planning on doing a lot of running around today in preparation for the next few weeks. That all came to a screeching halt this morning when Matthew woke up unable to put any pressure on his left leg.

I knew that no trauma had occurred since I was with him last night but I also knew that he wasn't faking it so I called the dr. They were able to fit him in if I could leave my house in 20 minutes. The kids and I weren't dressed yet and the younger two's bags weren't packed for MDO. Miraculously, we made it in time.

After a visit and x-rays (which in total took almost 3 hours) it was determined that more than likely, Matthew had had a virus recently and it attacked the bursa behind Matthew's knee cap. One of my good friend's husband read the x-ray and took us back to show Matthew his leg. He was fascinated! So, my plans came to a screeching halt and I spent the rest of the day babying Matthew!

I was able to do quite a bit of work at the house and having just Matthew home was a fun reminder of how it used to be!

A bit of Thomas's toddlerhood comes to a close

Last week, I took Thomas to the dentist. He has been a thumbsucker his entire life and has the teeth to prove it! I asked the dentist when he should stop sucking his thumb. He told me if he stopped now, there would probably be no permanent damage to his jaw.

Thomas and I have been discussing the fact that when he turned four, it was time to stop sucking his thumb. He seemed OK with that. However, when we were leaving the office, Thomas said, "I won't suck my thumb anymore." I asked him if he really wanted to stop now or wait until he was 4. He was adamant that this was the day to stop! He hasn't put his thumb in his mouth since last Wednesday! Not even at night!

"Deedah says thumbsucking is for babies and I am not a baby!" I asked him what he wanted his prize to be if he stopped sucking his thumb. He wanted my Dad to take him to get a coloring book. I think we can accomodate!

I am happy that this little habit is ending, but it also makes me sad. Thomas is getting so tall and is losing the baby look. This is just one more step toward growing up!

Catching up

Thank you, thank you to all who responded to my last post. I completely enjoyed reading all of your comments, especially those who commented for the first time.

And now to catch up on the last few days:
Wednesday, I finally decided to attend a continuing education course in Dallas. My future sister-in-law was going to be there and I thought it would be a great opportunity to get to know her better while earning continuing ed. hours. I usually wait until the last minute to do it so it was nice to get most of it out of the way. Bryon was able to take of for the afternoon so I spent much of the day arranging childcare in the morning for the younger two.

Thursday-Matthew had a soccer game. I am so proud of his budding athletic abilities! He scored the 4 and only points for his team during the game! Everytime he scored, he would scan the crowd looking for me and give me a big thumbs up. What a great feeling!

Matthew's soccer league this year is sponsored by the small suburb we live in and it is very non-competetive. Phrases like, "Everyone's a winner!" "No need to keep score!" "The point is having fun!" are heard throughout the park. This is all fine a well, except if you are as competitive as Matthew! He keeps a running score in his head and can still tell you how many points he scored last year.

Another neat thing about the league is they always pray before each game. Everyone gathers at midfield and kneels down. Matthew always begs to be the "prayer." During the first game, he prayed that the other team wouldn't be too upset when his team beat them badly! I am proud of his competetive spirit, but we are trying to tone it down a bit!

After the game, I quickly drove home to exchange cars and head to Dallas. I never leave the kids but for a few hours so they were fairly traumatized. Thomas came up to me with huge tears hanging over the edge of his lower lids. He said, very articulately, "You can't leave me, Mommy, because I will miss you so much!" Talk about ripping my heart out!

I drove to Dallas completely enjoying myself. No screaming in the back. Listening to my own music. Stopping if I chose to. I drove straight to Michael's soccer game. Michael, my brother, plays in an indoor soccer league. After watching Matthew's games for so long, I wasn't used to the face-paced, intense game I was watching. I had fun chatting with Jilinda and meeting a blog friend, Tiffany!

Today, Jilinda and I attended the continuing ed. course which was about cochlear implants and auditory-verbal therapy. Since most of my experience was with the elderly stroke population, I enjoyed learning about a brand new topic. I also enjoyed sneaking in some shopping during breaks!

