Heston Happenings

Skating thru the holiday weekend...

2011-11-26T15:37:00.001-06:00

We started out Thanksgiving Day by heading out to the Dr Pepper Stars Center in McKinney for a little ice skating. Thought maybe we could work off the calories before we ate them. We were very excited to have Aunt Rhonda join us!

Then today Jason was invited to a friend's birthday party at a roller rink, so we all joined him for the fun....

Happy Halloween

2011-10-30T20:19:00.004-05:00

Sophie drew this sketch to get in the mood. I can almost taste the candy already.

Happy Halloween!

Rock, paper, scissors

2011-10-30T20:09:00.003-05:00

I played a few games of the classic rock, paper, scissors with all three kids today. They were playing at dinner (Lite Wok) so I joined in. I throw rock pretty regularly and let's just say that wouldn't win many games tonight.

Sophie had the widest range throwing down everything from acid to germs to antiseptic to sun.

Jason was true to his character throwing a lot of light sabers along with some lava.

My new favorite is Allison's most often used - ear wax. Rock, paper, ...... ear wax! Now that's hard to beat.

Jason Art

2011-09-25T21:15:00.003-05:00

Jason decided to stop playing on the computer this afternoon and began to draw some pictures. First he drew this volcano for us.

Then he drew this sketch showing a mountain as night was falling. I noticed that my boy is very complete in his usage of the paper.

This night sky with stars and the moon made me break into song... "The stars at night, are big and bright. Deep in the heart of Texas"

Allison Art

2011-09-25T21:12:00.002-05:00

Allison created this snow flake for me. It is hard to see in a scan, but she cut shapes into the paper - shown here in purple as I put that color behind her snowflake while scanning. Then she decided it looked like my face and she would decorate me. The dots below are my "scruffies". The tulip isn't actually on my face, but my precious daughter knows I like tulips.

Sophie Art

2011-09-25T21:03:00.004-05:00

I like Sophie's sketch of her sandal that she made at Art Camp this summer.

Also from Art Camp comes her flower painting.

Here is Sophie's Star Student poster she created this weekend.

I love my artsy star student!

Happy Birthday Heston Wives

2011-09-18T16:05:00.006-05:00

Happy Birthday Joanne and Paula!

Had a great time celebrating your birth with much dancing,

and general mirth.

Loves doing dishes

2011-09-16T07:49:00.004-05:00

Allison wants to do everything Mommy and Daddy do these days. So we're training her young.

Anyone think she'll still smile 'cause we let her do the dishes 10 years from now?

School homework

2011-09-15T21:53:00.002-05:00

Jason had to draw a picture of his bedroom and write a few sentences about it.

School Dos

2011-08-11T15:29:00.008-05:00

We've been working through the preschool checklist......

Clean out closets and check for clothes status......done.
Get new backpacks and lunchboxes......................done.
Do some last minute fun stuff:
Hawaiian Falls.......................................done.
Six Flags.................................................done.
Tye Dye Party w/ friends.......................tomorrow.
Fill out school forms online.........................done.
Find out who the new teachers will be........done.
Haircuts........................................................done.

Here's the new hairdos:
Now, we just need to adjust the family schedule back to school time!

Newest Accessory

2011-05-23T12:04:00.002-05:00

Well we knew this was coming, but really thought we had a couple more years. Anyway, she was a bit nervous, but is pretty excited about her selections.

Sophie's DramaKids Debut

2011-05-23T10:14:00.005-05:00

Sophie was Terrible Tom in the play Pirate Joe: This is the only picture I took during the production. The pirates are hard at work...and shortly Sophie will start a mutiny to get rid of Captain Joe. The pirates then select her to be the new captain.....but that is short lived also!

Here's a pic of Sophie with the rest of the pirates and their teacher, Ms. Flavia:

National Children's Book Week

2011-05-04T17:01:00.005-05:00

This week is National Children's Book Week and at Sophie and Jason's school the teachers and students were encouraged to "Show Some Character" today and dress as their favorite storybook character. Here are my "characters" this morning......
Jason, aka Darth Vader, reads almost exclusively superhero, Star Wars, or Transformer books. At least he is reading though?

Sophie, aka Emma the Easter Fairy, had a hard time choosing who to dress up as. She has read a majority of the Fairy books by Daisy Meadows (around 85 of the ~110 that have been release in US) and really liked many of the fairies. Also in contention was Annabelle from The Doll People. This book was one of three books in a series which Aunt Crystal got Sophie for her birthday this year. Mommy sort of vetoed this one when I realized the plan was to spray paint her hair bright green like Annabelle's!!

Girlscout - Dad and Me Dance

2011-05-01T22:13:00.004-05:00

Last Friday, I got to take Sophie to a girlscout "Dad and Me" dance with a Mystery theme.

We dressed up in some clothes with black on them figuring that would match the mystery theme.

All the girls got masks of different colors and as it happened, Sophie's matched perfectly. She's a cutie!

The magician was pretty good and quite funny. Typical line, "Hey, I was 8 when I was your age too!" But the best part was dancing with Sophie and watching her dance with Natalie. After seeing them dance the Cha Cha Slide, I can see I need to work on my moves.

Sophie is Square

2011-04-19T19:35:00.004-05:00

Sophie had her annual doctor appointment that we schedule just after each birthday. On this, her 8th year appointment, she measured 47 inches and 47 pounds. She's Square!

