I'm back....

Hello there.

Is anyone out there?

I would not blame you if you jumped ship and deleted me from your blog roll; after all, it has been well over a month since my last posting, but no worries I'm back now to catch you up on what we have been doing the past month and a half.

April 16th - Danny's Homecoming.

(This above photo is what happens when you leave your camera on manual mode with a shutter speed of 1/30th of a second trying to catch action.  Nope, it's not clear, but it's a keeper, after all it's the moment I was after.)

Overall, Danny enjoyed his business trip (minus the heat & the plane ride) to Singapore. It rains there everyday and the temperature was in the low 90s with 100% humidity. He said it never cooled down, not even at night.  He did enjoy that Singapore is super clean (no trash anywhere, the fines are outrage), has awesome food, beautiful scenery and very friendly people. Somewhere he would consider traveling back to, only in the winter (if they have a winter?)

Here's a link to the pictures he took while he was there.  Singapore

April 19th - The Beginning of the Whirlwind

Danny took the day off work and we hung out at the house. I started my Week in the Life project from Ali Edwards's blog. The project involves documenting an entire week of your life with photos and words. I made it through the week carrying my camera with me everywhere and documenting our life. I am still in the process of putting everything together, but when I have the album completed I will share it with you. It is definitely something I will do again. I really enjoyed the process and think it will be cool looking back on it several years from now.

April 20th - Braden's Birthday!

Our little boy turned three. We had a small celebration with our family opening gifts and eating ice-cream cake. He got a new bicycle that he was super happy about.

April 23rd - G-ma, Grandpa Jerry and Aunt Erin arrived from out-of-town.

(Brynn and Braden help carry in their bags.)

April 24th - Brynn's Birthday!

Our little girl is five! Another small celebration with family opening gifts and eating chocolate cake with white frosting and pink flowers (her request). She was surprised with her very on cupcake maker.

April 25th - The BIG party!

Another birthday celebration, this time with all our friends and family for both Brynn and Braden at Main Event. This was the first year we have not had their party at our home and the excitement over this party was insane, especially for Brynn.  It is all they talked about the weeks prior to this day. They had a blast and I am so glad we did this and would do it again in a heartbeat (especially since I did not have anything to clean up).

After the party we had a big surprise for Brynn and Braden, but it required a nap first (which there were no complaints about). After their naps, we woke them up and took them to see Disney on Ice, which was awesome. It was geared more towards little girls and Braden figured this out after the first half hour, but they did have a Cars scene he was crazy about (and so was I).  Brynn enjoyed every minute, she kept saying, "Hey, I know this song."

The next week was 'recovery' week, My mom, Jerry and Erin headed back home, Danny started back on a normal work schedule, the kids went back to school and I got caught up on laundry, making room for the new toys and getting our house back in order which only led to the bright idea of having a garage sale. I think it was the fastest I had ever prepared for a garage sale, but in the end it was worth it. It always feels good to purge out the old stuff. Now, if I can just keep the new stuff coming in. ;-)

By now, I have made it to the week of May10th, which is when all the craziness starts at Brynn and Braden's school. There was Splash Day for each of them on two different days, end of year lunch celebrations, Spring Fest, teacher's gifts, class photos and Graduation for Brynn. And let me tell you, I was not prepared for the Graduation ceremony. I was well aware of the fact they would be walking across the stage in their cap and gowns getting their diploma, but I was not prepared for the flash forward that played out in my mind. Sitting there watching how proud she was with the biggest smile ever on her face put me several months into the future watching her walk into her kindergarten class. I am so excited for her, but at the same time, the reality my baby girl is growing up really hit me.  This was her last year home with me.

Our Little Graduate!

May 18th, 2010

May 21st - Headed to Hobbs, MN

Packed up, loaded down (literally) we are headed to my mom and Jerry's for my stepsister, Erin's high school graduation. It's about a seven-hour drive and for the most part the kids did pretty well. After all, this time they did not have any movies to watch. They each had their own personal backpacks packed with items they wanted to bring.

