The Story of Life

Civil Rights Movement

2012-01-21T07:12:00.000-06:00

I love teaching my kids new things! I love to see their faces as they process. A few days ago, I had an amazing discussion with Mary Frances about the Civil Rights Movement.

She came home with a comprehension paragraph about Rosa Parks and needed a little help. So, I sat with her as she read through it, but she had to stop after every sentence or two for clarification...different water fountains? separate seats? different schools? Why?

I love that we have been successful in raising our kids to this point with no feeling of inequality between the races. I also love that I had the opportunity to begin teaching her of the struggles that occurred during that historic time and the prejudices that still exist today. In fact, until now my children have called them brown simply as a matter of observation.

When Thomas got involved in the discussion, we had to start from the very beginning because he couldn't figure out how anyone figured out black people were different. So, I explained to him that black people were originally slaves, in America. When the slaves were set free, people still felt like they were lowly and did not treat them like people, sometimes more like animals. So, they had to fight for all of their rights.

We talked about how our families grew up in the south while all of this was going on and why people still have those same prejudices. Mary Frances was very happy to say that she did not feel that way at all, and I explained that was because daddy and I tried really hard to lead them in that direction.

So, as our discussion ended, I had an overwhelming desire to show the kids one of my FAVORITE movies, Remember the Titans! So, we snuggled up and watched, discussing many questions as we went along. I was ecstatic to be able to participate in what felt like a huge moment in my children's lives. I know many more discussions will follow, but we are off to a great start!

"OH SHITaki mushrooms"

2012-01-09T13:46:00.000-06:00

As we were driving in the car this weekend, I kept hearing my kids saying "oh... shitaki mushrooms" and wondering what they were talking about! After a few times I remembered hearing it on a movie we just watched and realized that it was just a cover up for a certain curse word.

I know most people use the word, but Ray C. and I just don't cuss. We just don't see the need to use the words and really don't want the kids to say them. Now, I know that most parents don't want their little kids to cuss, but I think most assume they will eventually. I'm assuming that if I teach them properly, they will not.

So....when we got out of the car, I asked them if they knew what they were saying. They did not realize why they were saying it but were using it in the right context. So, I just came right out and said, "Guys, "shit" is a bad word, and that is what you are saying. They all looked at me funny wondering how they were saying that. So, I explained to them what the saying meant. Of course, they wanted to know what the actual word meant and were more appalled by the dog poop than the fact that they were saying a bad word! :)

We had a good little discussion. Ray C. told them that we know they are hearing dirty words from other people but that we do not expect them to use them, and since we don't use them ourselves, I think it is fair to expect the same from them!

As I've been pondering this more, I have been reminded of the bible verse in James which (in Jacqueline's paraphrase) says that God gave us our mouths to glorify Him, and we are being hypocrites if we are using the same mouth to praise him sometimes and then curse things and other people at other times. That is why I choose not to use them. I am certainly not perfect and admit that I say things I shouldn't, but I am trying to keep my words pure and glorifying to the God who blessed me with words!

The Real Meaning of Christmas

2012-01-09T08:00:00.000-06:00

Mary Frances just brought this home from school yesterday. I guess it was hanging up somewhere. Translation:

My favorite day of the year is Christmas. Do you know why? It is Jesus' birthday! Christmas would not be here without him. I love him with all my heart. He is all I ever need. And he will always live in my heart.

I love it! She also came home with an acrostic poem using the word "Christmas" that was precious, but I'm not sure what happened to it over the break! Hopefully I will find it because I definitely wanted to keep it! I love that Jesus is truly part of who she is - not just at church but everywhere! I feel like she is truly getting the message that we want our kids to understand!

A cherished memory

2012-01-08T08:00:00.000-06:00

This picture may not look like much, but it was probably my favorite moment on Christmas morning! The children had already come out to see what Santa brought them. They had already opened up their stockings in which they got all sorts of fun little things. Thomas got a new bike. Mary Frances got a karaoke machine and a new suitcase, and Chase got a #1 Texans fan finger-thing (whatever those are called)!

Anyway, it meant so much to me that Chase never even noticed that he didn't have a BIG gift from Santa like the others did. He was completely content with all of the little things he had.Of course, Santa had left him something big, but he'd covered it with a towel, and Chase just didn't notice it! So, Ray C. called him over to his lap and asked him quietly if he liked what Santa gave him. He very happily said he did, and then Ray C. asked him if he noticed anything else near his stocking. When he said "no", Ray C. pointed out the towel covering up something.

So, Chase, shockingly a little timid, went over and removed the towel to find...

two new pets...now named Darth "Vader" and Princess "Lea"

He was so excited, and though he claims to believe in Santa, ran to give mommy and daddy hugs and thanks! I will always treasure this special memory! It made the gift even more special!

So, Vader and Lea are doing well! They are German Giant Bearded Dragons. Which means they will be a little larger than the average beardie. They actually have fun personalities, but they are still a little skiddish. So, holding them is quite a chore. They eat lots of romaine lettuce, meal worms and crickets! Yummm....

Oh...and Lea, the little one, loves to ride on Vader's back! It's typical for beardies - and super cute!

Church in the Park

2012-01-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

We held our December 18th church service at Festival Park in Bridgeland rather than in the movie theatre as usual. It was a perfect day to be outside, and a wonderful time to usher in Christmas! Of course, we've never been a congregation stuck on meeting in a building, since our typical Sunday is filled with the smell of popcorn and lyrics on the big screen. As usual, so many of our volunteers took part in the planning, setup, and teardown for the service. We had a beautiful Christmas tree as the backdrop for our service that we plan to put in the building next year!! Woohoo!
Nicholas, our youth pastor, and his wife, Lianne, led worship along with our amazing band!!
Moments like this always serve as a reminder of why we are here and how God is using us in this place.
Several of our teenagers read scripture. Austin is one of our seniors who has been working with Ray C. as he pursues a call into ministry. It has been such a joy for us to watch him grow and embrace his calling.
The children's sermon was great. The children usually have their own service, so it was fun to share a few moments with them and see how they responded! It's always fun to get kids up in front of everyone, and there were A LOT of them!! They had all kinds of things to share.
We ended the morning with lunch and hayrides on the property that will soon hold our building! God is so good. We continue to enjoy the journey he has placed us on!

Holiday Party Time

2012-01-06T10:08:00.003-06:00

The PTO at our elementary school spoils the kids for our Winter Holiday Party! The kids go outside one grade at a time for an hour and get to play on blow-up slides,
hang out with their friends,
race each other for candy,
make reindeer food that's really for the kids to eat,
and lets not forget DANCE!!
It was fun to see the kids playing with their friends! Of course, after three one-hour parties, I was pooped! The kids want me to be there, but they don't want to stay with me. They just want me to watch what they are doing! I guess that speaks to the power of presence!!

Homemade Scarf

2011-12-30T15:16:00.000-06:00

Check out what I made yesterday - from a t-shirt!

2011 Mother/Daughter Christmas Tea Party

2011-12-30T08:00:00.000-06:00

We had our 4th annual Mother Daughter Christmas Tea Party a few weeks ago.

It is always so much fun to get together some of our friends and be girly! We ask everyone to dress in their Sunday best. We provide hot tea and china tea cups so everyone can get the feel of having real tea, but we also offer pink lemonade since some of the girls just don't like the tea!
One of our traditions is taking each mother and daughter's picture in front of the Christmas tree. It has been so much fun watching some of the girls mature over the last several years. I love taking this picture because I know how rare it is for mommies to actually be in the pictures with their kids! (I'm going to try to set up a rolling collage of all the pictures along with this post! Hopefully it works!)
We were very excited that Honey, my mom, was able to join us this year since my parents moved here in the fall! We are hoping that my sister will make it next year!

Merry Christmas to Jessica

2011-12-29T23:28:00.002-06:00

Meet Bentley, my sister's new puppy! My parents got him for my sister as a Christmas surprise, and she was definitely surprised! She has been wanting her own puppy. He is 9 months old and absolutely adorable!!

Needless to say, she was thrilled! They even bought him a plane ticket so he could ride back home to Georgia with her!! Isn't he cute?