Tonight, we ate at a fabulous hole in the wall restaurant in downtown Dallas. I always enjoy a great meal, and I was very excited that is was time to go home. I made it back home in record time and was able to put the kids to bed. They were completely worn out by Bryon's schedule. He took all three kids to the movie and ran lots of errands. I would NEVER take all three kids to the movies! He is definitely the fun parent around here! One funny story he told me was that he took them all to Starbucks and bought the boys apple juice. Matthew took one sip and asked if he had a Java Chip Frappuccino or a Tazo Chai Tea. Bryon asked me just how often I go to Starbucks!

Who are you and why are you here?

Oh, I am totally blog-lifting from SG and DJG. I am also curious at who visits my site. How did you stumble upon it? Why do you keep coming back? I would love to know!

Redneck Prom Queen and King

Here we are as Redneck Prom Queen and King 2 1/2 weeks before Matthew was born! 

Firsts and Lasts

I was tagged by MDM. Here it goes!

First Memory:
Getting a black eye when I ran into a friend of mine after my brother was born.

First Kiss:
Clay Johnson. I was 15 he was 16

First Concert:
Milli Vanilli (Yeah baby!) on my 15th b-day. Young MC and Seduction opened for them.

First Love:
Mike-my boyfriend from Senior year of high school to sophomore year of college.

First lust: Chris Redmond, freshman year of high school

First thing you think in the morning:
Is it Saturday yet?

First book you remember loving:
Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing

First pet: Smokey the cat.

First question you'll ask in Heaven:
Where's my mansion?

First thing you think of when you hear the word vacation:
Cape Cod. Spending time with Bryon. Relaxing!

First best friend:
Andrea Brewster

Last time you dressed up:
church this Sunday

Last thing you ate:
Life Cereal

Last CD you bought:
Music Machine (for the kids)
Coldplay

Last time you cried:
Watching ME's first year picture slideshow

Last time you told someone you loved them:
This morning when Bryon and Matthew went to work/school

Last really fun thing you did:
Took the boys bowling on Sunday night

Last thing you watched on TV:
The Barefoot Contessa/The Office/CSI:Miami. I was catching up on TiVo last night!

Last Halloween costume:
Last year, Bryon and I dressed up like tourists. The time before that, I was 8 months pregnant with Matthew and Bryon and I dressed like white trash prom dates! (I was pregnant, get it?) I dressed in a body hugging dress and Bryon wore a cowboy hat and painted his teeth yellow!

Last Concert attended:
Amy Grant/Vince Gill in January

Now for the fun part...I tag the following
Jenni
SG
DJG
TL
Lauren
Meredith

A day at the farm followed by a night of insomnia

CHECK OUT OUR PICTURES FROM THE WEEKEND UNDER "PICTURES" IN THE RIGHT COLUMN!
Bryon had business in Conroe today, so we decided to make a family trip out of it. Yesterday after church, we hopped in our truck and drove to Bryon's Aunt Bernie's farm for her birthday party. Aunt Bernie was more like a grandmother to Bryon than a great aunt. She is quite a character! She is 84 years old. Still runs her 40 plus acre farm. Still feeds/breeds cattle, takes care of her house and her sister who lives next door. Her face shows every bit of her 84 years of outdoor work, but she has the body of someone 20 years younger. I told her how impressed I was at how she kept everything running. "Use it or lose it!" she said very energetically. I think we could all learn a thing or two from Aunt Bernie!

We spent most of the day at her farm eating bbq and cake, feeding the cows, going down to the tank to watch the frogs jumping around, and picking and eating pecans. A boys paradise!

Then we headed for Conroe. We ate at a neat pizza/game place. They have a kids bowling area and Thomas just loves to bowl! Everytime we go, he wants to bowl. He winds up, watches the ball slowly lumber down the alley and when a pin or two falls down, he screams at the top of his lungs, "Yes! Yes!" Definitely worth every penny to see that!