Braden: His drawing board,Leap Frog, a few Thomas the Train books, three matchbox cars (an ambulance, fire truck and police car) and a Thomas the Train motorized train.

Brynn: Her drawing board, a pad of paper with markers, a few coloring books, her baby doll and her Leap Frog.

The scenery is not really much to write home about especially after you pass Brady, TX. Up to that point, you are going through winding hills covered with green trees and wild flowers.  After that it is brown with a few patches of green. Once you pass San Angelo, it becomes flat and brown with the exception of the big blue sky overhead. There is an area in West Texas we go through covered in windmills (pinwheels is what Brynn calls them) that is pretty cool, but after that it is fields of dirt blowing across the highway (literally).

May 23rd - We headed back home. It was a long drive and we got in late.

May 25th - The Tooth Fairy visits our home. Yes, that's right Brynn lost her first tooth. Well, actually, Daddy pulled it out, but it was at the request of our daughter. And if you sitting there with you mouth open, we were to. Apparently, the extremely loose tooth was bothering her and she was agonizing over the fact she might swallow it in her sleep and wanted it out. (Good thing this happened while Danny was here, because I really don't think I would have been able to pull it out).

May 27th - I did a photo shoot for a girlfriend of mine who happens to be a make-up artist. She is working on building her portfolio and asked me to take some pictures for her. It was something new and different for me, so of course I was up for the challenge. It didn't hurt that her client was photogenic.

Well that about sums it up to date. We are glad the weekend is here and we have no big plans. We are just going to stay home, enjoy the sun and use the grill so I have very little dishes to clean. Have a safe and good Memorial Day weekend!

P.S. I will be back, I promise!

The count down is on....

In less than two hours, we will be heading out the door to pick up Danny from the airport.  Yippee!

No Pain, No Gain

I am SO sore. My legs hurt, my shoulders hurt, my arms hurt, my back hurts, muscles I was not even aware of hurt, EVERY THING hurts. I can barely type this blog post as my forearms hurt in a way I never thought possible. This morning it took two hands to grab the gallon of milk from the refrigerator and putting my socks on was excruciating.

What you ask is responsible for such pain?

Well...it all started with the decision not to do a full garden this year, so the huge lime stone rocks we used to create the garden needed a new home and my girlfriend Darlyne volunteered to take them off our hands. It's a win, win situation right?

Therefore, yesterday while the kids were at school Darlyne and I decided to tackle the rocks and get them from our house to hers. She showed up prepared with her husband's truck, a shovel, gloves, a wheelbarrow and a great attitude. One thing I do not think she realized was just how big and heavy these rocks were going to be.

There were 32 rocks in all and our system went something like this; dig up rock, lift into wheelbarrow, haul to the front yard (which is not a hop, skip and a jump), lift into truck and repeat. It literally took both of us to lift each rock; this was clearly not a single woman job. Because the rocks were so heavy (and we were not sure just how much weight her husband's truck could hold) we ended up taking half a load to her house and unloading them in her back yard and then came back to get the second half.

Needless to say; in the middle of all our hard work, high fivin' each other and patting ourselves on the back my dear husband calls from Singapore. I proudly tell him what we are doing and the conversation goes something like this:

Me: "How heavy do you think these rocks are?"

His response: "Oh, about 40 pounds."

Me: "What? No way...they weigh more than that."

Him: "Okay, maybe 50 pounds."

Me: "No, it is taking both me and Darlyne to lift them. They have to weigh more than that."

Him: "Don't think so."

So don't you know the minute we hung up the phone I decided we were weighing the next rock. We took a little detour to the garage scale (which resembles the one's in the doctors office that never lie) and weighed our rock. 

81 POUNDS

No wonder I am SO sore. I am just scared of tomorrow (for me the second day is always the worst.)

