ByeBye, Baby Smile!

It seems like everything is harder to say goodbye the last time around. Saying goodbye to Mary Beth's baby smile is no exception. Maybe it's because she hung on to it the longest..3 years after Matthew's front teeth came in, and one year longer than Thomas? I think, though, that I realize that nothing changes the way kids look than when their big honker teeth come in. I will miss her sweet, gummy smile, with her tiny little two front teeth, but will embrace her new sweet smile!

6th grade Talent Show

Last week was the 6th grade talent show. Matthew and company did a song called, "What's Up?" and changed the rap lyrics to fit them:

What's up, Midway, What's Up?

Welcome to the 254 Big Campus

Woodway Texas, Parents driving Lexus

And this is where the Panthers play,

And we be called, MIDWAY!

We're from the southwest and we like our fast food

Gettin' our groove

Hello teachers, we have a tip, Can you lay off the hair slip?

And don't forget about the bus ride home,

last time I was on I forgot my iPhone

And much love to Mrs. Holland

And all our peeps know we're beast at ballin'

Hey Mr. Heath, please ring that bell

Taking home all As, nobody here fail

We say, What's Up!, You say, What's up!

Teacher say Giddy UP...U TURN!

One of the moms and I spent two afternoons a week helping these guys learn their lines and moves. This group of boys is so much fun and they love being together. They were the last act of 25 acts and I couldn't help but laugh (and be slightly horrified) and the screaming middle school girls! Gonna be an interesting ride these next 6 years!

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is one of my most favorite family meals of the year! It all started when Matthew was a baby. Bryon and I rarely went out in those days and it seemed like a waste of babysitting money to wait forever at a restaurant on the actual V-day, so we started having a date near Valentine's Day and making a special meal at home on February 14th.

As the kids have gotten older, we enjoy this tradition even more! I usually make spaghetti (red!) and chocolate mousse (chocolate!) for our meal, then go around the table and tell each family member why we love them. What a blessing these four Valentine's of mine are to me!

Upwards 2012

Another fun and exciting season of Upwards is now in the books! This is the last year that Bryon will coach all three. He has been Matthew's coach for 7 years!

There were many highlights, but perhaps my favorite story of all is about Thomas. Thomas has been playing on Bryon's teams since he was 4 years old. He has always been a pretty good player, but he was on fire all season this year! There were four teams in the division, and several weeks ago, he played against a team that lost 34-4. Several kids on the team were teary eyed and deflated since they had only won 1 game in 5. Thomas looked at Bryon and said, "I want to help that team out." It was worked out with the other coach (friend of ours from church) that Thomas would switch with the coach's son for the final three games of the season. He ended up scoring between 10-18 points per game the last three games, some shots from beyond mid court, and his new team won their final 3 games! I was proud of Thomas's athletic accomplishments this season, but more proud of his tender heart and selfless attitude.

Mary Beth also did really well this year. She scored 1-4 baskets every game and loved every minute of it. Bryon ADORED coaching the little girls again. Such a contrast from those competitive boys games!

Matthew had a disappointing season this year. There were only 2 teams in the division, and Matthew's team lost every game! Oh, the agony! Oh, the humility! Matthew was the only 6th grader on his team, and it was pretty painful to watch, but it was always fun watching Matthew play. He has become quite the 3 point specialist and had more 3 point baskets than 2 point baskets this year.

And then there is Bryon! I don't brag on him too much on this blog, but I will say that he is quite the Upwards celebrity. He has a knack balancing encouragement with pushing the kids to do their best. Despite the fact that teams are formed by the computer, he always gets requests to be on his team. I am so proud of him! It took lots of patience, time, and vocal strength to coach all three kids this year (practice from 6-9pm every Thursday after longs days in trial), and he loved every minute of it!

Thomas guarding his best bud, Noah, playing against his original team.

These two teams played against each other every week. Mary Beth is playing on the opposing team in this pic, since they were short handed the last game.
Bryon lets the girls "dunk" in the last half of the last game. Mary Beth got very into it!

