Home Sweet Home

Warning:  the following post contains a ridiculous amount of pictures.  Please view (and enjoy) this blog at your own risk!

Well, we are back from Grandpa's house.  We were so sad to have to leave so soon but glad to be back home with Kris and Andrew.  It was a short but jam-packed-full-of-fun weekend!  After finally getting packed and hitting the road on Friday we arrived at around 5:30, having only forgotten my swimsuit (I told you all I always forget something).  No worries, I ended up not needing it anyway! 

After visiting at the house for a while we headed off (with gameboys in tow) to the graduation at Ryan's high school football field.   The graduates entered the stadium to their senior class song and sat mid-field.  

We heard the class president and the valedictorian give motivating speeches to their peers before they all leave the safety of Mt. Pleasant High School and set forth into the "real world".   Sitting there in the bleachers we watched the baby of our family cross the 50 yard line stage into adulthood.  

To say that we are all proud is an understatement.  Way to go Ryan!!!

Ryan and Daddy

The four of us "kids".  Me, Leslie, Robert and Ryan

On Saturday we all went to lunch at a little Italian restaurant called Luigi's.  Now, I am not a huge fan of Italian food but this place is wonderful.  At Leslie's recommendation I had the cannelloni with beef and spinach and it was to die for.  As I was looking over the menu before ordering I noticed my weakness on the dessert menu. Cheesecake, key lime cheesecake to be exact!  So after a delicious lunch we ordered some cheesecake and the tiramisu, which I think Hannah had more of than anyone else did!  

Once our bellies were full we headed back to grandpa's house.  Aunt Leslie headed to Longview to spend the rest of the weekend with a friend and the rest of us headed to the backyard for a good ole' water balloon fight!  Uncle Ryan, Uncle Robert, Aunt Honey, Hannah and Ethan had fun getting soaked while Grandpa and I had the task of filling the balloons.  

What a fun day!!

On Sunday before we headed home Grandpa, Uncle Robert and I got up early and took the kids fishing at a lake in the backyard of a friend of my dad's.   It was absolutely beautiful out there.  I could have sat on that deck with my feet in the water all day long!

 It was Hannah and Ethan's first time fishing and you could definitely tell!  We weren't able to find many worms to use as bait so we ended up using some fajita meat that we had at the house, which worked out great.  The kids wouldn't help bait the hook so I certainly don't need to tell you that they refused to take the fish off of the hook!  They did however each reluctantly hold a fish, pose for a picture and toss it back into the water!  It was so much fun and Ethan especially enjoyed it.

This is Hannah with Gracie and Blue, the "owners" of the lake.  They swam while we fished!

What a great morning!

Before I wrap it up I have to share some pictures of my dad's garden.  I was shocked at how much he has growing out there.  I hope everyone in town likes tomatoes!  Aside from all of the tomatoes, he has cucumbers, corn, watermelon and...... I know I am forgetting something.  Oh, and he has a cute little fig tree!

This is one of those hangy-upside-down-tomato-grower-things.  They really work, see!!

Here is that cute little fig tree!

Oh, and here's something else that's growing at my Dad's house

These 5 little bundles of furry goodness are about a week old and Mama cat has decided that the barbeque grill makes a good and safe nursery!

Whew, I think that's about it.  The ride home was uneventful and we actually all made it to bed early for once!

If you are still with me after this massive post,  have a great weekend!!

The Suitcase

Who would have ever thought that kids could get such enjoyment from an empty suitcase?  Upon returning from a super fun weekend trip to my dad's (more on that later) I plopped my suitcase onto the kitchen floor and began unpacking.  Dirty clothes into the washer? Check.  Shoes back into the closet? Check.  Shampoo and hair straightener back in the bathroom cabinet? Check.  Andrew buckled into his new "ride"????  Check!   

And this has been the scene for the last 3 days at our house.  He was having so much fun riding as I was unpacking that after I had finished I moved the empty suitcase into the living room where Andrew has enjoyed hours of fun.  I was especially grateful for his new "toy" yesterday as I had a stomach virus and was pretty much out of commission for the entire day.  All three kids played for hours taking turns buckling each other into the suitcase and letting their imaginations take them somewhere far far away!  

Although the suitcase really doesn't 

go with the decor in our living room I'm thinking I'll leave it out for a while.  After all, everyone needs to go for a ride sometimes.

What I should be doing...

So,  I am sitting here blogging when I should be packing.  I just can't get motivated.  I would much rather watch my naked baby play in the sandbox.  Is that so wrong?  The weather is absolutely beautiful outside and I can't pull myself into the house to get my chores done. 

The big kids and I are leaving tomorrow after school to head to Grandpa's house (or Daddy as I prefer to call him, thankyouverymuch.  Yes, I am 32 years old and still call my dad Daddy.... AND?) for uncle Ryan's high school graduation and I have a ton of things to get done before we hit the road.  I haven't even begun to think about packing.  Partly because I really can't pack until I get this mountain of laundry finished and because I tend to be a bit of a procrastinator.  So, the washer and dryer are going now,  and I have managed to put my travel toothpaste and deodorant into a ziplock and that's about it.  It's pretty evident that the kids won't be of any help packing since I have been waiting for 3 days for them to bring me their Gameboys and chargers so I can pack them.  Oh well.  I'll some how get it all done.  I always do.  And sometimes without forgetting something, although not very often.