Seven days down and twenty-nine to go.

We have survived our first week with just the three of us. It began a little rough with a sick child AND a sick mommy, but the end of our week shaped up well. Monday and Tuesday we stayed close to home (recuperating), but by Wednesday we got out of the house and headed to the park and then a friend's house for a much needed play date (for both the kiddos and mommy).

On Thursday the weather was so nice, I decided to take the kids to Cameron Park Zoo in Waco. We met my girlfriend and the two girls she is a nanny for there. It could not have been a more beautiful day to spend at the zoo and apparently everyone else thought so too because we had to park several blocks away and stand in line at least 20 minutes before we ever got in. We have frequented this zoo several times in the past and never parked anywhere but the zoo parking lot and a line is something unheard of. In hindsight it might not have been the 'best' day to go, I guess I did not think it would be the 'happening spot' for Spring Break. Needless to say all, the crowd did not spoil our fun, just made it a little more stressful to keep track of the kids.

Friday was another day at the park and a play date/lunch with Brynn's friend Callie, her mom and little sister. The girls were so excited to get to play together outside of school (Callie is in Brynn's class). We went to Subway for lunch and Brynn and Callie thought it was super cool we aloud them to sit at a separate table from us (they had no clue it was because six of us could not fit at one table).

AND today, the first day of spring we stayed huddled inside doing puzzles, coloring, playing trains, making brownies and watching Madagascar because our beautiful weather disappeared and the 40-degree weather moved in with rain and wind, lots of wind.

We are hoping the cold weather moves out tomorrow as fast as it came in today.

Danny Update:

Danny is doing well. I think he might even be enjoying Singapore a little, I know he is enjoying the food because he tells me about every meal he eats ; ) He is impressed with the cleanliness of the city and just how friendly everyone is there. We are keeping in touch via Skype, Brynn and Braden get a kick out of seeing him on the computer. Technology is awesome!

A really quick update:

Things have been crazy around here the last couple of weeks as Brynn was sick with an ear and sinus infections (we have a love/hate relationship with spring around here), Braden's adenoidectomy and getting Danny ready for his departure to Singapore for work. He left in the wee hours yesterday morning and after 32 hours of traveling (22 hours in the air), a 6.6 earthquake in Tokyo (that he didn't even feel), and two hours of being lost in Singapore in a cab with a driver unfamiliar with the area Danny is staying. Finally, he arrived at his apartment safely this morning at 3:00 a.m. Singapore time.

He will be in Singapore for the next 34 days working and it will be me and kids here for the next 34 days, which brings me to the question: I wonder who will have a harder time surviving, him or me?

Did I mention Spring Break started Friday and my kids have no school this week?

To be continued....

Let It Snow!

Today was a big day for Central Texas and an even bigger day for all the kiddos and adults like me because we actually got snow. As I type this entry I can look out my window and still witness snow flurries falling, they are the big soft snowflakes, the kind that remind me of my childhood up north. Now I am aware the whopping 2.5" we received today is nothing compared to the rest of the country, but for us it is big. I think the last time it "snowed" was back in 2004 (the 2006 flurries don't count) and I was working at Applied and all I could do was witness it through the office window and then later make a 2 hour commute home (that was fun).

Brynn was as excited as I was. I almost did not send her and Braden to school just so we could all stay home and play in it until I realized my kids do not even have hats, gloves, or heavy coats for that matter. Therefore, after I dropped them off at Mother's Day Out I headed to Wal-mart, found a very small section of winter items and purchased a hat and glove set for a bargain price of $3.00.

When I got home, I received the call from the MDO they were doing an early release at noon. Perfect, we have snow, we have gloves and we have hats! Before we even climbed into the car Brynn was asking if we could make a snowman when we got home (she was reading my mind) and when we pulled in the drive my cell phone rang and it was Danny; he too was on his way home to join us in the fun.