Our insatiable reader now has 20-25 vision and is likely on her way to glasses, but not yet. Won't she be cute in spectacles!

Thank-you God for a healthy girl.

Jason Sketches

2011-04-17T20:04:00.005-05:00

Jason's sketches have recently taken a distinct turn in content and style - LEGO. After playing all spring break with Mason on Xbox Lego Batman and DS Lego Starwars, his sketches have more bad guys (used to be aliens) and more combat. Here is a typical example:

Even his non-lego drawings maintain his new style. Here's one of Mario and Yoshi doing something or another.

Sophie's Hair pre Locks of Love

2011-01-02T14:38:00.004-06:00

Here is Sophie's hair shortly before she donated to Locks of Love. This was the first time she slept in curlers.

Final product. She liked it long but was ready to cut it for quite some time. She waited until just after Halloween cause she needed the long hair to be Hannah Montana.

Locks of Love

2010-11-09T19:15:00.004-06:00

Sophie has been growing her hair out for a couple of years and decided it was time to go shorter. She donated her hair to Locks of Love.

Before: Going...
Going....
GONE!!!!

After!

Halloween '10

2010-11-04T16:23:00.004-05:00

So, I am a little late...please forgive me!! Here is Allison all decked out for her class Fall Party...All of the kiddos, er Hannah Montana, Minnie Mouse, and Darth Vader, anxiously waiting to go...
And they're off.....
Our friendly ghost...
And at last --- sorting the stash!!!

Orange It Is!!

2010-10-22T10:36:00.002-05:00

Had to happen sooner or later...right?

2010-10-11T21:41:00.003-05:00

Jason took a fall yesterday. Nothing exciting...just started to run, lost his footing, and fell. The scream was awful, but arm didn't look to bad and he was able to move it, so we decided to wait and see.

He was pretty tired when we put him to bed and he fell asleep okay. But, a while later he was awake complaining of arm pain again. After the second wake up, we gave him some Motrin.

This morning he was up and around okay, but the arm was still hurting and he was not too excited about going to school and someone bumping into the arm. So, he stayed home and we call the pediatrician. Several hours later and after an additional visit to the pediatric orthopedist, here it is.....the right arm with TWO broken bones just below the elbow!!!

Here he is enjoying his treat for being such a big boy at the doctor! He's in a temporary cast for about a week. Then he gets a hard cast to wear for about 4 weeks? Any guesses as to the color of the next cast?????

Allison Jumps

2010-10-09T22:32:00.004-05:00

Allison likes to jump!

EGGS-periment

2010-09-22T21:54:00.003-05:00

Sophie's 'I Wonder' project for school was to test whether different drinks stain teeth. So, we hard boiled some eggs yesterday to use as teeth doubles. Then Sophie was up and dressed at 6:02 AM this morning!!! Here are the pictures from the day:

Supplies ready...
Dropping eggs in different types of drinks...

From left to right in the pic below, the liquids are water, tea (which she brewed herself this morning -- extra dark), Orange Crush soda, chocolate milk, grape juice, Cherry 7UP, Fruit Punch KoolAid, Dr Pepper, V8 Spicy Hot. Sophie's guess was that Dr. Pepper, tea and grape juice would be the leading offenders. The older kids had an Early Release day today, so school got out at noon. After 6 hours of soaking, Sophie took the eggs out...

She really didn't like the V8!!

After taking notes about what they looked like right out of the liquid, Sophie then tested the benefit of brushing!! You can even see the white spots on a couple of the eggs that she had already brushed.

Turned out that grape juice cleaned up OK, but tea and Dr. Pepper drinkers ........BEWARE!!

Summer Sketches 2010

2010-09-18T15:26:00.006-05:00

Sophie, Jason, and Allison love to draw. Many summer afternoons were spent coloring in the game room. Here is a sample of their sketches from this past summer.

Allison mainly likes to color rather than draw.

Jason sometimes draws things like these butterflies.....

But he more likes to color a patch completely. This is an often rendered portrait of Daddy (or it might be a self portrait).

Rockets were a main topic this summer for Sophie.

This was actually from back in the spring. I couldn't believe Sophie drew this one because it looks so good, but then I saw the humor and sure enough, it's Sophie's.

Demo by Kids

2010-09-06T22:18:00.007-05:00

Well, John and I decided to rework our closet. After several weeks of trying to design what we wanted, our simple little closet reshelving turned into a not-so-simple master closet/master bathroom remodel.....and the official demolition starts tomorrow morning!!!!

So, in order to get ready for the demo crew, we had to clean out the closet (and the bathroom and most of the master bedroom). We have officially moved upstairs for the foreseeable future. The kids got a real kick out of how "clean" our closet was.... And then they got to decorate it.......

Daddy also got in on the fun....

Here's Sophie with her selfportrait to her right and Jason did a drawing of himself to Sophie's left. Markers didn't quite accomplish the look, so they had to break out the glue, yarn, glitter, and whatever other crafty things they could get their hands on.

Now at this point in the evening, mommy had to go to church for a meeting.....SOOOOOOO, Daddy broke out the HAMMERS!!!

......and let them go at it!!!

Where's Allison during the banging???? Somewhere quiet!!!

Thanks Aunt Crystal...

2010-09-03T16:29:00.003-05:00

We had a great snack time today!!!

Yummy!!! Happy Birthday to ME!!

Allison's 1st Day of School 2010

2010-09-02T13:16:00.004-05:00

So, she had to wait an extra week after big sister and big brother started, but she finally got her day!!The backpack is almost as big as her...