The Nutcracker Ballet

2011-12-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

Honey treated Mary Frances and I to our first ballet at Wortham Theatre in Houston! It was fantastic!

It was the perfect event to dress up and be ladies for the day!
We were so excited to introduce Mary Frances to the theatre - on the other side of the stage! We're all hoping to see Romeo and Juliet this spring!

The girls

2011-12-26T14:57:00.002-06:00

It has been so much fun to have my parents in Texas this fall, and I have loved all of the visits Jessica has made, as well! I sure wish she would hurry up and decide to move out here! I miss her!

Cinderella

2011-12-25T15:17:00.000-06:00

Mary Frances and I had the pleasure of being in a Cinderella play this fall! It was so much fun to be in it together! Mary Frances was a natural! I was so proud of how focused she was! Mary Frances was the young cinderella and Ray C. played her father! What a memory for her to treasure forever!
We were also market people who got to go to the Prince's ball and more! It was a lot of work, but it was worth the effort! The play was a fundraiser for our church's new organization, Cy-Hope, and we raised several thousand dollars!

SuperBowl Champions...

2011-12-13T08:00:00.000-06:00

Chase's flag football team has been playing hard all season...

so hard that we made it to the SuperBowl!!! The boys got to play in the Berry Center which is one of the two football stadiums that our school system's high schools use to play their games each week.

It was a great experience. How many 5 and 6 year olds can say they've played on terf? They got to go in the locker room, have their names announced on the loud speaker, and even got to see themselves on the jumbotron!
The game was a perfect SuperBowl! It was obivous why the two teams made it! We played the other flag team at our own school, and it came down to the very last play! I am proud to say that Chase was one of two boys who pulled the last flag!
They got new trophies (to add to our ever expanding collection)!
And, Ray C., had a blast coaching, too!

We are VIKINGS!!

Snow much fun

2011-12-12T10:34:00.001-06:00

Our neighborhood, Bridgeland, is so good to us! They bring in snow every year for the kids to play in! It is so much fun for all of our southern kids who never get to see any accumulation!The kids had a blast making snowmen...
dancing...
having snow ball fights...
drinking hot chocolate, and, of course, hanging out with Papa and Peppy!
Oh what fun it is....

Here it is...well, almost

2011-12-10T22:28:00.002-06:00

It's the church property!! They've been leveling it this week -- getting it ready for 18 inches of fill dirt before we start building in just a few months!! We are so excited!
Tonight, we walked around the property talking about what is to come and praying God's blessings on it all! (We also saw a few coyotes while we were out there!:)

Unique Bridal Bouquet

2011-08-29T21:57:00.002-05:00

This is the bridal bouquet from a wedding this past Saturday! All the bridesmaids carried fresh floral bouquets as seen in the background. However, the bride made this unique bouquet with over 100 broaches from family and friends - many who have died! It was gorgeous and such a great idea for her something borrowed and old! There were pieces of jewelry from grandparents, great grandparents, and wonderful family friends! I was so impressed!

School on Friday?

2011-08-26T06:55:00.002-05:00

6:30 a.m. conversation with Chase:

Chase: What's today?
Me: Friday
Chase: Do I have school today?
Me: Yes, Honey.
Chase: But, don't we get two days off?
Me: Yes, but you have to go to school on Fridays first.

Afterwards, I realized that I might have forgotten to tell him that Fridays is usually a school day. For the last year, Friday has been his "daddy day" since Ray C. has the day off and he only went to preschool Monday thru Thursday! I guess I just assumed he knew that!

Kindergarten...Again

2011-08-22T09:29:00.004-05:00

UPDATE: Everyone made it home safely on the bus and had an AWESOME day! Thomas has a kid in his class that lives 4 doors down from us that we haven't met before! That's exciting! Chase was surprised that he saw LOTS of his baseball and football friends throughout the day, and Mary Frances just loved the whole thing! Looks like it will be another great year!

I just took my BABY to kindergarten! I didn't think I would be emotional, but I couldn't help myself after he cried on the way because his best friend doesn't go the same school!

Sigh....we took Chase in first, and he went straight to his seat. He agreed to a picture with me but wasn't overly excited about anything. He happily sat down and did his thing. So, we left!

Next, we went right across the hall to Thomas who was already sitting in his seat and wanted NOTHING to do with us! When I asked him if he was okay, he said," just go, please!" He wouldn't even take a picture with me...we were actually embarrassing him!

So, off to Mary Frances' class! She gladly took pictures and talked to me. Thank goodness for my one girl to help me feel better.

I didn't think I would make it outside without bursting into tears, and to top it off, everyone kept saying the usual, "Hey! How are you?" Thankfully, Ray C. was there to answer. I just gave a polite smile and kept walking with the door in mind!

Now, I'm at home all alone, missing all my babies! It was a great summer with lots of fun packed in! I am really excited about the school year and especially the routine, but right now I just can't believe ALL three of my children are in elementary school!

Sigh...

2011-08-18T16:32:00.001-05:00

Thomas just asked why his armpits are so sweaty! He said, "my shirt is getting wet. They're like upside-down bath tubs."... And I've been giggling ever since!

Disney World Vacation

2011-08-18T13:08:00.000-05:00

Here's a little view of our Disney World vacation! Uncle Glen came along and brought two of the cousins - Abigail and Finley! We were excited they were able to share the fun with us!

Because Finley was too small to ride some rides, we were able to truly benefit from the FunPass system and their "buddy pass" to ride our favorite rides several times with no wait time!!
The Swiss Family Robinson tree was really cool. I tried to convince the kids to read the book. Maybe they'll read it if I just get it for them anyway!
Everyone was excited about the Incredibles, and the "Crew Members" helping organize the pictures loved me! :) I overheard them saying that I should be doing their job...which could have meant I was too bossy....but I told them that I'm a wedding planner which means organizing quick pictures is a must!
Couldn't resist a picture in front of the fake city scape in Hollywood Studios!
Everyone's favorite...After Thomas poked his eye, the monster chased the kids! It was hysterical!
We did everything we could stand in two days! It was a great trip to Disney World! Too bad we have to downsize our house now...just kidding!

Homemade Ice Cream

2011-08-17T12:00:00.002-05:00

Mary Frances has been begging to make ice cream. So, we decided we'd make it yesterday and invite the kids in the neighborhood as a "farewell to summer". Because it is still summer, we started our day at the pool...enjoying the outrageously HOT sun for a little while. We met a new family who just moved to Houston 2 weeks ago, and one of the girls is Mary Frances' age. So, at Mary Frances' suggestion, we invited them to our ice cream party.

About 10 neighborhood kids showed up along with the two new girls and their mother! We were so excited they were able to come, and they were so excited to play with some other kids!

We made my great-grandmother's vanilla ice cream in the electric churn and CHOWED down. All of the kids loved it! But before serving it, I asked everyone if I could pray for our new school year. So, we all bowed our heads and thanked God for a safe and fun summer and asked Him to bless our year in school. It was a great experience! I am so thankful that God has sent us to this place to be His light! (AND, I'm thankful for Mama Taylor's Recipe!!)

Here it is if you'd like to try it. I have adjusted the amounts to fit in a modern churn!

Mama Taylor's Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream
1/2 gallon whole milk
1/2 can Borden's Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 eggs, beaten
1 cup sugar

Just mix it all together and follow the directions on your churn! Be sure to have a bag of ice and Ice Cream Salt, as well!

Ah....Summer

2011-08-16T18:48:00.003-05:00

Okay..sorry for those of you regulars who keep checking to find nothing! It has been an amazing summer, but I just haven't shown it on the blog! I promise that I will sit down on Monday (the first day of school) and begin recording everything for your enjoyment!

Here are some things to look forward to:

1. Disney World
2. Visiting Community of Hope (the first church in which we served)
3. the Sr. High Mission Trip to Atlanta
4. Visiting with family
5. SOMEBODY IN OUR FAMILY IS MOVING TO TEXAS!!!
6. a new patio
7. There's an APP for that...
8. and more...

Talk to you soon!

You Woke Me Up

2011-07-12T10:13:00.003-05:00

Chase is usually the first person up in the morning and has been waking everyone up for YEARS -- usually to get him something to eat! So, you can imagine our amusement this morning when he was the last one to wake up and came down all grumpy, complaining that we had all woken him up!