Dodgeball Tournament

For the past 8 years, our church has hosted a Dodgeball Tournament to raise funds for the youth group's summer mission trip. Each year, Matthew has counted down the years until he could form his own team. Well, this was the year! Few sports incorporate so many characteristics that Matthew adores....intensity, aggression, pegging people with balls...like dodgeball. If he could major in it in college, I believe he would.

After 4 hours of Upwards basketball last Saturday morning, Bryon stayed at the gym to ref the high school division while I worked the snack bar. A few minutes before it started, Matthew raced over to me to let me know that a high school team was short a player and they had asked Matthew to fill in. He was beaming! My co worker at the snack bar told me to run in and watch him in action. Sure enough, I walked in with Matthew being the sole survivor on his team staring down two large high school boys. The crowd was cheering Matthew on and erupted in applause when Matthew pegged the first guy out. Members of the youth group started shouting, "Dude! You're getting beat by a 6th GRADER!!" It may have been the proudest moment of his life! The remaining high schooler waited until time expired and a tie was called. What a nice warm up!

Then, it was time for the junior high division. There were 13 teams involved with 6th-8th graders. Matthew and crew beat every team but one 8th grade team. They were so much fun to watch and are already planning on getting the team back together for next year. Something tells me these guys will be unstoppable! Bryon's team did great in the adult division later on that night. Last year, they came in 2nd place, and this year lost in the semi finals. After 14 hours of being in our church gym, we were very happy to get home!

1,000th post!

Well, this is officially my 1,000th post!

A little over 7 years ago, I started this blog as a way to connect to the outside world. Looking back on it, I think I can say that I started the blog in one of the most challenging times in my life. I was smack in the middle of my year that all three kids were home before Matthew started kindergarten. Having a 5 year old, 3 year old, and 5 month old at home was challenging for this quiet and solitude loving mama! I quickly found friends around the country who were also bloggers and enjoyed my little escape every day. Getting out of the house with my three babies was more trouble than it was worth many times, so I felt like blogging was the closest thing to socializing.

Well, 7 years later, my life has changed dramatically. Through the invention of the iPhone, I hardly sit down at my computer anymore, and Facebook has more or less replaced blogging as my way of catching up with friends from afar. I am also free during the day, as all the kids are in school, to eat lunch or exercise with friends, so I no longer need my computer to simulate socializing! In fact, I rarely read blogs anymore as I am usually out working or volunteering during the day, and so busy with the kids after 3:30. I view blogging as solely a way to document the kids growing up. I am so grateful to have this outlet to record our fun and busy family life.

My life with toddlers has slowly morphed into life with school aged kids. In a few short years, life will change dramatically again as Bryon and I navigate the waters of raising teenagers! Wow! If I am still blogging in 7 years, I will have one in college and two in high school. What tales will those blogs tell? Stay tuned....

JOY!

Saturday night, the boys were spending the night with friends, so Bryon and I had special time with our girl. We decided to go all out and head to HEB for an evening outing. As we made our way through the check out line, the checker asked Mary Beth if she would like a Buddy Buck. A Buddy Buck used to be what the kids lived for at HEB! Basically, it is a paper that you feed through a machine that spouts out an egg with a sticker in it. Eventually, kids learn that the whole process is a total crock, and never again ask for a Buddy Buck. Well, Mary Beth decided to go to the machine, and wouldn't you know? She was an "Instant Winner"! So, not only did she get to keep a plastic egg, she got to turn in a little paper at the front and get a LARGE PLASTIC HEB PLACE MAT!!!

"Mommy! Daddy! I'm an INSTANT WINNER!! This the the LUCKIEST DAY OF MY LIFE!"

Bryon and I laughed, but then I wanted to freeze time. Her response..such unadulterated joy, was so sweet. How much longer with Mary Beth squeal with delight and such an insignificant gift? Not long enough. It is a reminder to me of how Jesus wanted the children to come to him. A wonderful lesson on a beautiful Saturday night.