She has Mrs. Susan this year (who was also Jason 3's teacher)...

And all that she had been talking about for days was wanting to paint at school....Here she is all smocked up and ready to go!!!

Pruney Feet

2010-08-28T10:29:00.006-05:00

This picture was taken about 20 minutes after Allison took her longest bath ever. We were amazed how pruney her feet still were.

Allison likes to play during her baths. She scoops and dumps water in her cup, she squirts water from the crab, Snoopy, and fish toys, and she general splashes. But on this day, she got especially giddy playing with the cup (for a looong time). She would hold it upside down under water then watch it fly as she let it go. I wish I could have got a picture of the 1st time she caught it in the air!

Here is her pruney face to go with the pruney feet.

Two Coats in Summer

2010-08-26T20:31:00.002-05:00

Sophie took two coats to school this Wed in a Texas August summer! One was a rain coat to stay dry going into school. The 2nd was a sweater to stay warm in the cafeteria. So it makes some sense, but still.... Two coats during the middle of August?!? She must be related to Uncle David.

Bon Appetit

2010-08-25T08:58:00.004-05:00

Sophie's first try at cooking us dinner (mostly) by herself. I precooked the chicken just a bit.It was pretty tasty and we'll try it again!

First Day of School 2010 (Part II)

2010-08-23T20:07:00.005-05:00

Meet the Teacher Night was last Friday night. Here's Jason with Mrs. Wirstrom -- the same teacher that Sophie had (and loved) for kindergarten. Here's Sophie with her 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Blakey.

These two were up and ready to go ..... about half an hour tooooo early!! (I shouldn't be complaining!)

Mom was walking too slow for Jason!

Is it a rule to give the shorter kids the top lockers???

Jason --- ready for the parents to leave so they could get the fun started.

Sophie found her locker and then got settled in her classroom.

Jason...after school...he survived, had some fun, but was a wee bit pooped!

Are you wondering 'Where is Sophie?' Well, she informed us that she really didn't need me to pick her up at school!! So she rode the bus home with friends and we picked her up at the bus stop....and then went for ice cream!!!

First Day of School 2010 (Part I)

2010-08-23T12:35:00.002-05:00

I'll post pics later after the kids get home from school. A conversation between Allison and I on our first day home by ourselves.....

Allison: SOPHIE, SOPHIE….WHERE ARE YOU???

Me: Allison, Sophie is at school sweetie. Remember?

Allison: Why did you just call Sophie?

Me: (I had just gotten off the phone). No, I was talking to O’ma.

Allison: You SAID Sophie!!!! WHY did you call ME SOPHIE??? I am ALLISON!!!! Remember?

Merry Christmas to Us....

2010-08-16T12:31:00.004-05:00

Finally spent those Lego gift cards.
Can't wait to get upstairs and play with the new loot! Thanks Nana and Aunt Rho!!!

For all our Rangers fans.....

2010-08-06T13:40:00.005-05:00

We came across this picture the other day and it had to post it for all our friends who are Texas Rangers fans!!!

Puddle Hunt

2010-06-09T22:28:00.005-05:00

It's been pretty hot here for the last couple of days, but today we got some much needed rain. To the kids delight, we got a rain shower without the usual thunder and lightning. SO, they wanted to go on a hunt for puddles!

Off they went...
Not here...
Follow the leader...
Taking a break for some 'Rain Angels' Work with me --- it's Texas, we don't get much snow.
And finally....SUCCESS!!!
Much splashing and glee followed!

She's Learning So Fast...

2010-04-19T18:13:00.004-05:00

I didn't learn PowerPoint until I was in the workplace --- She's only in First Grade!!!

All About Zebras by Sophie

At Least She Wasn't In It

2010-04-10T21:27:00.006-05:00

Allison's hat blew off into the street and was immediately run over by an SUV. Fortunately, although she impulsively started to chase her hat, she stopped as we yelled at her. Then she stood watching agast as the SUV ran over her hat.

It was at least 5 minutes before she let go of the hat again.

Sophie's Busy Day...

2010-03-27T21:50:00.003-05:00

Sophie woke up bright and early this morning to go plant a vegetable garden with her Girl Scout Daisy Troop. She proudly planted 2 squash seeds....then turned and asked if she would have to try them if they grow! After lunch she met up again with some of her Daisy friends. (Now, we don't usually plan 2 activities for one day, but the planting of the garden was re-scheduled from last weekend when the weather turned so cold.) The girls went to learn a bit about riding horses. This was the first time that Sophie was actually taught how to handle a horse instead of just being led around by someone else while sitting on the horse. I think she did quite well.
Lastly..... after a shower and a quick nap, here is my big girl all packed and ready for her first sleepover. Will she make it through the night? ............. Will Mom?
I have so much more to post, but I must first catch up on my sleep.

Driving home from church tonight...

2010-02-17T20:42:00.002-06:00

S: "Are the kids going to wave Palms again this year (Palm Sunday)?"

Me: "I'm not sure yet...do you want to?"

S: "YES!"

J: "I don't cuz I don't like the crashing sounds."

Me: "Jason, I don't think there will be any crashing sounds this year since Aunt C. is not there."

J: "OK! I want to then!"

A few minutes later from the back of the van....

S: "I miss Aunt C. It makes me saaaad."

J: "I'm happy AND sad. I'm really sad about Aunt C., ... but I'm happy for no crashes!!"