Funny that he's almost six and this is the first time this has happened! It was 8:00. No one really felt sorry for him! :)

Jessie Turns 30!!!

2011-05-22T10:48:00.000-05:00

I flew out to Georgia to spend the week with my sister for her 30th birthday on Wednesday!! What a fun week it has been! We showered her with gifts all day long. We had cake & balloons, and we went out to three different restaurants all in one day!

We surprised her at work when I showed up wearing a sandwich board announcing her birthday and loaded with pictures of her as a child! We sang Happy Birthday to her in the lobby of the doctors office and even offered some of her cake to the patients!!

Then, we took her to lunch at a favorite Mexican restaurant where we gave her more gifts, of course!

When she returned home from work, we went out to eat at The Last Resort - a fabulous Athens restaurant - where her friends Beau and Angie joined us as a surprise to her!

Then, after dinner, we decided to walk over to Hiwire, a nice new bar downtown, and surprised her with 20 of her "closest" friends waiting for her in the back room! It was such a fun day and night!

Happy Birthday, Jessica!! We love you!

Enjoying May

2011-05-21T09:00:00.001-05:00

It has been so pretty here, lately! We've tried to enjoy being outside as much as possible! We're really looking forward to getting our new patio finished next week - hopefully!!

Growing Up

2011-05-20T09:00:00.000-05:00

After a few years of use, my children have all decided they are too "big" for these cups! (sigh.......) Every little step towards independence is both exciting and sad. I'm so proud of who they are becoming, but these little things remind me of the little people I'm going to miss! :(

Bridging to Brownies

2011-05-19T09:00:00.001-05:00

Mary Frances' Daisy scout troop bridged to Brownies last week. We had a fun party to celebrate their accomplishments after the ceremony!Each of the flower buckets (yes, I did reuse them) had a portion of the Girl Scout Law sticking out of it to remind us that we are girl scouts at every stage!

The girls actually walked over a bridge to symbolize the transformation.
As they walked over and received their Brownie Pins, they removed their Daisy smocks, and we placed them on the railing of the bridge.
Check out our new "Batch of Brownies"!!

Rodeo Carnival (lost post)

2011-05-18T12:00:00.001-05:00

Somehow, this entry never posted...so here it is...

After several years of wasting my money on rodeo/concert tickets for the kids, I decided to only take them to the carnival! Mary Frances didn't get to go, as I mentioned in an earlier post. So, each of the boys was allowed to take a friend!

I love this one!

Mom's Munch 2011

2011-05-17T17:00:00.001-05:00

For FOUR years straight, I have had the wonderful pleasure of attending Mom's Munch! It is our preschool's celebration of Mother's Day. Chase has been looking forward to it for months! He could not wait for me to come to his school so that he could shower me with handmade gifts and serve me breakfast!We had a great time together. We are all starting to get a little sad about him graduating from preschool this year. We decided to put him in the Bridge program instead of kindergarten this past year, and it was a great decision! He could have gone to kindergarten before, but I KNOW he is ready, now!

His class consists of only 7 boys (no girls) and their precious teacher, Mrs. Zarazee. The boys have all grown this year, but one unique thing Mrs. Zarazee has given them is a unique awareness of surviving breast cancer! They all know what the little pink ribbons are, and most of them even enjoy wearing pink just to make her happy! I don't know how she will be able to let this group go!!
Mom's munch was a blast. I loved spending time with Chase and his friends, and I received a beautiful flower pot with some seeds to grow some flowers!

My Latest Event...

2011-05-16T17:42:00.003-05:00

I recently planned a 50th birthday party for a past bride and groom! I had such a great time planning it and wanted to share some of the pictures with you!

After traveling an hour and half from Houston, it was more than 5 miles down a dirt road with lots of twists and turns! So, it was necessary to guide the guests with 6 or 7 different signs pointing the way. I placed a sign everywhere that I originally stopped wondering which way to go. They said, "not yet", "almost there", "keep going", "next gate", etc. I got great response from the guests saying there was a sign every time they started to wonder if they were going the right way! :)

I had custom water bottle labels printed that said, "Happy Birthday, Susan" and had a big 50 on them! They looked great on the boxes of baby wipes we used to clean our hands after eating the messy crawfish!
The band, Zydecane, performed all evening. They were great! Their voices were wonderful, and they certainly kept the party alive!
Silver, Purple, and Black were the colors for the evening. Purple, because it is Susan's favorite, and black, because it was her 50th! Silver was the best compliment color to go with them!
So, we used galvanized buckets to plant purple impatiens for the tables. The table cloths were burlap material. It made for a very unique look!
I put up as many purple lanterns as the wind would allow before I finally gave up! The wind was brutal! It's amazing that the entire centerpieces didn't blow away!
The happy couple - married for less than a year!! They have been such a blessing to us and our church. Their love for the Lord and obedience to his requests is an inspiration!

Out of the mouth of babes....

2011-05-05T19:24:00.000-05:00

I found this "story" in Mary Frances folder this week! Apparently, some of the neighbor's think it's funny to use the word to rhyme with their baby sister's name! Needless to say, I was slightly embarrassed that she wrote this story at school!

Last preschool payment

2011-05-05T19:22:00.002-05:00

I gladly paid my last month of preschool today! I will greatly miss Foundry Faith Academy, but I am looking forward to having all my babies at one FREE school!!

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T20:54:00.002-05:00

2011-04-20T16:55:00.001-05:00

Mary Frances just asked ms if she could have a horseback riding party in 2014!! Can we call her a planner?

Rodeo and Keith Urban

2011-03-27T12:00:00.000-05:00

I went to Rodeo three times this season. It was a blast, but I definitely got my fill! I love going to Rodeo and watching the bull riding, mutton bustin', and more! It's always fun to see the FFA students chase the calves for a chance at a scholarship!
Keith Urban put on a great performance, and we had amazing seats that were given to us!

Breakfast in Bed

2011-03-26T07:43:00.003-05:00

Mary Frances served me breakfast in bed this morning - 2 pieces of toast smothered in peanut butter and a glass of water (covered with Saran wrap so it wouldn't spill on the way to the bedroom).

After giving me the breakfast, she curled up in bed with me and said, "Do you want two pieces of toast?"

I replied, "Would you like one of my pieces?" She quickly answered, "Yes! I'm starving!"

So, we enjoyed our breakfast in bed while watching Barbie! Ahhh....these are the days!

Nana and Papa

2011-03-25T09:16:00.003-05:00

These make me happy...

Hanging out with Papa G.

2011-03-24T11:25:00.000-05:00

Although it was a sad week and the circumstances of my Uncle's death were not the best for visiting, we did enjoy being with Papa G. I love watching the children with Papa. They are so sweet to him and absolutely adore him!

Mary Frances and Chase love to hold his hand to "help" him walk around. He is very healthy, but he has a problem with his foot that makes it difficult to get around!

They also had fun telling him jokes! It turns out that Knock-Knock jokes are even funnier with Papa G. - mainly because he can't hear the kids and turns them into a completely different joke! We were all rolling at the dinner table!

The kids said one of their favorite parts of vacation was going to Papa G's house!

Griffin Family

2011-03-23T11:23:00.000-05:00

This is Uncles Francis (Papa's baby brother), Cousin Linda, and my Papa

South Geogia 6-pack

2011-03-22T11:21:00.000-05:00

We actually purchased this from a liquor store exactly like this! (In case you can't tell, it's a 12-pack that has been cut in half and taped with packing tape!) Welcome to South Georgia!

Vacation?

2011-03-21T11:08:00.002-05:00

We've just returned from our trip to the East Coast. After having to change our clocks on Saturday night for Daylight Savings and then having to adjust them to the Eastern Time Zone on Sunday, we decided that we may reconsider traveling that direction for Daylight Savings Weekend in the future!!

Anyhow... we started off the week in Monticello where Ray C. and the children had a wonderful time hanging out with family! My parents came down to get me so I could go to my grandfather's house for a few days to help them clean it up! We were able to get rid of a lot of empty boxes and papers from 15 years ago that he didn't care about having anymore! (By the way, he approved of everything!)

