Love when we get to spend time with these two families. And we did yesterday afternoon/evening. A yummy barbecue, a pool, and great friends…a perfect Memorial Day party. Oh, and a slide/bouncey/squirter thing that was a big hit!
And two more that I love…such personalities:
I’m sad that I didn’t take any pictures of the teenagers, because they were there too! Thanks for hanging out with us, Christian, Nick, and Jordan!
Yesterday I really wanted to "memorialize". I wanted the kids to recognize what Memorial Day is all about…remembering those whose lives were given on our behalf. On Friday I had seen an article on a local news website. It was about a cemetery in Dallas that had put out 4,563 flags to honor those who have died in Afghanistan and Iraq. And I decided that we should go. And I'm so glad we did. We went to see the flags, but there was so much more. There were people dressed in military uniform. There were lots of displays of memorabilia from all of the different wars that our country has fought in, as far back as the Civil War. And the flags. With a name on every one to remind us of the sacrifice. It was really moving. After-wards I called my Grandpa who fought in WW II. He was a co-pilot and was shot down trying to save a French village from being invaded. I'm grateful for men (and women) like him, who risked their lives, their freedom, their well-being, to serve, and to fight.
This is how my kids look when I serve brussel sprouts (which Derek and I really like).
Anything that Caleb doesn't like (which seems to be quite a lot lately) he says "this is ROT" or "this tastes like ROT". I have no idea where he got that…but it makes me laugh every time. Well, not every time.
On Saturday morning we took an 8-mile bike ride together as a family.
The next day the men in the house enjoyed pointing out that I was the only one that was sore…really sore, from that ride.
Fun times though.
On Friday afternoon, the big boys were down the street playing with a neighbor. So I took advantage of the quiet and was watching a movie I had recorded. Samuel was with me in the living room, playing with an empty laundry basket. When he fell out of it (yes, he was in it) he fell a little too close to the rock fireplace for my liking. But then he got up and tripped again…hitting his head right on the rock. I knew instantly that it was bad. It was gushing blood all over both of us…so I grabbed a t-shirt of Jacob's and called for Derek who was working from home. We picked up J and C and headed for the ER. We had a fun time as we waited for 2 hours – snacks, TV, peek-a-boo with Sam. I love unplanned family bonding! Samuel's small, but deep, puncture wound required some of that snazzy ER glue called Dermabond. And it also required a "papoose" to keep him from moving. Most kids would scream when they wrap them up in that thing…not Samuel. He gave us a pathetic look like "is this really necessary?". Love that sweet kid. So now he has a purple glob of glue stuck on his head. It should peel off in the next week or so. It doesn't seem to phase him at all. We say he looks like a unicorn, with the horn snapped off (lovely image, I know)!
And for the record, I didn't take my camera with me to the ER. These were taken with Derek's phone. I'm not that obsessed. 🙂
Despite Jacob's academic abilities, I think the highlight of his year is Field Day. And admittedly, he got that from me. It was my favorite day of the year, as a kid.
But I have so many little things that I am afraid I will forget. So many little moments that make me smile, or touch my heart…and I want to "count" them as blessings.
1. Samuel loves for me to sing "Twinkle, Twinkle" to him as we sit in the rocking chair, before bed, at night. But he wants to hold my hands while I sing it because I do the motions, and he always laughs as we do it together. He sits in my lap facing me while we rock. It is my favorite part of the day with him. We laugh, and play, and cuddle, and rock, and sing. Tonight I was talking to him and he kept grabbing my hands. Finally I realized he was trying to tell me to sing "twinkle". And he was so pleased when I finally got it…he giggled and grinned. Then when it was time to wind down and really go to bed, I cradled him and sang a hymn. He just stared at me and was perfectly still. So I sang another, and another, and another. I sang every hymn I could think of. And he just stared and listened, all cuddled up in my arms. It was precious, and priceless.