Snowin' again!!

2010-02-11T10:35:00.002-06:00

Here are pictures from this morning. Sophie was the most excited about the snow, but she had to go to school. So, we got ready quickly and headed out to play until she had to leave.

At that point, the younger kids were ready to come in. I am pretty sure that Sophie will persuade them to go back out after she gets home!!!

Happy Naping Day

2010-01-28T05:31:00.005-06:00

Last week Sophie created this card for Paula. Sophie says that the blanket Paula uses to keep warm while on the couch is magic because "Mommy covers up with the blanket and then magically goes to sleep".

Hooray for kids that let us take power naps!

To Fix It or Not To Fix It....

2010-01-05T07:23:00.004-06:00

Our house is not that old, but it is time for some of its original pieces to be fixed or upgraded. So, here is a list of our latest fixes or upgrades.....

1. Last summer, John's mom and brother gave us an early Christmas present -- a new garage door opener complete with installation. Then, for the next six weeks and three additional visits from the installers, it worked intermittently until the short in the wiring was finally found.

2. Just before Christmas, John had a handyman come out to fix our back door which has been sticking since we moved in. We hadn't fixed it before now because it was babyproofed without being babyproofed since none of my little ones could open it. But, now the kids are getting older and wanting to head outside more (without me!!), so we decided it was time to get the door fixed. Anyway the handyman did a great job and the door opens much easier.....except the handle is breaking now.

3. For Christmas, John got me a double oven!!! (For those of you who know me well and how much I cook ....please STOP laughing!) We have slowly been replacing our silver appliances in the kitchen with black ones as things need to be replaced. We ordered a new Kitchenaid in Black to replace the silver single oven and the microwave. Did you see that glare coming off the new Silver oven? Yes, that's right...Silver! The model number on the oven says that it should be black, but it clearly is NOT. However, the wonderful people at Rodenbaugh's went ahead and installed and said to use it like it's ours until they get a new one in ... so does anyone have any good recipes????

4. Lastly, we woke up New Year's Day (Happy Birthday, John) to our downstairs heating until no longer working. The AC/Heating guys came out later that day and, after checking it out, said it was dead. So, the next day, they installed the new unit. Downstairs it worked great....with the added benefit that upstairs turns into a sauna! It was 80 upstairs when we got Allison up from nap. We thought maybe this happened during the install, so we opened some windows up there and let it cool off. But, the next morning it was back up to 82. The heating guys were back out yesterday and think they have found and fixed the problem....we see how it goes.

Well, now I am just praying for my new van. We have been having trouble with the brakes on my current van, but the repair guys cannot find anything wrong with them. We had been talking about getting a new van in about a year, so we decided to just get it a bit early. We have found one and we should get it in a few weeks....so, now I just pray it doesn't follow the trend we've been seeing around here.

Look Ma, No Hands

2009-12-23T22:02:00.008-06:00

I love being off at Christmas time. Yesterday I got to play with my kids all morning while Paula did some last minute shopping. There was much swinging, soccer ball kicking, chalk drawing, and sliding. Allison ventured her first time down the slide with No Hands. She did this the first time just briefly and hesitantly to get by me as I was leaning on the slide. Then the 2nd time a spark got in her eye at the top and she stuck her arms out and slid the whole way down w/o hands. She never actually said "Look Dad, No Hands!" But her smile said it.

Then she, Jason, and Sophie repeatedly climbed the steps, slid down w/o hands, and ran back to the steps to start over.

Each time at the top she stuck her hands / arms out to the side.

Still smiling at the bottom.

Celebration as she runs back for another lap.

It was never clear to me what Jason was up to here.?!

What do you do with all the leftover Candy Corn???

2009-12-12T10:07:00.003-06:00

Well, our kids asked to do some experiments....

What does the inside look like? Just like the outside!
Can they float? NO!
Do they melt?...

YES! And now they are making some icing for cookies, cupcakes, etc........does this mean they think that I am baking today?

Big Boys Don't Need Naps!!!

2009-11-30T17:04:00.002-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T11:00:00.005-06:00

Here are some craft that my younger kids made at preschool the last couple of weeks and the cards where the teachers typed up what they said when asked what they are thankful for...Sophie was quoted the other day say "...kindergarten is just fun, fun, fun ... bunches of crafts ... fun, fun, fun. BUT, first grade ----NOTHING!!!!" So, after seeing brother and sister's crafts she set out to making some of her own at home.Then this morning, we make name cards for our Thanksgiving dinner.... Happy Thanksgiving to all!!!

2009-11-24T10:01:00.003-06:00

Sophie has been in a phase the last few months in which she likes to "make" books. Sometimes she thinks of a topic and makes the book; sometimes she finds a few pictures that she has drawn that have a similar theme and makes them into a book; sometimes they are books for herself and sometimes they are for others (car book for jason, colors book for Allison). Here is a book that she made for mommy and daddy....

I pray she never loses her creativity.

Performances -- Part II

2009-11-22T21:15:00.006-06:00

Friday morning was the Annual Pumpkin Pie for Parents at Jason and Allison's preschool. Jason got into it quite a bit this year, but as many of the 2-year olds do, Allison just stood around most of the time.

For our friends who have had children that attended Rainbow in the past, I hope this next pic brings back some memories for you of the Turkey Tango...

Then all the 4-year old classes played the bells...

And, lastly we enjoyed the pumpkin pie!!!