We ended up getting back to Bryon's parent's house pretty late. The boys went right to bed, but ME kept crying. She hates to sleep anywhere other than her crib. This could be why I haven't spent a night away from her in her 14 month life! Anyway, we get her out of the crib but don't get her down until after 11 p.m! I am very strict about bed time so this had me a little stressed out! Well, she wakes up screaming bloody murder at 3:30 in the morning and NEVER WENT BACK TO SLEEP! She didn't even take a nap today until 11 in the morning. Bryon and I were walking zombies today.

Bryon's depositions were supposed to go until 1:30 this afternoon but ended going most of the day. We didn't get back home until after 8. Better to unpack and get ready for our short week!

Friday

Well, I believe this is the longest I have gone without posting since I began in January! The reason for this is that the middle and end of the week played out much like the first part of the week. If it wasn't P.T.A. stuff, ME waking up several times a night just wanting to be held and not taking no for an answer, making food for people, dr.'s, dentists, visiting dear friend in hospital after her baby was born, grocery store runs, and trying to be just plain Mom throughout it all.

I feel very weary and overcommitted. Bryon is very busy at work as well, so we feel like we are running on empty. I made a promise to Bryon that next week, all activities would be greatly pared down. The only "hat" I want to wear next week is "Mom" and "Wife". Those two jobs take up so much space already without all the other stuff in the mix.

Bryon and I are sitting down tonight to decide where we will take our romantic weekend next month. It seems like every November we try to get away for awhile. Scheduling that between soccer games and all the rest of the Fall activites always proves to be a challenge, but it is my favorite month and I want to spend a little of it alone with Bryon!

We usually go to our favorite bed and breakfast down in Gruene. I love this place so much and hate to go somewhere else, but it might be nice to branch out a little. Who knows?

As I write, I am looking out at an overcast, windy morning. Leaves have started falling off our trees and I broke out the sweatshirt this morning. While running my errands this morning, I noticed pumpkins on porches and it made me smile. My soul feels at home in the Fall and I am trying to drink it all in while it lasts instead of letting it fall through my fingers while on the way to my next errand.

Have a great weekend!

A little relief

I am sitting here on Tuesday night very relieved that yesterday and today are over. The middle of Monday straight through to Tuesday night is the busiest time of the week and I am usually exhausted by the time it is over! Just a sampling:

Yesterday
2:30- Run by the scrapbook store to get a few needed items
3:00-3:10-Race over to school to pick up carpool
3:10-3:30-Drop off carpool friend and run by house to get a snack for Matthew
3:30-4:00-Run over to Baylor to drop Matthew at music
4:00-5:00-Cook dinner
5:00-6:00-Shove food in kids faces, get them ready for game, get Matthew soccer gear ready.
6:00-7:30-Soccer game!
7:30-8:00-Run home with Bryon in separate cars, drop off B's car, take kids to get ice cream b/c Matthew played his heart out, drive over to church to pick up my car which was left there on Sunday, drive home in separate cars.
8:00-8:30-Get ready for bed.
8:30-Kids are in bed. Time to get lunches and bags packed for MDO in the morning. Maid is coming in the morning. Clean house for maid.
10:00-In bed!

Today
5:45-Get up, take shower, get ready. Continue cleaning for maid.
7:00-Wake up kids. Get Matthew ready for school
7:40-Out the door dropping off Matthew
8:00-Home again. Get other two ready for MDO. Finish bags.
9:15-Maid is here, drop off kids at MDO.
9:30-Go to hospital to visit my grandmother who just had surgery
10:15-Go to Target to buy Thomas's friend a gift.
10:45-Run to Birthday party store looking for ideas on the boys' upcoming party
11:00-Dentist (Long overdue)
12:00-Grab quick bite to eat.
12:15-Home to get a few things done before picking up kids.
1:00-Up to Matthew's school working on P.T.A. fundraiser and chat with Matthew's teacher.
1:30-Back at scrapbook store to get a few things to work on tonight.
2:30-Pick up Thomas and ME.
3:10-Pick up carpool
3:30-Drop off carpool and grab quick snack for Matthew
3:45-Doctor visit for Matthew (allergies)
5:00-Home getting dinner ready
7:00-Getting kids ready for bed.
7:30-In Bed!
7:30- Finally a chance to breathe and watch a few shows on TV while scrapbooking!