2. Caleb was singing his own version of the song "You Had a Bad Day" this afternoon. It was actually quite clever…something about turning your frown upside down. But he sang and sang all thru the house. And then I heard him tell Jacob "if I was on stage at a concert, the girls at my preschool would go crazy. They would love me!" 🙂
3. Jacob was at a birthday party on Saturday Night at The Zone, a fun local place with laser tag, bounce houses, arcade, etc. He apparently got kicked in the face at one point and had a swollen lip and cut. But he was tough… and endured the party. When I went to pick him up, I got his attention and told him it was time to go. He took one look at me and just melted…quiet tears. I think he was so relieved to see me and know I would take care of that big, fat lip. The same thing happened today. He played the piano in front of a judge. He did 7 pieces, all memorized…with no one else in the room. He was completely calm and collected going in to it. And I was so proud of him. When he walked out, I had my back to him. When I heard him, I turned around and he gave me the biggest grin and wrapped his arms around my neck. I think he was so relieved to have it over. It's good to know that despite the tough 8-year-old exterior sometimes, he's still a momma's boy.
I love these boys.
hoppin’ down the bunny trail!
(Note: please do not read this if you are a member of PETA or a bunny-activist. You will regret it.)
We have a rabbit. A rabbit that is coming in to our backyard and eating our beautiful plants and leaves.
I can’t tell you what this does to our blood pressure…Here’s the story:
In our old house there was a bunny infestation. They were EVERYWHERE. One of the main reasons for moving was to leave the bunnies! They drove us crazy…they made nests in our backyard and pooped all over the grass. ALL OVER. They ate all of our plants. They chewed thru things like soccer nets and even Christmas lights. Christmas lights! And no matter how hard you tried to keep them out…and believe me we tried…they came back again and again, always to the same spots. And they had babies – lots and lots of babies. We do not have kind feelings for bunnies. Not at all.
And they followed us. It’s been 2 and 1/2 years. We thought we were bunny-free. But NO! They have found us and are trying to regain control in our backyard. And we are livid.
Derek has been begging for me to allow him to use the bb gun. He had wanted to do this in our old house, and I could never bring myself to it. But…I’m there. Pull out the big guns.
We will not be held captive by these furry beasts again.
It pays to work out, I tell ya.
I was on the treadmill this morning, catching the tail end of Good Morning Texas (a local morning show).
Now…let me interject with something. I have a funny habit of entering EVERY call-in contest I hear. If I’m listening to the radio and they say call in to win, you can bet I’ll be trying. Always.
But I never win. Except once…in middle school. I won a piece of the Berlin Wall. But my parents wouldn’t take me all the way downtown to the radio station to claim my prize.
I digress.
I was watching and they talked about a luncheon held this Friday at the Anatole hotel. It was a charity auction and luncheon for the "Go Red" campaign sponsored by the American Heart Association. They said that tickets were $150/person or $3000/table. That’s some lunch! Then they said be the 8th and 9th caller and you win tickets. So of course I tried, because I keep the phone close when I’m on the treadmill. And…I won!
Then I had a moment…do I want to go all the way to the Anatole for this luncheon?! Why couldn’t it be a new car or a kitchen makeover or tickets to Oprah or something?! But then I thought, what the heck?! It’ll be fun…and for $150 a head, it should be pretty yummy too.
So that’s where I’ll be on Friday.
Go HERE for more info on the event. And, yes, I’ll be wearing RED!
I had such a good weekend…a needed respite from the craziness of the last two weeks. I visited my acupuncturist for one last appointment (I had been doing that to try to not get sick when I was pregnant). She also does hot stone massage, and treated me to one. I had my hair done (thanks Maryanne!). And then did some shopping with my own madre. We also had a WONDERFUL lunch at a place called Chocolate Angel in Richardson. Very girly…girly decor…girly food…we loved it! Thanks Mom! I wanted to freeze time with my boys this weekend…they are at that age where they just LOVE doting on me and treating me special for Mother’s Day. I can’t tell you how many cards I got, aside from the darling things they made at school (teachers are so good!). I got breakfast in bed…free massages from Caleb, lots of hand holding and snuggles from Jacob, etc, etc. So sweet…I love those little boys. I feel so blessed. I have my mom…who is an amazing woman and friend…close by. I have my children to wrap my arms around. I’m so happy to be a daughter and a mother.
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