Performances -- Part I

2009-11-20T20:21:00.004-06:00

Thursday night was the First Grade Autumn & Thanksgiving performance at Sophie's school. The day was a bit hectic as Sophie informed me just a few days before that she was supposed to wear fall colors which was not really a problem until she insisted that they were supposed to be solid. We have several fall colored tops, but NONE were solid! Have I ever mentioned here before that Sophie is a RULE FOLLOWER! Most of the time this is a very positive thing, but sometimes...... Anyway, even though I knew many of the children would not be in solid colors, Jason, Allison and I headed out that morning in search of some solid colored tops. This was not as easy of a task as I thought it would be, but we eventually found these turtlenecks. Jason chose a red one and a yellow one saying "they are both fall colors and Sophie would look pretty in both." Sophie picked yellow.

We then headed home for lunch and naps. After nap, poor little Allison woke up with a fever which would put a bit of a damper on the evening....should we just draw straws to see who stays home? (Thanks, Nana...we'll break out the video over Thanksgiving!)

Then, we lost John! Ok, we didn't actually LOSE him. I knew he was at work. I just couldn't get in touch with him. He was supposed to be bringing pizza home for dinner, but as time was running out and the pizza had already been ordered online for pickup, I loaded up the kids and we went to get the pizza ourselves. Daddy finally made it out of work and met us at school. He got to eat his pizza in the parking lot.
Sophie seemed nervous up on stage until she found us in the audience. Then she relaxed and had fun....except when you could see that she was getting irritated at the kids around her who were doing things that they were not supposed to be doing like talking, turning around, not watching the music teacher .... I did mention that she is a rule follower, right???

I Love Tylenol

2009-11-19T06:38:00.003-06:00

Last night Allison woke up coughing and crying. I went up and got her, hugged her, consoled her, and rocked her almost back to sleep. I layed her oooh so gently back in bed and she appeared to be drifting off to sleep.

But of course, at exactly the moment MY head hit my pillow she burst back into tears and wails. This time it was clear that her throat was hurting her while she coughed. We gave her a dose of Tylenol and went through the hugging, consoling, rocking, gently laying... All have now enjoyed a restful night's sleep.

I thank God to live in this time period where we have the blessing of simple pain killers.

Boy Scout Popcorn...

2009-11-16T21:58:00.002-06:00

The Boy Scouts have all delivered their popcorn now. It turns out that my darling husband purchased, from various scouts he knows from the neighborhood, our church, and his office, ..... SIX tins of popcorn.

The best part of this is that none, NONE of my children will eat any of it. They were all so excited to give it a try after dinner tonight. Sophie chewed and swallowed one piece with a scrunched up nose and then declined any more. Allison chewed some then proceeded to make the worst face that I have seen in a while. John got her a napkin and let her dispose of her 'treat'. After watching both the girls, Jason stared at it awhile, gave it a few sniffs, then gave it a lick, .... and that was enough for him.

John now gets to provide his team at work with some snackage for the next couple of weeks!!!! Go TEAM!!!

Off to Work...

2009-11-15T21:23:00.004-06:00

The last time that I took my kids to visit Aunt Rhonda at work was probably over a year ago before Sophie started kindergarten. As best as I can remember it, Jason said, "Can we go home? This place is booooowing (think boring)!!! Not like Aunt Crystal's work place!"

Fast forward to this past weekend and I think Aunt Rhonda's work just left Aunt Crystal's work in the dust....
Not much could top a forklift or two (or two hundred) for Jason right now! Thanks Rhonda and co-workers!

Future's so bright....

2009-11-14T22:55:00.002-06:00

Fall Fun

2009-11-13T08:01:00.003-06:00

OK, so I missed yesterday. It was a full and fun day, but I was still planning on posting late last night. So, now I will just blame the lack of post on the Dallas Stars. I would have had plenty of time to post before midnight had they not gone into Overtime and then a Shootout....at least they WON!!!

Anyway, here are a few pics of our fun yesterday...
This was the first time that we have ever raked up our leaves and the older kids, along with our friend from next door, loved it. I just wish I had taken a pic of Allison staring at them like they were crazy!

2009-11-11T15:34:00.003-06:00

This week Sophie's school is holding their annual book fair. Last night the school was open for a Family Game Night/Pajama Night. The kids head up to school in their pajamas to play some board games and/or listen to the teachers and faculty read stories. Now, I have a bible study that I attend on Tuesday night, so Sophie and I asked John if he would take all the kids up himself. The kids seemed to have had a good time and even daddy got in on the pajama action (....what a COOL dad!!!!).

Cool Numbers

2009-11-10T20:36:00.003-06:00

I enjoyed signing papers today and writing the date - 11/10/09. Hope you enjoyed the date / day also.

In an unrelated number incident, my favorite stock TGB closed at $3.31 yesterday. This of course made me smile as I married my bride at 3:31 on 3/31.

In an unrelated non-numerical incident, this afternoon I parked on the spot of charred earth where my truck caught on fire just over a month ago. No flames today. Thankfully, my truck was still just sitting there waiting when I got off work. Made me smile again.

Allowance

2009-11-09T20:54:00.002-06:00

John tells me that not all my posts have to have pictures. So, here goes a pictureless post.