After a full day of cleaning and a good 8 hours of sleep, my aunt called early Wednesday morning to say that my uncle had died of a heart attack. My mother and grandfather were devastated, but we know God had a hand in the timing with us already being there for the news and Papa not being by himself.

So, we traveled to St. Simons Island, GA for all of the funeral arrangements and stayed there the remainder of the week in a condo that a friend graciously loaned us. Ray C. and the kids met us on the island, and we were able to enjoy being with family in a different situation than we had planned.

The children were amazing! They did so much "adult stuff" the whole week with great attitudes. They were actually very interested in the whole death process. We allowed them to see Uncle "T" in the casket, and they were not afraid at all. Chase kept touching him to be sure he really died. He was very confused about how he could die but still be here. We had some great conversations about death and souls.

Chase announced on Saturday morning that he couldn't wait to bury Uncle "T". When I asked why, he just shrugged his shoulders and said "cause I've never done it." My mom and I looked at each other and, at the same time, said to him, "We're not going to bury him ourselves, you know!" He actually thought we were going to dig the hole!

The kids sat through the funeral and the burial service and were excited to see that Grandaddy was the preacher for a change! Jean asked my dad to do the service because Uncle "T" thought so much of him. In fact, he said that he was one of three of the most incredible men he'd known in his life!

The entire week was a celebration of Uncle "T"'s life - exactly the way he would have wanted it!

Texan Day at the Preschool

2011-03-14T12:00:00.001-05:00

Chase's preschool Bridge class performed some rodeo songs for the parents and grandparents this past week. They were so cute - especially since his class is made up of only 8 boys! Mrs. Zarazee loves her boys, and they love her back! Aren't they too cute?? (Chase is fourth from the left.)

My BABY!
We were so excited to have Grandaddy there! It was so nice to have some family there for one of the kids' events. That has been one of the hardest things for me living so far away from family!
Chase adores Grandaddy...
and Ms. Barb, his music teacher for the past 4 years...
and Mrs. Zarazee! He has had a fun year in the Bridge program, and we are so excited we decided to let him wait one more year before kindergarten. He has definitely matured and will be ready to do GREAT in kinder!

Happy Birthday, Mary Frances

2011-03-12T11:00:00.001-06:00

So, she turned 7 in January, but I'm a little behind on posting! At least it's here, right?These two should have been twins! I don't think they could be any closer!
Jessie came for Mary Frances' birthday. Mary Frances requested that we go ice skating. So, we went up to The Woodlands for some fun on the ice!
As you can see, Mary Frances fell several times, but she really was a good ice skater! Thittle omas did pretty good, too! However, Chase tried for about 10 minutes, realized this was one sport he wasn't good at, and spent the rest of the evening crying out of frustration and embarrassment!

It was good for him, though! He needs to know that he isn't the best at everything! His ego needed a little deflating! It was a fun way to celebrate her birthday, and we followed it up with a trip to Olive Garden! MMMM....

Go Upward Basketball!!

2011-03-10T11:00:00.000-06:00

We played our first season with Upward Basketball, hosted by our church! It was a fun season, and the kids had a blast!

I think Thomas has found his game - running not stop!! He was fun to watch - and pretty good and making baskets, too!
Mary Frances kind-of enjoyed cheering, but an hour is a really long time to stand up and cheer! :) So, next year she wants to try basketball!?! Hmm... We're still looking for her sport!

Go Thomas!!

Discipline Hurts

2011-03-09T11:00:00.004-06:00

The past few weeks have been drama-central in my world, which includes a 7 year old girl going on 12! I swear she already acts like a middle-schooler some days!

The main thing we've been dealing with is her sense of entitlement! Nothing is fair!! For everything we do, there are two or three things we didn't do! I am almost at the end of my rope with whining and complaining!

Give me a break!

I took you to the rodeo (the only kid that went with us) and bought you cotton candy and a corn dog, and you complain because I didn't buy a toy.

I buy tickets for the carnival at Rodeo tonight and you complain because you can't take a friend.

I let you go play with a friend all afternoon, and you come home complaining because I didn't do something else with you (since you weren't here)!

I was at the end of my rope on Sunday night after all this drama and couldn't figure out how to solve this the best way---and then, a light bulb.

After praying for God's guidance, I realized that not letting her go to the carnival tonight was an appropriate consequence for her actions.

So, I sat on her bed as she was crying and told her how much I love her. I reminded her that my job as her mother is to help her love God and tell other people about him. That means that I have to teach her how to be grateful for the things we have and to be considerate of others who do not have! So, I informed her that she would not be going to the carnival tonight. She was heartbroken, which in turn broke my heart, but I know it is the best way to teach her this lesson. She must understand that she can't have everything and that she needs to be thankful for what she has.

I'm sure the drama will continue, but I know that God will continue to show us the way to handle these situations. After all, He loves her more than we do!

On the Ranch with Honey & Grandaddy

2011-03-08T11:00:00.001-06:00

Honey and Grandaddy came for a week after Christmas. Since Ray C. had the week off, we went to San Marcos to stay in our friends' ranch house. It was such a great, restful week. I love that the kids can just run around outside without me worrying about cars and people!Check out my mom! She is looking so good!

The kids think the ranch is the best place in the world! Why not? With four wheelers, guns, and a fire to roast hot dogs and marshmallows, what else do you need?

It rained several days while we were there, but we were prepared with plenty of board games to play and books to read!

Rodeo Houston Salutes the Military

2011-03-07T11:00:00.004-06:00

Mary Frances and I got to go to the rodeo with Grandaddy last week. It was the night that they recognized the military. So, there were men and women in uniform everywhere. Each branch of the military brought in an exhibit. So, we saw tanks, jets, and all types of things! Mary Frances wanted her picture in the top of the tank!Of course, there was plenty of bare-back riding, bull riding, and mutton-bustin' (that's when 5-6 year old ride sheep). We also got to see Trace Adkins in concert! He put on a great show! I was surprised at what a great performer he was on top of his bass voice that vibrated the stadium! That was really cool!

In the last few years, Texas fairs have become well-known for frying EVERYTHING! Check out this menu - as if Snickers, Twinkies, and Nutter Butter didn't already have enough calories and fat! The day we went to the rodeo, the radio station had a nutritionist on the air talking about rodeo food. She said the best thing to eat at rodeo is the Cotton Candy with only 200 something calories. In fact, she said cotton candy is practically a health food compared to everything else! One of those fried oreos has 156 calories in it!
Yeehaw!
Everyone is excited that Grandaddy has been able to spend so much time with us the last few weeks!

My favorite part of the rodeo was when the Special Ops guys rapelled down from the rafters of Reliant Stadium along with the American Flag! It was an amazing sight!

Papa, Peppy, & Uncle Glen come to Texas

2011-03-07T11:00:00.002-06:00

We were so excited to be able to stay home for Christmas this year and have family come to us! We are usually the ones doing the traveling at Christmas. So, it was very nice to be able to enjoy the holidays in our own home!Papa, Peppy, and Uncle Glen came a few days before Christmas and then left Christmas day. We loved hanging out with them and getting to know Peppy better!

Two Peas in a Pod - The older Thomas gets, the more I think he is like Papa!!
We were excited to take our company to NASA. My favorite part is visiting the Mission Control Room!
We were excited to see that NASA had a LEGO display this time! Check out the dragon behind us!

Pretty Little Girl

2011-03-06T11:00:00.000-06:00

Christmas 2010

2011-03-05T13:44:00.001-06:00

No one's watching...

2010-12-26T08:00:00.001-06:00

Here are some scans of some pictures I found in my office a few days ago. Apparently Mary Frances and her friend, Kylie, were having a good time!!

FRAGILE

2010-12-25T08:00:00.000-06:00

What were my parents thinking?Ray C. grew up watching "A Christmas Story" every year. He can quote every part of the movie, and we hear it all year long for different occasions! Anyhow, my parents just couldn't resist the leg lamp they found at CVS a few weeks ago. So, my dad fixed up a box with "FRAGILE" written all over it and packaged it just like in the movie! Ray C. quoted the movie the entire time it took to set it up -- even the kids were quoting it! And now, it sits by our bed in a lovely spot in my haven of the world! YAY!! Thanks mom and dad! :)

(Chase's face in the picture fits perfectly with the movie!)