My Dad, along with much of my family, live in Winfield, a very small town in east Texas.  Some of my most favorite memories as a child have to do with this place, whether it be at my grandparents farm for holidays or walking along the railroad tracks with my cousins.  I love being there, I always have.  It's not exciting there.  There's really nothing to do there.  You have to drive a good distance to even get to a grocery store.  There are no traffic lights and only a handful of stop signs.  But it is home.  This is probably the only place that I feel like I can relax.  There is no traffic and no one rushes around, you just get there when you get there.  I love the change of pace.  It is so nice to slow down and just ..... enjoy. 

 All of this talk of home has made me want to get my rear in gear.  I need to go pack people!  Have a great weekend everyone.

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I am not looking for a new paint color for our living room.  This would be absurd seeing as how I just got the living room "finished" about 6 months ago and it's completely unnecessary.   

I did not spend $42.00 on a skirt on Saturday and have buyers remorse almost immediately afterwards and vow to return it when the store opens today.  I do not have a problem spending that much for a single article of clothing for myself when I know I could get several things for the kids for $42.00!  I will not be going to Target to look for a less expensive skirt later!

I have not gotten hooked on McDonalds Iced Coffee.  I did not resort to this less expensive form of caffeine crack after my Starbucks gift card ran out and I needed a "fix" but wasn't willing to shell out the $4.00 that Starbucks makes me pay when I don't have a gift card!  

I did not go against my better judgement and allow Hannah to have cable in her room.  I said that I would never allow and we all no I'm no softy and would never give in!  

This might also be a good time to mention that I am not taking my sweet Hannah to the Jonas Brother's concert in a couple of weeks!   But IF I were taking her I definitely wouldn't be excited about it and just glad that she is OVER Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana!.

I did not think it was beyond sweet (and funny) that my wonderful sister in law GOT INTO the ride-on Ice Cream truck with Andrew the other day at the mall!

(is there really any need to wonder why my kids like her so much?)  

Have a great week everyone!

Turn me loose, set me free!

I have never denied that my Andrew is a handful, but I am beginning to wonder if he is more than even I can handle.  It appears that the little Houdini has finally figured out how to unbuckle his 5-point harness carseat!  I say finally because I kind of knew it was coming, although I had hoped it wouldn't be until he didn't actually need to use a carseat anymore.

  No. Such. Luck. 

 For several months he has been able to loosen his straps by pulling the strap adjuster lever, which is no easy task for someone actually buckled into the seat.   After he mastered this he got to work on the chest clip, which I knew wouldn't take him long to figure out because he had already figured out how to unbuckle the straps of the grocery cart and it's basically the same concept.  Well, about a day and a half later he had the chest clip mastered.  Well, friday. Friday he did it.  He was able to actually UNBUCKLE the carseat.  You know the big red button?  Yeah, well he can now press it hard enough to release the buckle!  

Lord. Help. Me.

So what's a mom to do, aside from duct taping him to his seat (which I'm fairly certain he could wriggle out of anyway)?  I am at a loss.  I'm not sure my sanity can handle being stuck at home during the day because Andrew can't be trusted in the carseat!  But I'm also not sure my nerves can handle anymore glances into my rearview mirror only to discover my little monkey halfway out of his seat either!  

A lot of times I will drive with one hand and hold on to the strap adjuster with the other to keep him from loosening it but this really isn't practical if I have to do anything other than drive in a straight line!  I have had to pull over numerous times to re-strap, re-tighten, and re-DIRECT Andrew's attention from his straps.  But now that he can do a full on un-buckle you may not be seeing Andrew and me out in public until he is 4 ft. tall and 80 lbs.  

Lord. Help. Me.

Show Us Where You Live Friday.

I have been reading Kelly's blog for some time now and have enjoyed "Show us where you live Friday" since she started it several weeks ago.  She chooses a different room of the house each week and everyone shares (if they would like too) their room of that week.  Up until now I have just been a lurker, having fun peeking at everyone elses great rooms, but thought I'd participate this week (at least partially). 

The theme this week is Children's Rooms.  I have three children but I have decided to share my Hannah's (9) room this week, mostly because she is my only daughter, her room is so cheerful and because she is home sick today and wants me too!  Maybe the rotation will make it to kids rooms again and I'll show the boy's rooms!

So without further ado.... 

Hannah's Room

The letters she and I worked on together.

Hannah is an avid reader and loves listening to music.

Her fish "Fred the Red Fish" sits on top of her bookshelf.

Hannah's nightstand, complete with some treasured pictures, a lamp and her latest read!

 

These canvases (that she made with little help) hang on either side of her window

Hannah painted this when she was 5 and it has hung somewhere in her room ever since!

Thanks for visiting!

Yummy Goodness!

Is there anything yummier than home grown veggies?  Well,  I can think of a couple of things, but that's beside the point.   Anyhow,  over the weekend we went to my mom's house for a barbeque.  When we pulled up my stepdad, Al,  was showing off his garden to his nephew.  Row after row of healthy, lush, colorful vegetables.  Admittedly,  I have never had much of an interest in the actual planting and growing part of gardening but I certainly enjoy the fruit (or veggies in this case :)) of Al's labor.  This year he scaled back a little on his planting as it getting more difficult for him to keep up, but nonetheless, everything he did plant is wonderful.  He has cucumbers, green beans, onions, tomatoes, squash and some other stuff I didn't recognize!  

One of my favorite things each summer is homemade pickles and fresh homemade salsa, yum.  

This was my dinner last night.  Fresh steamed green beans...... along with some brown rice.  That's it.  No more. No less.

Yummy Goodness!