Sophie came home from school a couple of weeks ago and asked if she could do some things around the house to earn money that she could spend at her school's upcoming book fair. Hence, my pondering the topic of allowances. My initial thought is that I did not want to give Sophie money to do things that she is expected to do. We don't currently have to pay her to pick up her toys or put her dirty clothes where they should go. Seems this would set a precedent in our household that I'm not sure I like. I don't think that later in life I want to live with the messy house just because my children don't really need/want their allowance at that time. (Sorry, Mom....I DO see the irony in this statement!!!!!)

For this request for money, we came up with a project for Sophie. She is 'organizing' all the kids toys. Organizing in that she is putting all the pieces of a set together. We are hoping this will help us with our annual Thanksgiving task where each of the children picks a few of their older toys that they no longer play with, and that are in decent condition, to be donated in order that someone else may have a chance to play with them. In the past, I always seem to find some pieces of toy sets that were given away.

Anyway, back to allowances....any advice?

Today...

2009-11-08T16:44:00.004-06:00

Today, I am being a bit reminiscent. I took Jason shopping to get some new jeans. Now, I keep telling these kiddos to "STOP!" ...as in STOP growing UP! But, today when we went to get jason some new jeans, we had to move up into the "big boy" section. It seems like just yesterday, here he was....
...in a cute little pair of jeans. And now, he no longer fits in the toddler sizes. "STOP!"

Princess for a Day

2009-11-07T18:57:00.004-06:00

Sophie, along with most of her troop, took part in the Daisy Princess for a Day. Here are a few pics...

They did some crafts, decorated some cookies (and then ate them), played some games, and, most importantly, got to dress up as little princessess. Sophie should sleep well tonight!!!

Cheap entertainment...

2009-11-06T08:03:00.002-06:00

Ok, so this would have made a much better video, but I only took photos.

Jason has taken to everything relating to trucks (monster trucks, daddy's truck, etc.), tractors, and anything construction. Allison has taken to anything that Jason likes. So, here was our morning yesterday. It seems that our neighbor at the corner is getting a new roof and yesterday morning, the supplies were delivered. Jason had never seen a forklift up this close and he spent much time figuring out how it worked. Here, he is pretending to be a forklift....

Now, they need a closer look....

Last night telling daddy all about it, Jason started out by telling him that there was an elevator in our circle.

Stars WIN!!!!

2009-11-05T09:40:00.005-06:00

Well, our last adventure of the Suprise Chicago Trip was to venture on over to see the Chicago Blackhawks get defeated by the Dallas STARS!!!!!!Planning this part of the trip went actually quite smoothly thanks to the best Stars Season Ticket rep that Crystal has ever had!!!!!!! Whenever we have gone on trips to see the Dallas Stars, Crystal has always taken care of getting the tickets. This was going to be tricky because we needed 7 tickets, not just 2. Rhonda found out Crystal's rep's name and I gave him a call. I told him who I was and explained to him what we were wanting to do for Crystal for her birthday and that it was a .... suprise!!! Daniel is AWESOME!!!!! We had great seats and Crystal never found out that he was in on it ---at least, not until we got to Chicago. So, if by any chance you are reading this Daniel ------- thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU!!! We had a great time!

Now, only Sophie really had appropriate attire to wear to a Stars Away game, so we headed out to get the rest of us suited up...including the face art!

And, no sporting event can be complete without some sugar!

Happy 40th Birthday, Crystal!!!

Around Chicago

2009-11-04T16:20:00.007-06:00

After we arrived in Chicago, we headed out to wait for the Go Airport Express Shuttle that I had reserved in advance. This was NOT a successful experience and I would NOT ever recommend this company. We waited and waited...and waited. Shuttles came for the north end of downtown -- shuttles came for the south end --- of course, we were right in the middle and .... NO shuttles came for us. We waited some more. Did I mention that I reserved this in advance?? THEN, we went down and got a taxi in about 5 minutes. I am very thankful for the pic below as it will always remind me how patient my children were during this whole time. There were many smiles and very little complaining ... at least from the kiddos. I know for sure that I was not as patient as they were when I was a kid (or now) ...just ask my mom!!
We finally got to the hotel, dropped off our bags and headed out for dinner at Giordannos(http://www.giordanos.com/). Stuffed Pizza -----yuuuummmmmmmy! I forgot to get a pic of the pizza, but here is Allison enjoying some Sprite -- which was a treat from their usual H2O or milk.

On Saturday of Crystal's Birthday Celebration Weekend we spent most of the day doing the touristy things. This is us on the top of the Double-Decker tour bus just moments before it started to rain and sleet on us:

We passed the hotel that we wanted to stay in, but they were booked by the time we got around to making reservations.

After getting totally drenched on the way in, we went to the Shedd Aquarium. Here are our little penguins:

Later, we sent John and Allison back to the hotel for a nap while the rest of us went up to the Sky Deck of the Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower). Rhonda and I refused to venture out, but Crystal, Sophie and Jason all step off the solid steel part of the building out onto the glass ledges. I held the queasiness in check to take these pictures.

Then, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the last part of our celebration! Check back tomorrow.

SURPRISE!!!!!

2009-11-03T12:50:00.006-06:00

Well, later this month my friend Crystal will be celebrating the Big 4-0! We wanted to do something special for her, but I am not really the party planner. So, we decided to plan a little weekend get-away. My sister asked her about going to Chicago when the Dallas Stars were playing there and being the hockey fan that she is, Crystal immediately jumped on that idea. What she didn't know was that the whole Heston Clan would be crashing in on their trip.

We spent several weeks planning and even let the kids in on the plan. Shockingly, we actually made it all the way to the big day without anyone letting the cat out of the bag ... at least to the birthday girl. I know that both the older kids told their teachers and some friends about it....how could we possibly expect them to contain all that excitement for over a month.