We are the Champions...

2010-12-24T08:00:00.004-06:00

Chase's baseball team played a nail-biting game for the championship in the fall and WON! It was a long game for the boys, but they did so good. We are so proud of them and love watching the way they play. Their skill and love for baseball is so much fun to watch!

Chase with his teammates and Coach "Daddy".
The pitcher and his 1st baseman! Man, they make some awesome plays together!
Chase and "Hunt-man"
Trent plays for the team we were "versing", as they boys say!!! He is one of Mary Frances' best friends. They have been in the same class the last two years, and I think they have the neatest friendship. I love hearing about the things they do and say to each other!

it's too early...

2010-12-23T08:00:00.002-06:00

This past Sunday was an early day for us. Ray C. had to be at church at 5, and I had to be there at 6:40, which meant all the kids had to be up and ready by 6:30 --- no small feat to accomplish on your own. Of course, I do it every week, but we usually have about 30 more minutes!

Anyway...I told the kids we would be leaving the house while it was still dark. So, we would need to get up very early. So, Thomas and Mary Frances wanted to use Thomas' alarm on his clock. I set the alarm for 6:00, but I knew I would need to go to check on them as well!

At about 6:10 I went upstairs to find both kids in a heavy sleep and the UNPLUGGED alarm clock laying on it's side as if it had been thrown. So, I woke the kids up and asked if it had gone off, and they both said a sleepy & annoyed "YES...very early". So I questioned Thomas, "So you decided to unplug it?"

His reply was, "It was making a very annoying beeping sound. So I just unplugged it!" After laughing at the idea of experiencing your first early morning alarm signal I informed him that all he had to do was push SNOOZE and it would give him 10 more minutes! "Ohh..."

I love to relive all of these firsts from their perspective!

Boys & Guns

2010-12-22T08:00:00.001-06:00

For Thanksgiving, we were blessed with the opportunity to go back to a friend's ranch and enjoy the unplugged life! It was so relaxing. We were able to lounge, read, enjoy the fire outside, grill, and make s'mores. We were also able to shoot clays and b.b. guns!

We had a b.b. gun for each child, but Mary Frances forfeited her chance. She didn't want anything to do with the guns but really enjoyed the sling shot - which I reminded her was all little David needed to take down the giant!

Anyway...Ray C. very smartly sat the kids down for a lesson on gun safety before we started! The boys listened very attentively dying to get their hands on those guns, and then they were off! We had lots of stationary targets and clays for them to hit.

Thomas gets a lesson in aiming steady! I love seeing Ray C. like this. Everyone here sees him as a city boy, but this is the guy I fell in love with --- jeans and boots, loving the outdoors!
Sugar LOVES the ranch as much as the rest of us! She loves to run all around, but she will not leave us. She's happy to go on a walk if we go, but if we stay at the house, so does she! She is such an amazing dog! I'm so glad Santa brought her to us 2 years ago!!
We had some friends join us for a few days. Zach is on Chase's baseball team. The boys had a great time "hunting" together! By the way, no animals were harmed on these adventures!

We took a walk down the road one morning and saw the freely roaming longhorns and the donkeys. The kids were so excited to see them all!

We even saw a deer that Sugar jumped out of the bushes only about 2 feet from Chase. Chase was holding his b.b. gun at the time and said, "Aw...I missed him. My safety was on!" I love the things that kid says!! He is hilarious!

Anyway..we had a wonderful time enjoying the outdoors while we were gone and can't wait to get back to San Marcos!!

Girl Scout Camp

2010-12-21T08:00:00.001-06:00

Mary Frances and I went on a girl scout day camping trip a few weeks ago with a few other Daisies in her troop. It was a gorgeous day to be outside!
I'm in love with this picture of her!
The younger girls went to the horse farm and "groomed" the horses with all types of special brushes!
This horse made me wish I was getting my hair brushed! She was really enjoying the attention!
After a long day of hiking, grooming, playing games, singing, and crafts, the girls crashed in the car.

We are so excited to be involved in scouts and to have all the opportunities that come with it!

...next up...GIRL SCOUT COOKIES!!!!

School Christmas Parties

2010-12-20T08:00:00.001-06:00

I spent several days this week at school parties! We had a blast. The elementary school had a fun festival-type event for the kids. They brought in blow-up slides and had stations set up in the gym for a candy-cane walk, snack time, tree decorations, and this precious photo op! I was so impressed! Thank you Warner PTO and Mr. Maness, our Principal!
Maya and Mary Frances are always up for a picture!

Payton and Mary Frances enjoyed their popsicles from Frosty the snowmen even though it was quite chilly outside!Mr. Maness even got in on the rides - in between classes!!
Chase's class sang some precious Christmas songs to us and then invited us to their room for snack time. We are really going to miss Foundry next year when Chase goes to kindergarten!

This is Chase with his teacher, Mrs. Zarazee who was out earlier in the school year from cancer surgery. She is now cancer FREE and having her last radiation treatments next week! Merry Christmas, Mrs. Zarazee!

I love my baby! Now that I've been substituting, I was afraid that I'd lost him to daddy, but over the last few days, I've had LOTS of unsolicited and surprise kisses! I needed them more than he could know!!

Camping

2010-12-18T21:39:00.003-06:00

We went on our first Boy Scout camping trip last weekend at Fairfield Lake State Park My parents bought us a tent for Christmas (and gave it to us early)! We bought a few other essentials - like chairs for hanging around the fire, a percolator for coffee, and a single burner stove - to make our trip a little easier!

We had a great time being out there, and we're looking forward to the next trip!

We were so excited that Jessie was able to come with us! Hopefully, she'll send me more pictures to add to this post!! :)
UPDATE: Here's one from Jessie..aren't they cute?

Christmas Tea Party 2010

2010-12-18T17:37:00.003-06:00

What a fun afternoon! Mary Frances and I had our 3rd Annual Mother/Daughter Christmas Tea Party, and it was a hit!

We had delicious food and hot tea in real china tea cups! I imagine that Mama Taylor (my great-grandmother) would have been so proud to know that her tea cups were being used by all these precious girls each year! Here are a few pictures from our afternoon!

Santa shops at Office Depot, too!!!

2010-12-18T09:50:00.001-06:00

Feed the Hungry

2010-12-17T22:39:00.003-06:00

Help me raise $750 for the Houston Food Bank by the end of the year! You can donate online by following this link...Houston Food Bank donations. Thanks for your generosity!

The Houston Food Bank…

• A private, nonprofit organization
• Seeks food donations, distributes to local
charitable programs
• Efficient operations: 95 cents of every dollar
donated feeds the hungry
• Certified member of Feeding America (formerly
America’s Second Harvest-The Nation’s Food
Bank Network)
• Founded 1982

12 Days of School

2010-12-17T08:39:00.003-06:00

This is a song Thomas made up this week. I asked him to write it out for his teacher, and to my surprise, he did! We made copy for the principal too! :) (Window panes are their math technique!)

On the __ day of school , my teacher made me do…

A bunch of spelling home work.

Two window panes.

Three bench marks.

Say four states.

Draw five shapes.

Name six presidents.

Read seven books.

Write eight stories
Recycle nine bottles.

Ten science projects.

Correct eleven mistakes
Stamp twelve cards.

On My honor...

2010-11-22T14:56:00.006-06:00

Thomas and Mary Frances joined scouts this fall. We are all so excited about the fun events to come and the life lessons to be learned!Mary Frances is a Daisy Scout. It comes before Brownies! We really can't wait to sell GS cookies in January!!!The scouts were in the Veterans' Day Parade at the school last week.

We have already been to one Girl Scout outing where the whole family got to play outside for a few hours and picnic. It was a nice change from our normal activities!

2010-11-07T13:35:00.001-06:00

In response to a picture of my dad with his deer, Mary Frances said, "when you lose your job, you should do things you like more often - to make you feel better!"

Detective Mary Frances

2010-11-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

I bought Mary Frances this cute trench coat, and she loves wearing it because it makes her look like a detective!I just couldn't resist taking her picture before I sent her off to school the other day! She is so cute! And, I love her taste for the fancier things like adding a ribbon to a regular headband! She is so creative -- reminds me of her Aunt Jessie!