Gus vs. Opposum vs. Me

Gus doesn't get enough blog time. Let me first say, that he's the coolest dog ever. We love our Gussy Boo Boo! He is fun and energetic outside, and a lap dog inside. I love his coloring...his marbled eyes and earth tones. Even his toe nails are different colors! Gus is very protective of us, and always alert. This leads me to my great story. But first, a little background...

This summer, a rehab facility that I contract with asked me to either work the week before or after Christmas. I love this facility and am always happy to work there. Knowing how hectic our lives are before Christmas, I let them know that I could work the week after Christmas starting on Tuesday. We were heading to Bryon's parents on Christmas night to celebrate with them, so I needed to have that Monday off. Well, the Baylor bowl game on Thursday night messed up our entire week. Bryon asked me to go ahead and work Monday and work through Thursday instead, so we could all head to San Antonio. I hated missing Christmas with Bryon's family, but it was just how the cards fell this year.

I must say that while I was sad to say goodbye to the family after dinner on Christmas, I thought that having a quiet house for a day or two wouldn't be the end of the world. As most moms can attest, the Christmas season isn't usually synonymous with restful, so I was going to make the most of the time. As they were leaving, Bryon put his arms around me, looked into my glassy eyes, smiled, and said, "Get lots and lots of rest. Use the time that we are gone to catch up on sleep." And with that, they were gone!

Well, I got in bed around 9pm, right after putting Gus in his crate. We have crated our dog ever since he was a puppy. He is 1 1/2 years old and has never spent the night outside. This may seem unusual for an Australian Shepherd, but I have a huge sensitivity to dogs barking outside, and would never want to wake my neighbors up. In fact, we have boarded Gus each time we have left town, even for a day, for fear that he would bark at night.

So now to my great story...around 2:30 in the morning, Gus started whimpering. This is very usual, but I thought maybe I didn't let him out one more time to use the bathroom before I went to bed. I quickly let him out and jumped back into bed, knowing that Gus would hit our door handle when he was ready to come in.

Instead, no sooner had I got back in bed, when Gus started barking like he was injured. I mean, loud, frequent, under stress kind of barking that made the hair stand up on my neck. I raced outside (in a T shirt/ approx. 30 degrees outside) to see that Gus had cornered something growling underneath my rose bush hedge. Well, I'm panicking at this point thinking of all my tired neighbors and wondering what Gus had cornered. This beauty is what I saw...

(Not this exact one. Didn't have the presence of mind to take my camera out at the moment!)

Yes, a hissing, growling opposum with his big teeth showing less than a foot from Gus. I'm screaming at Gus to come to me, but he had a bead on this varmint and was not even aware of my presence. I threw a ball at Gus trying to distract him. Nothing doing. This went on for at least 10 minutes. Finally, sure that my neighbors were about to call the cops and in a desperate state, I crawled under the rose bush, praying that this thing wasn't rabid, and hoping that he was so distracted by Gus to even care about me, and grabbed my dog. My hand wasn't more than a foot from those teeth. I grabbed him so hard that he squealed, and I ran back into the house with my freaking out dog close to my chest.

I put Gus back into his crate and laid in bed. I'm sure in the history of my life, my heart had never beaten as fast as it was at that moment. It was something I got to ponder for the next 5 hours as I lay wide awake in bed.

The next morning, as I groggily got ready for work, the phone rang. Bryon called, and sweetly asked me, "So, honey, did you get a good night sleep?"

More from Christmas

More Christmas pictures! I have never been so bad about taking pictures at Christmas, so I am relying on pics from the family. Here are a few more:

It's never a family get together without a friendly game of front yard football:

Michael got this shirt for Matthew. They were being printed before the actual Heisman ceremony. Apparently after the show, the Heisman organization got wind that a company in town was printing these shirts and wrote a cease and desist letter. No more could be printed or sold. This, of course, made these shirts extra cool. People were offering Matthew quite a bit of money for the shirt at the bowl game!