When Rhonda and Crystal got to the airport, I believe all Crystal wanted to do was get something to eat. But, that pesky Rhonda wanted to go find the gate first to "find it and make sure everything was ok" ... or actually just to find us so that she didn't have to keep the secret any longer. Here we are on the plane. It was actually a 777, so we all got to sit in one row.

And, here is part of the birthday celebration. Cakes are too hard to get through security and on a plane all with kids in tow. So, we opted for Cookies on a Stick.....Big Hit!

Happy (early) Birthday Aunt Crystal!!! (more posts on this in the next couple of days)

Faces!

2009-11-02T12:22:00.004-06:00

Allison's preschool class learned about different faces today. She gave me a few poses after we go home. Here's the MAD face:
The SAD face:
The SCARED face:
The HAPPY face:
Thanks, Miss Kim for the post!!!!

NaBloPoMo '09 and Halloween pics

2009-11-01T22:21:00.005-06:00

Ok, I'll give it a try....but don't hold your breath!!!

Here is our family's first ever attempt at carving a pumpkin...

Our family artist drew the face and daddy carved...

Here's the costumes --- Barbie Mariposa, the Pillow (for the 2nd year in a row!!!), and Abby Cadabby!!

Here's our little trick-or-treaters with their pumpkin.

We'll see if I can fill the rest of the month with some of last month's activities.....say a suprise trip to Chicago!!!???!!!

Big Owie

2009-09-22T09:56:00.003-05:00

We have started talking about getting me a new van in the spring.

I think John just wants to get a new car/truck first!!! This was at his office this morning. Luckily, he was already inside working, so he is fine...but as the kids have said, "His truck has a BIG Owie!!!"

Sophie is a Sweetie

2009-09-17T21:12:00.004-05:00

Sophie made construction paper hearts for the whole family today. She left mine on my pillow to surprise me.

I love you too Sophie!

First Day of Preschool

2009-08-31T10:57:00.004-05:00

Allison started preschool today!!!! She even let me put her hair up a bit... Jason wanted in on the pictures too since he also started today.

By the time we made it to school, Allison was soooooo done with the ponytail!

Now, today was supposed to be my FIRST morning with NO kids, BUT........

Sophie had to stay home from school because she's been sick. Good news though, the fever broke about 6:30 this morning!

2009-08-15T17:45:00.003-05:00

Aunt Rho had the day off and took us bowling....Allison only bowled a couple of frames and then moved on to coloring.We had a blast. Thanks, Rhonda!!

Reading our way to .... (Part 2)

2009-08-06T19:22:00.007-05:00

Sophie also participated in the Six Flags Reading program last year during school and received a free ticket. I decided to wait until the hottest day of the summer...so, today was her day. I thought we would head out there for an hour or two and then she would get bored because she is usually not very adventurous. Anyway, we made it home eight hours later and totally exhausted.

Here are the few pics that I got on my cell phone as I realized after we got in the park that I left the memory card for the camera at home.

This one is my favorite because my girl who doesn't want to learn how to swim nor really like to get her face wet (1.) rode the Aquaman water slide and then (2.) opted to stand on the bridge and get totally drenched by the splash of the next boat of riders. (Mommy got wet enough on the ride. I chose to stand in the dry zone and watch!!)Thanks J&J for this special time to spend alone with my big girl.

Reading our way to ....

2009-08-05T08:49:00.003-05:00

The Circus!!!

Our public library summer reading program was giving away tickets the to circus this year. Once Sophie realized this it was her mission to make sure that all three kids got a ticket. She did all her reading and a large portion of the reading to Jason and Allison. We decided in the end not to take Allison (...late night + little sleep + terrible 2's = not much fun for mommy and daddy), maybe next year. So, here are a few pics:

Singing in the Rain....

2009-08-01T10:18:00.004-05:00

We finally got some rain without the thunder and lightning....

Tour De France

2009-07-05T16:21:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Paula turned on the 1st stage of this year's Tour De France with more than some anticipation and glee. As soon as Sophie recognized what was on, she exclaimed "Oh No!". I asked her what was wrong and she stated "This is the terriblest season of the year. No attention to me."

Happy 4th of July

2009-07-04T15:05:00.005-05:00

Sophie created these construction paper flags to celebrate 4th of July.

God bless America!

Before, After, and Just Because...

2009-06-30T14:28:00.002-05:00

Allison got her first haircut today.

I just giggle everytime a come across this one...

Our Budding Performer

2009-06-29T12:09:00.002-05:00

Christmas season at church...
Mothers' Day Tea at school...

Practicing in her tortoise costume for her school performance...

Kindergarten graduation (2nd from right on first row)...

With her instructor after her first ballet recital...

Ouch!!!

2009-06-26T22:21:00.003-05:00

Day 4 after root canal.

Happy Birthday Allison

2009-06-14T23:34:00.001-05:00

Graduation Day

2009-06-03T22:09:00.003-05:00

Ready for First Grade....Graduation ceremony...shaking hand with the principal.

With her teacher...

GONE II ... and then some finds!!!

2009-05-30T12:07:00.008-05:00

So, this is an addition to and continuation of my last post (see below)

Here is a picture from our wedding day...

Here is a picture of what I discovered on Tuesday morning...