I hate so much busyness. Somehow, the brunt of it falls in this 24 hours! Thankfully, Matthew's soccer games will mostly be on other days of the week. Looking forward to a very boring morning tomorrow!

Matthew's New Camera Face

How many perfectly good pictures will be ruined before he is over this stage?

Weekend at a glance

My date with roomie
Bryon's date with the kids
Catching up on TiVo'ed shows
Scrapbooking
Blueberry waffles
Soccer practice
Cleaning house
Baylor vs. Aggies
Bama vs. Florida
Bryon and Matthew's movie date
Thomas and my trip to a ranch for
friend's B'day party
Bryon/ME/Matthew date to Panera while
Thomas and I were "partying".
Church
Long nap!!

Dinner with friends

Sunday drive
Gearing up for P.T.A. fundraiser

A busy but fun weekend!

Tale of Two Nights on the City

Last night was an unusual Friday night. Generally, we go out with my whole family to a family friendly restaurant and then to Barnes and Noble. Last night, I went out with my college roommate and Bryon took the kids on a date.

Earlier this week, I called my roommate out of the blue. She and I live in the same town and were always great about getting together until she added her second child and I added my third. We hadn't seen much of each other this year and we decided that we should do it soon.

Here was the progression of our talk:

"Let's get together with the kids."
"Actually, let's get together without the kids while they are in MDO."
"Actually, why don't we go out on the weekend so we can go to dinner and a movie!"

I don't have to tell you which one we voted for! Since it had been so long since we got together, we opted for Friday night.

Bryon was happy with this. He loves spending time with the 5 of us, but I think he secretely loves having alone time with the kids. He had been planning their date for days!

Lisa and I went to out to dinner and we caught up quickly with what the other one was doing. Her oldest is a girl who is Thomas's age and her youngest is a boy who is ME's age. We had good laughs about what I should expect from a little girl (Supposedly I need to brace for whines and drama). And what she should expect from a little boy. (Batten down the hatches!)

In the meantime, Bryon took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese's. They ate pizza and played games. Apparently ME enjoyed herself and Bryon took pictures of her with her arm over the seat driving with Thomas.

Lisa and I then went to Barnes and Noble to partake in "Happiness in a Cup". This is the moniker my friends and I have given to our beloved Chai Latte. When we were driving to B&N, I asked Lisa what she liked to drink. She said, "Well, there is this incredible drink that I love from there. It's called Chai...." "Happiness in a Cup!" I said! No wonder were such good friends! We laughed so hard at the store that I am sure we disturbed a few people around us. We also saw a mutual friend of ours who was spending time with her old college roommate. L and I decided we needed to do this much more often!

Then Bryon took the kids to Toys R Us to pick out one toy each. ME got a new cell phone and the boys have matching Darth Vader costumes. Bryon said they went down the doll aisle and ME kept pointing and saying, "Doh! Doh!"

Finally, Lisa and I went to the movies to watch the Reese Witherspoon movie that I can't remember the name of at the moment. Heaven something. A cute ultralight chick flick.

Bryon and the boys rounded out their evening by going to Putt Putt. Bryon held ME while the boys "played" golf.

Matthew asked Bryon if they could have more boys dates as long as ME came along. I asked Bryon if I could have more girlfriend dates! Maybe we can accomplish both!

Fall's Here!!

I woke up yesterday morning in utter glee as I looked outside at overcast/blustery conditions! I jumped out of bed and went into my backyard for a while to take in the change of weather. It was in the 60s. This is my very favorite weather (maybe 10-20 degrees cooler, but I'm not complaining!) I immediately went inside and made a loaf of pumpkin coconut bread. The smells, the sights of fall....I'm in heaven!