Halloween 2010

2010-11-05T12:00:00.000-05:00

Hannah Montana, Batman, and Indiana Jones all showed up at our house this weekend!
We had a blast trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. I think we had at least twice as many trick-or-treaters as last year! It was so much fun!
Our neighbor, Marilyn, always has a good time at Halloween, too! We had to get our picture made with her!
Even Curly and Sugar had costumes to match the boys. Sugar didn't keep hers own for a minute, but Curly did great in his Batman costume!
Hannah's hair was a little too itchy. So, it didn't stay on long, but she still rocked all night long!
Indiana kept his candy in his satchel and had a hard time controlling his whip!
And Batman....
well, when the Joker showed up across the street from our house, he ran over and defended it! It was a fun night choc-full of candy, scary costumes, and fun! Not my favorite holiday to celebrate, but we had a good time!

Chase's First Pep Rally

2010-11-04T12:00:00.001-05:00

Chase finished his first football season this weekend, but we started the day with a pep rally! It was fun, but the best part of it was explaining to him what a pep rally is - that it was all about team spirit, etc. They ran through a run through...
watched the cheerleaders perform some cheers...
and even joined them for their typical half-time routine!
We decorated the cars, and everyone got into it!
Then, we took off in a caravan of purple and gold - ready for the game! It was a fun season, but I'm ready for a little break!!

Hope Fun Run

2010-11-03T14:14:00.002-05:00

Mary Frances and Thomas ran their first race last week! I was so proud of them.

Thomas ran a half mile...
and did great! I was crossing my fingers the whole time hoping he would just keep running! I guess I was worried that he might not stay motivated without me encouraging him along -- I guess he proved me wrong! He finished running! YAY!! I had tears in my eyes because I was so proud of him!

Mary Frances ran a quarter mile! I felt the same about her race! I was so excited that they were getting into something I've recently been enjoying! She finished - running, too!

YAY!!! I'm a proud mommy!

Ellen & Adam's Wedding

2010-10-18T12:30:00.006-05:00

Ray C. and I traveled to Charleston, South Carolina this weekend for his cousin's wedding. It was fun getting to see the extended family.

Ellen & Adam were married on Folly Beach and had their reception in the big house behind everyone in the picture below. It was so much fun!!Everyone walking out to the beach from our house to the ceremony.

Dad & Jaunice

One of my favorite parts was the "Very Manly Flower Man" actually throwing flower petals and carrying Ellen & Adam's dog, B.B., on a leash!
I even saw porpoises behind them during the vows! Could it get more perfect?
Adam's parents, Uncle Art & Aunt Gail
They planned everything so perfectly. The paper products all matched - from invitation to program. Ellen documented every special detail in a "fact sheet" for the guests at the rehearsal dinner. For example: the dress she wore at the rehearsal dinner was made from material Adam's dad brought back from Thailand while in the service; she wore an anklet made from something special belonging to her brother was died 3 years ago; and the arch was made by her father for her brother's wedding. There were many more, but the idea is that each detail was unique to her and Adam.
The cheese, cracker, and chutney spread on the table was amazing. Each item was labeled (in the coordinating paper).
Glen and Ray C. are enjoying the honeycomb at the end of the table. We actually scraped the honey out of the comb! It was an interesting conversation piece!
I love taking pictures of Grandma & Grandpa. I think Grandpa was tired of smiling! This was a silly smile just because I told him to smile! :)

I didn't take pictures of the steamed oysters that everyone picked on their own downstairs or the amazing dinner of Barbeque Pig (the whole thing) and many other amazing foods!

Ellen is a pastry chef and told me she did not want to talk about cake at her wedding! She made a delicious layer cake of brownie, chocolate chip cookie, and cheesecake! It was great, and to top it off they served it with milk in chilled old-style milk bottles!

They also made and served truffles, lemon curd, and Vanilla Bean Panacotta. It was AMAZING! I ate WAY too much, but it was delicious!!

It was a beautiful wedding, and I think they enjoyed it!

Black and White

2010-10-17T09:30:00.002-05:00

I was talking to my dad this week about a video one of my classes watched on the Rodney King beating. Mary Frances and Thomas were sitting with us and asked what riot meant. So, we began to explain to them a little of what happened..."Rodney King is a black man that was beaten by some white police officers, and when the police officers didn't go to jail for what they did, some of the black people in the city got very upset and started destroying things and hurting people."

After a good explanation of what happened, Mary Frances said, "Mommy, I've never heard anyone say "black people and white people", but I think I know what you are talking about. I think you are calling the bad people "black" and the good people "white"."

I thought she made an interesting inference, but I was shocked that she had NEVER heard the terms before. I told her that I loved that she didn't know what I was talking about. We really have tried hard to not point out the differences. We are surrounded by people from many different cultures. We have talked a lot about friends who are "brown", but we don't want the kids to grow up with the prejudices that so many people have.

Anyway, I explained to her that we are considered "white" people, to which she was a little confused since we are not actually white in color. So, I said, "can you guess who the black people are?"

She was stumped. I then gave her a few examples of friends who would be considered "black" which still baffled her since they are not, in fact, black! I even had to explain how some of her friends have one "black" parent and one "white" parent.

Anyway...it was a fun conversation! I really do love that she is six and half and just now hearing that for the first time!!

Shots no More

2010-09-29T17:53:00.002-05:00

Finally, after 2 years of fire ant venom shots, Thomas has been cleared!!! Apparently, his "mild" reaction to 22 fire ant bites a few weeks ago was his "graduation ceremony" from the shots! We will just keep a close eye on him!!

Hooray!! He doesn't get poked anymore and we don't have to fork out $30-60 or more a month!!

Astros Up Close

2010-09-24T09:39:00.000-05:00

We had the opportunity to hang out with some former Astros players on Sunday at the game. We got tickets to sit in the private suite that the alumni were hanging out in. It was really neat to talk with some of them.

Thomas has a ball covered with autographs from former players including Larry Dierker whose jersey is even retired with the Astros and who also happens to be a member of our church and the reason we were there anyway! :)

Larry was asked to give an inspirational speech after the game and to introduce the Christian band, Mercy Me, for a concert. So, we got to walk out on the field with him and hang out in the dugout for a little while.

How cool is that??? Of course, the dugout was nasty with sunflower seeds, drink cups, and spit everywhere, but we were excited to be down there! (That's Larry's wife, Judy, sitting with us.)

The supply box in the dugout....plenty of tape, seeds, and gum!

He looks like a natural, huh?

Mercy Me walked right past us and down into the dugout with us just before going out to play.

I got my picture taken with one of my favorite baseball players while we were there! :)

FRYday Celebration

2010-09-23T09:23:00.001-05:00

(This is Ray C. with two men who work very hard on our campus - Gary and Paul!)

We celebrated the pending purchase of the land for our new church last Friday. We called it FRYday since our land is on Fry Rd. and we call our campus the Fry Road Campus!

Anyway...We had a fun time tailgating, hanging out with friends from church and even walking out around the property!
Ray C. thanking everyone for coming out!

This is us in front of the new property! It feels like we've made it to the promised land - well, we can only look at it right now, but it should be ours very soon!

Praying over the new land.

It truly has been an amazing experience to walk out to the land with all of these faithful people and to remember what God has called us to! He is faithful!

A sketch of our 20 acre site!

Ray C. prepares everyone for our walk on the land.

Godfrey joined us fresh off the plane from his summer-long sabbatical in Hawaii! Can you tell? He asked everyone to please not abandon his discovery of a long-long theology that he has now embraced - "hang loose"!

On the church bus...going to visit the property!

Ray C. thanks Larry Dierker for his support of Foundry after a day of golfing at the annual Foundry/Dierker Golf Classic.

Living my Dream

2010-09-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

I've caught myself complaining a lot lately about carting kids around and doing daily chores, but I've started to remind myself that I am actually living my dream!

I have three precious children, a husband who adores me (faults and all), and I have the opportunity to be at home and take care of them (for now)! I really do enjoy cleaning the house, cooking, and making sure things are in order for the next item on the calendar! So, why do I complain? I don't know, but I've realized that Paul's words were not written to children. They were written to adults. "Do ALL things without arguing and complaining!" We use it a lot for the kids, but I need it more than they do! Maybe if I change my attitude, they will too!