Mom was hard at work making our traditional beef tenderloin Christmas dinner. Yummy!

New Year's Eve

To celebrate New Year's Eve, Bryon and I went out to one of our favorite restaurants with our dear friends! I spend lots of time with these girls at Supper Club, Bunco, Book Club, and other activities. We all enjoy good food, whether it be making it ourselves, or going out to great restaurants. After dinner, we went to one of their houses, and played games by an outdoor fire. What a great way to send 2011 to the history books!

Alamo Bowl BU vs. Washington Dec. 29, 2011

The Thursday after Christmas, a large contingent of our family headed to San Antonio to watch our Baylor Bears play in the Alamo Bowl. There was lots of buzz about this game...watching our Heisman winner in perhaps his last game as a BU Bear, and the possibility of a 10 win season, which had only happened one other time!

I was going to go to the game with all my favorite boys...my sons, husband, brother, brother in law, and Dad, while my saintly mom stayed in the hotel with Mary Beth. Staying with Nana has become her favorite thing to do when any football game is on, and since we don't have to pay for her ticket, it's a win/win!

We enjoyed hanging out at the Riverwalk on a gorgeous evening. It was so much fun to see so many BU fans everywhere. It reminded me of the last time BU went to the Alamo Bowl, when I was a sophomore at Baylor!






We started the game in end zone seats. Not our typical seats, but we got to see SO many touchdowns. More on that later. The players ran across the field and prayed right by our seats.
We were happy to get to see RG3 in action for the first time since winning the Heisman. During the first quarter, we got to see three BU touchdowns (including an amazing one by Griffin himself) right in front of our seats!
As the third quarter began, our friends, who were sitting on the 30 yard line on Row 1, had to leave with a sick child. We jumped at the opportunity to upgrade our seats! Bryon and Thomas got a ticket upgrade and were sitting on the opposite end of the field.
There are a few drawbacks to sitting on the first row, but it was great getting to see so many touchdowns right in front of our faces! Plus, the players were within a stones throw of us. It was impossible not to feed off the energy of the players. Trust me, my vocal folds could vouch for that the next day!

In a game that broke so many records....most touchdowns (17) ever scored in a game, most yards rushing (over 1,000), highest score in bowl history, and coming within 2 points of all time highest combined score, it looked like we were going to blow the game. At one point, when we were down 18 points, our whole crew was so disappointed. Somehow, miraculously, we came back and won in the end! It wasn't pretty. Without a doubt the WORST defense I have ever seen on both teams, but you couldn't argue with the excitement!





Matthew spent most of the game sitting with a friend. He even got on ESPN! I knew it was only a matter of time before that kid got on ESPN! ;)
A sea of green and gold.
Matthew was given an RG3 head by BU cheerleaders. He was pretty happy about that!
And more than likely RG3's last snap as a Bear. Thank you Robert Griffin for an exciting 3 years!
The Baylor basketball team played Mississippi State the night before. The score wasn't this high! As a side note, both of our basketball teams are still undefeated, which leads me to an incredible statistic. Since November 1, our football team, and men's and women's basketball teams are at a combined 31-0 record! As one announcer said, the sun is shining on Waco, TX right now, and I agree! In my 20 years of fandome, it has never been as exciting as this moment to be a Baylor Bear! Sic 'em Bears!

4 physically and emotionally drained fans! We didn't get to bed until well after 1:30 am. Still, what a memory for my family!


Walking through the tunnel back to our hotel, swarms of BU fans were doing the Sic 'Em Bears cheer. Matthew was right there with them. Also, I forgot to mention that Thomas met Joe Montana at the game! His son is a back up quarterback for Washington, and was in the snack line right in front of Thomas. Thomas shook his hand and introduced himself. Joe was very kind to Thomas. So cool!