After I dropped Thomas off at MDO this morning, I ended up spending most of the day with my friend, Ashley. She is due to have her baby anyday now, so it was good for us to just go out and not do chores! We had originally planned to go visit a model home, but wound up looking at several model homes, visiting a friend who had just had surgery (who I baked the bread for), going out to lunch, and getting her tires rotated! She is a dear friend of mine, and it was good to visit for that long without the kids (except our tagalong, little ME Lou!).

Yesterday afternoon, I had a nice visit with the girl I am carpooling with. Two weeks ago, I was talking to a friend at the ball fields and her friend was also in the conversation. We introduced ourselves and it turns out, we went to Baylor together, lived one apartment over from her, are exactly a week apart in age, have our first children going to kindergarten this year, live in the same neighborhood, our houses were built by the same builder and they are the same floorplan, and were desparate to find a carpooling buddy so our younger children could take a long nap at least some of the time! We started this week and I have really enjoyed getting to know her.

We were both commenting on how our friend/acquaintance circle has grown so much as we are slowly being forced out of our homes with little ones and greeting the outside world! I do miss the times where I was home all day with the kids. No schedule, sleeping in, no school to tie us down. I do enjoy getting to know new people and as Matthew and I both have made new friends and new routines.

Last night, I made chicken with herb dumplings. Bryon came home in time for dinner, and the five of us sat around our table, eating Fall food and looking at the overcast sky, and I just smiled! Tomorrow starts my three favorite months of the year and I couldn't be more ready!

My geography whiz

We have had a high pressure system sitting right above our neck of the woods which has made it seem more like August then almost October. Monday, it was actually 108 degrees which was the highest recording of any city in the United States!

Tonight, Matthew was talking to my Dad about how we needed to move to somewhere cooler. He said, "It's easy Deedah. All we need to do is go up 1-35 through Oklahoma, then Kansas, then Nebraska, then South Dakota, and then North Dakota. Then we will be in Canada where it is much cooler!"

I guess it was a good idea buying him the States puzzle!

Parents F.Y.I.

JUST BECAUSE YOUR CHILDREN HAD THE CHICKEN POX VACCINATION DOES NOT MEAN THEY WON'T GET CHICKEN POX!

Strangely enough, Matthew had the chickenpox over the weekend. He had a fever on Saturday and had about 10 little "bites" on his body. He complained that his legs hurt and actually threw up on Saturday night. He plays a lot outside and so I figured that he had gotten into some chiggers. At the most, they looked like little spider bites. It didn't occur to me that it might be chicken pox b/c he had the vaccine!

I kept him home from church on Sunday, but he felt fine on Monday morning so I took him to school. Monday after school, Matthew had a note in his folder that said one of his classmates had chicken pox. I was curious to let the nurse at school see him, so yesterday he went by and the nurse confirmed that he probably had chicken pox. They were scabbed over so he wasn't contagious. I assured her that they were scabbed over on Monday as well!

She said that although all the kids in school had the vaccine, you can still get a light case of them. You are just out for a few days rather than a few weeks. Six cases have already been reported at Matthew's school this year alone! I went by his class this morning and 6 more kids were out. I have a call into the doctor to let me know if ME has had her vaccination. I can't remember!

The funny thing was, was that several weeks ago, Matthew and Thomas decided to put "chicken pops" all over their body with magic marker. I guess they willed it to happen!

Midway Reads

Last night was lots of fun. Every other year or so, our school district holds an event called "Midway Reads". Every student (K-8) in the district is encouraged to buy the chosen book and pick it up at the Mayborn Museum. The museum is one of my very favorite things in Waco. It used to be a small discovery center downtown but has moved into a huge building over by Baylor. It is the best children's museum I have been to and encourage anyone with children to come down (or up) and check it out! The book this year is The Kid Who Named Pluto. It is all about children who made scientific discoveries.