So, I am working on it! When I get to the end of my life, all I want to look back and know is that I was a great mother, wife, and Christian. If I never get to travel the world or own a brand new vehicle, that will be okay with me. I'm not going to dream about bigger material things because I already have everything I WANT!

As I look to my future, I want my children to love the Lord with all of their hearts and to love His people the way He does. I want my husband to have all the support he needs at home so that he can serve God in the way he has been called. That's it! That's all God has given me at this point, but it's all I can handle! This is what He has called me to BE, and I am grateful!

I just wish it was as easy as it sounds. Maintaining the attitude of Christ is a daily struggle, but I'm working on it!

Go Vikings!

2010-09-21T09:00:00.001-05:00

Chase had his first real football game last week. It was so confusing for all of us! There were two teams on one regular-sized football field, each with 40 yards! So, the boys attention was divided between their game, the other game, and oh so many cheerleaders!! We were excited that Mrs. Susan came to see us. She dressed in purple and came bearing gifts! The kids had a blast (and lots of snacks)!

I think Chase was more excited about the cheerleaders than his actual game. This is our neighbor, Jillian. She and Chase were so excited to be on the same "team".

This isn't Chase, but I love how proud these boys are of the flags they just took!
Just the girls...

My Blog in Print

2010-09-20T09:00:00.001-05:00

I finally printed my blog! I got my HUGE, 300+ page book last week, and we have had the best time reading through it! The kids like for me to read it to them at bedtime, and, of course, I am loving every minute of it! It has been so much fun to remember the funny things that have happened in the past four years.

More than anything, I am thankful that I have it all recorded. There are so many things I would have never remembered but that make me laugh so hard, I cry! Our life has truly been an adventure.

Luke Sywalker of the Battle Hughes

2010-09-19T09:38:00.001-05:00

Meet Chase's new pet....a Bearded Dragon!

We love Luke (which really is short for Luke Skywalker of the Battle Hughes)! "Beardies" are known for being content just sitting on your shoulder and hanging out. He did that at first, but since his last name is Hughes now, sitting is just not on the top of his agenda! He'll sit for a little while, but he would rather crawl down your back and run around a little. So, we got him a leash - seriously! It is the funniest thing. You can't walk him like a dog, but you can put him down and make sure he doesn't run away! I'll post a picture sometime soon with him on the leash!

Wondering what he eats?...crickets, mealworms, collard greens, and carrots! Mmmm...aren't you hungry now?

And he sleeps in his desert aquarium in Chase's room as content as a little lizard can be!!

Legos Galore

2010-09-18T09:33:00.000-05:00

Thomas is REALLY into Legos right now! He was so excited to be able to buy this Toy Story 3 Lego train with some gift cards he got for his birthday! Now that he's older, he wants more expensive things. So, it took a few of us pitching in to contribute enough to get it for him!

Anyway...we had the best time building it. Mary Frances and I helped with the caboose (which we started with),
but Thomas finished the rest of the train on his own.
It took hours broken up over two days, but he finally finished it and has been playing with it since!

Sisters

2010-09-17T09:31:00.000-05:00

My sister, Jessica, came to Texas for Thomas' birthday and the Labor Day Weekend. We had so much fun hanging out. With the kids in school, we had the chance to spend some quality time together - shopping!! I am so thankful for my amazing sister! I just wish she lived closer - hint, hint!! :)

Homework

2010-09-16T11:09:00.000-05:00

So school is in full swing. Thomas is anxious to get his homework done each day and move on to better things. Mary Frances is so excited she has homework, and Chase can't wait to get to kindergarten to get homework!

Thomas is doing GREAT reading and continues to do well in math. This year, he also has social studies homework and QUIZZES!! Silly as it may sound, I can't believe he's old enough for quizzes. We actually have to study spelling and social studies! I'm nervous when I know he has a quiz coming up, but he's making all A's so far - his first year with true grades!!

Mary Frances just had her first night of math homework. Of course it took all of 2 minutes, but she was so excited! She also brought home her first reading book of the year. We had such a hard time reading last year that I was DREADING the book, but she did GREAT!! I couldn't believe how much she had improved!

My kids are growing up! I know that's the whole point of what I'm doing. So, why am I so surprised?

Thank you, God, for growing children. Thank you for the opportunity to mold these precious little people into someone you can use for your kingdom!

Thomas turns 8

2010-09-16T09:00:00.000-05:00

Thomas asked for a baseball party this year! So, we reserved one of the fields we play on and had a pickup game with some cake and ice cream!

Chase enjoys some time up to bat!
Mary Frances was so excited to be included and have a chance to wear her softball gear!
Thomas & his school friend and teammate, Evan
Thomas with our neighbor, James
George is also a school friend and teammate
This was one of my easier cakes
We had such a fun time watching the dads play with the kids! I'm pretty sure they had fun, too!
I was thankful for Jessie coming for the weekend, too! She's going to start coming for all of the kids' birthdays! I'm so excited to know she'll be here!

Are you ready for some football?

2010-09-15T09:00:00.000-05:00

Check out this season's newest flag football player...At 48 pounds, he stands just under 4 feet and has a mean face that will make you cry!

Taking down the giant...Check Chase out holding that big guy! He has at least 2 years and 20 pounds on him!
Sir, yes sir!
I'm coming for you...
Maggie and Uncle Glen got to see Chase's first scrimmage! We were so excited they came for the weekend!
Good game! Vikings Rule!

Thomas & Mary Frances go to school

2010-09-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

Thomas and Mary Frances were so excited to get back into school! We were all ready for a routine! Mary Frances is in 1st grade this year, and Thomas is in 2nd! I can't believe it! I feel so old!

Look at my babies! They are ready for mommy & daddy to leave so they can do their thing!
Mary Frances with her fancy lunchbox from Honey!
Mrs. Mosley is Mary Frances' 1st grade teacher!

Mommy Dates

2010-09-13T09:00:00.000-05:00

Before school started, I took each of the kids on a special date to spend time with them individually. We try to do it every once-in-a-while just to be sure everyone gets special time with us. Anyway, I just wanted to post a few pics of me with the kids since they are few and far between!Thomas and I went to the Children's Museum in Houston and then out for ice cream at Baskin Robins! It was so much fun! The museum really is amazing, but I can only do it with one child at a time!
Chase wanted to get a build-a-bear. So, we went to the Galleria and picked out a special bear who also got a "Darth Vader" costume!
Mary Frances and I went to the movies to see "Despicable Me" and then to Chick-fil-A for an ice dream! Yummmmyyyy....

I had so much fun spending time with them and having time to talk with them without being interrupted!

Thank you, Jessie!!

2010-09-12T13:00:00.000-05:00

Thomas let Jessie pull a tooth that had been loose for AT LEAST 2 months!! She numbed his gums with some type of Orajel and then tied a string around it and pulled! I couldn't believe he let her do it, but it didn't even hurt. He did complain about his tongue feeling funny, though! The medicine worked a little too good! :)

Grandaddy's Workshop

2010-09-12T02:00:00.000-05:00

Anyone who knows my dad, knows how much he loves to build! He builds amazing things, too! So, naturally he enjoys sharing his hobby with the kids!

For our most recent visit, he planned a pretty big project to complete with Thomas - a Soapbox Derby Car! He worked hard for weeks before we even arrived prepping the project and even putting it all together to be sure it worked before taking it all apart so he and Thomas could build it together!They spent all day that Saturday building the car, and I documented most of it in pictures. My favorites are the ones of my dad smiling as he enjoyed spending the special time with Thomas!

I think this is the coolest things for a granddad to do with his grandkids! This will be a lifelong memory!

After our visit earlier in the summer, Granddaddy built three treasure chests and filled them with pirate booty (gum coins)! Then, the kids used their compasses he had given them in June to find their chests in the yard! He is so creative!!

Down on the Farm

2010-09-11T09:00:00.000-05:00

Just before school started, we went back to Florida for a short trip. We stayed with Papa and Peppy, but we spent some time on the farm, too! The kids always have a blast playing out there!