We spent the better part of the afternoon out back building a snowman, having snowball fights and just horsing around until Braden decided to take a drive in a large icy puddle of water in the corner of our yard where it is not level. Leave it to him to find the one place he could get into the most trouble and by trouble, I mean soaking-wet-and-freezing-cold-trouble. It was the end of the fun.

Here are a few photos. Enjoy!

Cinnamon-Apple Pork Chops

I have made it a point lately to try new recipes for dinner which sometimes leads me pulling out the peanut butter and jelly for the kids, but last night I hit the nail on the head with this:

The entire family loved it, which always makes for a nice quiet dinner. I found the recipe in a recent Taste of Home magazine titled 164 Speedy & Delicious recipes for a Busy Family. I paired the pork chops with fresh green beans and baked sweet potatoes (because I know my kids will eat these), but I think just about any vegetables will do and rice would be great too. The sauce is to die for. An added bonus is it goes together quickly.

Here is the recipe:

4 boneless pork loin chops (4 ounces each)

2 tablespoons reduced-fat butter, divided

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1-teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 medium tart apples, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped pecans

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook pork chops in 1 tablespoon of butter for 4-5 minutes on each side. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

Remove the pork chops from skillet and keep warm. Add the apples, pecans, brown sugar mixture and remaining butter in the pan; cook and stir until apples are tender.

Pour over the pork chops.  Serve and Enjoy!

P.S.  No I don't take photos of everything I cook, but I have been of the new recipes because if they make my recipe book I like to have a picture (I know I am strange).

Saying Grace

For the past month, Brynn has been requesting we give thanks by saying grace before each meal; although she wants this to be part of our daily routine, she in no way wants any part of presenting. Therefore, by default Danny ended up with the "job" until recently when Braden decided he wanted to try it and uttered these words as he bowed his head:

"Dear God,

Thank you for this food. (look up)

Thank you for Mommy (looking at me, pause)

and Daddy (looking at Danny, pause)

and Brynn (looking at Brynn)

The End." (bow head).

Short, sweet and straight to the point.


Then about a week ago, Brynn decided she would go ahead and try it and this was her version:

"Dear Lord, Our Father, Our God,

Thank you so much for the food we are about to eat.

Thank you for our beautiful earth and the people who keep it clean by throwing their trash in the trash cans.

Thank you for all the animals, the air we are breathing, the trees and the flowers.

Thank you for my family, my mommy, my daddy, Braden, G-ma, Grandpa Jerry, Aunt Erin, Uncle Aaron, Me-maw, Papa and anyone else I forgot because I have a big family.

Me: (whispering), okay honey we need to wrap it up.

Thank you for my friends and teachers.

Thank you for my toys.

Thank you for the world.

Amen."

Now, this was a big moment for Brynn, as she finally worked up the courage to say grace and obviously thought a lot about whom and what she was thankful for.

With that said, I am going to back track for a moment and go back to the part where Brynn was giving thanks for her family. At this point Braden became fidgety in his chair waiting for his sister to 'wrap it up' and when she began thanking God for the family and reached Braden's name I believe he thought she was finished and was waiting for "the end" (as he would put it), but instead she continued and it went something like this:

Brynn: Thank you for my family, my mommy, my daddy and Braden (pause),

Byrnn: and G-ma

Braden: (with his head still bowed) She's not here,

Brynn: and Grandpa Jerry

Braden: He's not here

Brynn: Aunt Erin

Braden: She's not here either

Brynn: Uncle Aaron and Keely

Braden: Their not here, Brynn

Brynn: Me-maw and Papa

Braden: THEIR NOT HERE

Brynn: And anyone else I forgot because I have a big family.

Braden: Just say The End, Brynn!

Brynn was completely annoyed at him and told him he was being rude. Danny reprimanded him and me....well, I was doing everything in my power not to laugh, (I know that's awful) I could feel the corners of my mouth turning up and I was praying I could hold it in. It was one of those moments as a parent when you know you should not laugh, but just could not help yourself (don't worry I manage to hold it together), but I would have given anything to have a video camera running just to have the audio.