After we picked up the book, Matthew picked up his scavenger hunt list. All the children had grade appropriate lists and were all walking around the museum getting stamped for found items. It was a good chance for all the kids to run around the museum and see all their friends and teachers. Matthew is still amazed when we see one of his teachers (music, p.e., computer lab, librarian) when they aren't in school Shouldn't they always be in school?

At the end of the hunt, the boys got their faces painted by Midway cheerleaders. I glanced up at one of them and recognized her. She was the niece of one of my best friends in high school. She was born the night of one of our high school dances. Now she is a high school cheerleader! Where does the time go?

Rita and Mary Beth

I had a great weekend! I am grateful that Hurricane Rita did not cause extensive damage or loss of life. I was very much looking forward to the thunderstorms that were predicted here and we didn't have so much of a drop of rain! Just lots of wind. I felt like I was back in Abilene. I bet all of those people who stood in line getting water, batteries, bread, and generators feel a little silly.

We had a lot of fun with Mary Beth this weekend. Her little personality is showing itself more and more every day. Here are a few things that make her special to us:

She is happy a majority of the time. Loves to be in the center of the action. Nothing makes her happier than her brothers doting on her. She squeals with delight when they walk in. She happily goes to strangers and never cries when it is time for bible class. Last week in church, she kept leaning over to kiss the amused man sitting next to us!

She HATES being told "no"! Even if it doesn't refer to her, if she hears the word no she balls up her face and says, "Ooooooooooh!" Then we distract her and she is happy again. Methinks we have an emotional female on our hands!

She is a Daddy's girl. The other night, Bryon was holding her and I took her from him. She ball up her fists, then pointed to Bryon, and squealed, "OOOOOOHHHHHH. Dada!" Hey, I can take a hint!

She loves to flirt. She will cock her head to the side and say, "Babababa" in a soft melodic tone and use flirty eyes to get what she wants. She was doing this tonight with Bryon because she wanted his ice cream.

She is very, very, very active! I have caught her climbing up on the upper rim of my tub, climbing up our chairs, crawling over to whoever has the food. My mother says that this aspect of her personality is a lot like mine as a baby. Very happy, interactive with others, and very busy! I guess we could attribute that to us both being Leo's!

She loves her baby dolls. Instinctively, she will hug them, kiss them, and rock them. This is so interesting to me, of course, because my only experience thus far has been with two boys who would just as soon take dolls heads off or throw them up into the ceiling fan! She is affectionate with her dolls but with her family as well. She loves kissing and laying her head on our shoulders.

I love how each of my children are so different. Each has strengths. Each has "thorns in the flesh". I look forward to watching how each of their personalities develop over the years!

Meeting Deana

I enjoyed meeting Deana today. I went to our friend, Carol's house, and we were all able to visit for a while. Turns out, we went to the same girl scout camp in Sweetwater, TX! What a small world! I was happy to hear that the area where she lives was spared the brunt of Rita. It is nice being able to put a blog with a face!

Its his fault

I have just about decided to stop watching the news. I get so angry at the media trying to assign blame for everything. Here is a sampling of what I have heard both three weeks ago and the last few days:

Katrina:
"Why hasn't the federal government been faster in their response?"
"Why did the evacuation order not go out sooner?"
"Why wasn't there more money allocated to the levee system in N.O?"
"If the New Orleans residents weren't mostly black, would Bush have acted sooner?"


Rita:
"Traffic is backed up for miles on I-45. What went wrong?"
"Bush overreacted to the warning signs of Rita. Was it for political gain after the Katrina debacle?"
"FEMA trucks and the Red Cross are standing by to help victims of Rita. Is this because this is a more affluent area?"
"24 elderly people were killed on the highway escaping Rita's wrath as their bus exploded. A full scale investigation is pending."

Can't bad things happen without without rhyme or reason? Must someone be to blame for all the tradegies that come our way?