We had fun seeing the chickens and goats they have now!
I was really excited that Jordan went with us! It made for a fun trip! Finley LOVED Jordan! I must admit that I was jealous! Finley never talks to me, but she wouldn't let go of Jordan!
I can never resist snapping pictures of the kids with their grandparents! I love this one of Chase with his Papa!

Kentucky Friends

2010-09-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

We were thrilled to be able to spend a day with our friends, the Brown's, this summer! They came down from Illinois to visit!Mark and Laura were our neighbors in Kentucky when we were in seminary! We had Thomas and Izak 3 months apart. So, the boys were very good friends! We love getting them back together!

Mark and Laura have three beautiful children - Izak, Esther, and Josiah! I can't believe I didn't get a picture of Esther! She is absolutely precious! I loved visiting with them!
The kids had a good time, too!

Happy Birthday, Grandmary

2010-09-09T09:00:00.001-05:00

Even though Grandmary died when Thomas and Mary Frances were babies, the kids still talk about her and miss her! Surprisingly, Chase seems to miss her the most. I think it upsets him that he never met her.

Anyway, they never cease to amaze me with their ideas of how to invite her to parties or tell her things. They've suggested using a really tall ladder and throwing an invitation REALLY high into the sky in the past.

On Grandmary's birthday this year, July 31st, Chase suggested we send her some balloons! I was so excited that it was something we could actually do! So, we got 2 balloons (just in case) and wrote a birthday note to her. We sang Happy Birthday and let the balloons fly! It was so special. I'm so glad we were able to celebrate her someway! We love her so much! She was such a special lady, and we miss her SOO much!

Mmmm...Pancakes

2010-09-08T14:08:00.000-05:00

Chase Turns 5

2010-09-08T13:56:00.002-05:00

Chase turned five in July! So, we celebrated with a Batman party at our pool! The kids had a blast watching the daddy splash contest off the diving board!
Chase was so excited about his cake, but it melted before we made it to it!

Three is too much

2010-07-09T09:34:00.002-05:00

Who decided that three meals a day was a good idea? It certainly wasn't a mother! All I do is cook and clean, load and unload! I understand how people who used to love to cook can't stand it after their kids are gone!

Three times a day???? It would be so much easier if everyone just ate once a day! My kitchen would stay clean, and I could get so much more done!! Agh...

I Slept in!

2010-07-08T10:15:00.002-05:00

AMAZING!! I have actually been able to sleep in a few times this summer. That may not sound like much to the average person, but it has been YEARS since I have slept in even once!! With three kids, someone is always up early (before 7) and wanting food, drinks, or entertainment! So, I was surprised when I woke up at 9:00 this morning!

The kids had been up for a while. So, when I walked our of my room, I saw chocolate syrup and milk still sitting on the table and the kids were playing the Wii. Chase piped up and said, "We snuck Fritos while you were sleeping. Mary Frances added, "and we made chocolate milk for coffee!"

There was no "hello" or "good morning", just stating what had happened while I was snoozing. Who could blame them? I just laughed and put the milk and syrup away!

I was just thankful for sleep!

Celebrating the Fourth

2010-07-07T21:36:00.000-05:00

We were invited to Lake Livingston to celebrate the 4th of July with a couple in our church who are getting married next weekend. I am so glad we took them up on it! We had a blast!This is Ms. Susan with the girls. Susan had another friend and her 2 girls there, as well.

The kids played together so well all weekend. There were NO fights, and they entertained each other very well!
The kids swam like fish once we convinced them there were no sharks in the lake!
Ms. Susan LOVES children! She spoiled them to death and had a blast doing it!

"Uncle Mike" is marrying Ms. Susan next weekend and our church. I have been working with them on the wedding and engagement party. So, we are excited about this weekend coming up!

I absolutely love that smile on Thomas' face!
Chase looked like a little rubber ducky when he got out in the water on his own in this green tube! It was so cute!

The girls played "tea party" with all the fancy clothes Ms. Susan had for them in her toy bin!
Someone thinks he's all that!!

Jordan's Wedding

2010-07-06T21:25:00.002-05:00

My friend and business partner got married last weekend! We had such a blast! Ray C. was the pastor, Mary Frances was the flower girl, and I made sure it all happened! Jessica even flew in to help me out!

Mary Frances enjoyed a few Shirley Temple's over the course of the weekend!
She also found a new boyfriend, much to her daddy's dismay!
Jordan was a gorgeous bride!
This is Jordan with her sisters Jaye and Jensen.
Mr. and Mrs. Simpson make a very beautiful couple!
...and as for these two....

We all got our nails done the day before the wedding!

A Mohawk?

2010-06-23T12:00:00.002-05:00

UPDATE: The mohawk was shaved due to its inspiration of less than desirable behavior!

The boys have been begging for mohawks for over a year. When it came down to it, Thomas decided to keep his hair, but Chase was all for it! I told them they had to wait until after Papa and Peppy's wedding, though! I didn't think they would care to have mohawks in their pictures!

Anyway, I gave Chase a fairly tame mohawk last week that was a little subtle, but today, daddy decided he needed a real one! It's a little too much for me, but I guess I can deal with it for a little while this summer!

That's my baby!!!!

Little Brother and Sister

2010-06-22T14:16:00.000-05:00

Thomas has requested a lock on his door to keep out his pesky brother and sister! He has been enjoying some time to himself lately but can't keep out the little ones since his door doesn't lock. So, we decided he was old enough to have a lock. I took all the kids to Lowe's last week to pick it out. Of course, Chase and Mary Frances wanted one too, but I explained to them about privileges you get when you are older and that Thomas was old enough and responsible enough to have a lock.

He was so excited to have it! When Ray C. came home that night, they worked together to install it! My little boy is growing up!!

12 Years and counting...

2010-06-22T12:00:00.001-05:00

We've been married for 12 years!! We had so much fun celebrating our anniversary on Sunday night! Actually, we celebrated two nights! Ray C. surprised me on Saturday night by picking me up from the church after my wedding and taking me out for seafood! He showed up with a dozen roses and a GREAT card!! Then, we went to my favorite restaurant on Sunday night - The Melting Pot! Yummm... We've been celebrating anniversaries with them since our first dating anniversary 15 years ago! It is such a great atmosphere for talking and enjoying one another. We sat in a secluded booth where we couldn't see anyone else! We talked for a long time about memories when we first started dating, in high school, and laughed at the things the other remembered! It was a very special evening!
We both agreed that we are more in love now than we were as teenagers - crazy as that may sound! We got married when we were 20 and 21, and I wouldn't change a thing! It has been a crazy fun experience that I wouldn't trade all the money in the world for!! Thanks, Honey!

Father's Day

2010-06-21T13:48:00.002-05:00

Our Father's Day started EARLY!! The kids wanted to make breakfast for daddy which meant we had to get up at 5:30 to make it so he could have it before leaving for church! We had yummy biscuits, eggs, and fruit! We also got to give him his gifts this morning! Normally, we have to wait until later in the day because the kids don't usually see him on Sunday mornings!
After church, we ate lunch out (because I locked my keys in my car and had to wait near the theatre until Ray C. came back past from the other campus!) Anyway...after that, we were tired. So we took a nap and headed for the pool!
The kids are all swimming so well this summer. They are all jumping off the diving board into the 12 ft. pool. They will taking swimming lessons again in a few weeks to improve their skills. I just want to be sure they know exactly what they are doing!

After an hour and a half at the pool, we headed back home to get ready to go out for our anniversary...more in the next post!!

Building with Grandaddy

2010-06-14T11:12:00.000-05:00

Whenever something breaks at our house, the first things my kids say is, "Well, we have to wait for grandaddy to come back to Texas to fix it!" They know how good he is at fixing things. He loves to build things, and we are blessed to have several beautiful pieces of furniture that he has built for us over the years.
Before we came, he went to Home Depot and got aprons, hammers, and building projects - for FREE!! They gave him two different projects to do with the kids that they usually do in their Saturday workshops. I don't think they are usually free, but he caught them on a good day!
They had so much fun. They built these flower pots and race car shelves!
Check out Mary Frances' pink hammer that Grandaddy painted just for her!
That's my dad's fantastic workshop! Every man's dream!!