In the meantime, we are going to be working with Braden on his manners :o)

Off to the movies....

This afternoon we took Brynn and Braden to see their first movie ever in an actual movie theater. We went to the last matinee showing of Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Squeakquel with hopes of saving a little money, but by the time we took our seats we had already spent $38.50; which included four movie tickets, a very large coke and popcorn we all shared. Did I mention the coke and popcorn were TEN DOLLARS AND FIFTY CENTS, seriously??? Luckily, I smuggled a couple bags of M&M's I bought earlier at Target and Braden's Thomas the Train water bottle.

At the cost of our hour and a half of entertainment, it was a huge relief both Brynn and Braden enjoyed themselves and we did not have to get up and leave in the middle. Brynn has never been a fan of the dark, loud noises, or anything large, so it pretty much ruled out movie theaters in the past. She was a little apprehensive when we first walked in questioning everything in sight and gripping me tightly. She did not want to sit close to the screen, so we took our seats at the top row as far back as we could. At first, she was convinced she was going to see something scary and every time a new movie trailer began, she would lean over and tell me she thought we must be at the wrong movie. In the end, she was thrilled and asked when we would be coming back. I told her she would need to save her money ;o)

Braden on the other hand looked at this outing as an adventure. He was overjoyed we choose the seats in the top back row because as he was able to climb all the stairs; he is all about stairs and thinks they are cool (Can you tell we live in a one-story?). He thought the lights on the floor were the neatest thing and asked several times, how'd they do that?, but he found the most enjoyment in the very seat he sat in, as it closed on him anytime his weight became unevenly distributed. He quickly figured out it rocked back and forth, so whenever the Chipmunks or Chipettes performed during the movie; he would rock his seat back and forth and dance right along. AND he was "that" kid who laughed out loud anytime he heard someone else in the audience laugh. I probably laughed more at him then I did anything in the movie.

Which brings me to the movie...

Until recently I have not had the pleasure of watching many kid movies, I never really took an interest in cartoons of any type as an adult or anything with a rating under PG-13. Obviously now I have children who are taking an interest in movies of G rating and I am actually enjoying catching up. Now Alvin in The Chipmunks, The Squeakquel in my opinion was not as great as the first one (how many times have we said that in the past?), and I must admit it was completely predictable, had only few funny parts, but those Chipettes are super-cute and the McDonald's Happy Meal toys don't really do them justice.

In the end, we had a great first time experience at the movies as a family, $38.50 and all..... 

Okay so....

My intentions were not to have several days go by until my next post, but it has been an extremely busy week and I have ten minutes to myself before I put the kids to bed, so I thought I'd clear up my cliff-hanger from the last post....

I went to Stonewall, Texas with seven other women for a weekend getaway. We rented a property referred to as the River Cottage sight-un-seen (we are brave women). It was cute little house along a river just outside the Lyndon B Johnson Historical Park and 20 minutes from of Fredericksberg, Texas which was also home to a lama, goats and sheep, a rooster and Fluffy and Precious the two Great Pryenees who guarded the property.

Besides the slightly crazy owner who talked and talked and talked to my friend Stacey and I when we first arrived, the crazy dogs who kept us up all night barking our first night there, the cats on the roof (yep, you heard me...on the roof...the TIN roof), all the farm animals (especially the rooster), the shot gun in the broom closet and no hot water it was a great weekend. We scrapbooked, watched movies, ate, drank wine, checked out Fredericksberg, scrapbooked some more, drank more wine and slept very little.

I can't say it was the most relaxing weekend I have had, but I will say I will do it again. Next time I'll just make sure I ask if there are any farm animals? cats who live on the roof? a crazy lady? and hot water?

At least my company was good, I didn't have to wipe any bottoms and I could say sh*t if I wanted to.