Now this is not the first time the diamond has been lost. On our honeymoon, I took my rings off on hole 1 at Kapula Golf Course (Maui) to put on sunscreen. I got distracted and just hopped up when I wanted to look at something. It was about 3 holes later that I realized what I had done. John and I went back and actually found both rings in the fairway.

And, here is a picture from late Wednesday afternoon...

I was amazed!!! I realized the diamond was missing as I was driving to our church Tuesday morning. We had just left the house and putting on my rings was the last thing I did before we left. So, we turned around and went back and I did a complete search of the area between my night stand and the back door. At this point, I believed it was gone. There were too many other places we had been just on Monday alone where it would have been impossible to find.... Oma's house, Memorial Day Service at Rest Haven cemetary, Albertsons. We alerted Oma (John's mom) and she was on a mission to find it. She even called Rest Haven and had them look out there. On Wednesday afternoon, we needed to run to the grocery store to pick up a last minute item for dinner. I parked close to where I parked Monday evening. I told the kids (yes, I had all three of them with me!) that I parked between these two lines and wanted to look to see if the diamond was there...yeah right...like it would still be here three days later! Sophie immediately stoop down and started trying to pick something up.

I said, "Now, Sophie...don't get all dirty! You don't have to pick up everything you see. The chances of it being here are like a gazillion to one!!!".

Sophie said, "But, mom, this really looks like it is the shape of a diamond!"

At this point, I realized that it WAS the diamond and I had no words...I just started to cry!

Some of the other things also found from the last post --- Jason's shoes, Mommy's drivers license, and all of the kids' health!!!

GONE...

2009-05-22T21:32:00.005-05:00

10 things that we have lost or gotten rid of in the past couple of weeks:

1. TIME - I've always known that doctor visits take a lot of time, but it is magnified when you have to take all three kids to the doctor for ear infections and they kids didn't think to schedule their illnesses at the same time.

2. SLEEP - kids with ear aches and coughing do not sleep very well...and therefore, neither do their parents.

3. Laptop - John got a new computer a work. He traded in the laptop for a (hopefully) more powerful desktop.

4. Driver's License - The last time I saw mine, it was in Allison's possession.

5. PS3 network connection - John tried to run the required ps3 operating system update and now the network connection is just gone.

6. AM radio - I know ... your thinking, "who cares?" But I run many of my errands at night after the kids go down AND I love the Texas Rangers. No AM radio means no 1080 and no Rangers game.

7. Mommy/Allison Time - Yesterday was Jason's last day of preschool for the year.

8. Half of Jason's shoes - Unfortunately we have misplaced one croc and one sandal, so he is left with just tennis shoes for the moment.

9. Nursery furniture - We gave away all of it to a coworker of John whose wife is expecting their first child this fall.

10. Sophie's first top tooth....

Comedy Act, 12:30 am

2009-05-18T08:14:00.004-05:00

It's been a long week and a half. First I spent Mother's Day weekend in a Nyquil-induced coma. Then each of the kids took turns battling the allergies. The results of the allergies have settled into an ear infection for Jason and coughs for all three of the kids. It is the coughing that we are battling especially during the night.

So, last night was no different. Here is part of the conversation that took place during my second wake up call of the night.

Mommy: What's wrong, sweetie?

Jason: skfjeohfradslknvoei (I have no idea what he said through the crying!!!)

Mommy: What?

Jason: They LEFT me!! (pointing at his both his sleeping sisters.)

Mommy: Where did they go? (quite confused as, obviously, they had gone nowhere.)

Jason: to sleeeeeeeep!!!!! (with a big whiney, crying sigh and BIG puppy dog tears!)

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T09:19:00.005-05:00

I love my bride and think she is a great Mom. My kids agree. This week Sophie decided to create a Happy Mother's Day Tea card completely unsolicitated and unaided. She made the card while Paula was out and surprised her by putting it on her pillow. This is a scan of the inside of the card.

Happy Mother's Day Paula!!!

Sophie's Birthday Party

2009-04-10T23:10:00.010-05:00

Sophie's 6th birthday was last Friday. It took me a week to recover from the festivities to post some photos. Sophie requested a slumber party, but Paula negotiated a slumber evening and then proceeded to plan out a "pillow fight" pajama party. Paula sent out invitations in handcrafted pillowcases and 5PM on Friday 4/3/9 there arrived 20 girls to celebrate with Sophie.

As the girls arrived, they created sleep masks decorated with stickers and jewelry.

Soon after arrival, the pillow fights had started in the media room.

One of Sophie's favorite activities was spinning in the rocking chair. At its peak, 4 or 5 girls would sit in the chair while 2 or 3 spun them in dizzying circles.

Of course, Paula had plenty of food including pizza and ice cream sundaes complete with multiple options for decorations. Chants and singing filled the air most of the time around the table.

Finally after lots of running and screaching, pizza, pillow fights, sleep mask creation, ice cream sundae decoration, lots of running and screaching, chair spinning, singing, ball pit battles, glow in the dark bracelet swirling, and lots and lots of running and screaching, some of the girls settled in to watch Princess Diaries 2.

Spring Break 2009

2009-03-17T17:26:00.008-05:00

Back before kids, John and I used to go skiing with a group of friends. Actually John and the group went for several years before he and I met, then he was stuck taking me along with him. As all of us started having kids, the ski trips went by the wayside. This year the majority of the group decided to try out the tradition again. So, we decided on Breckenridge and found this lovely place to stay...http://www.vrbo.com/969. There are 23 of us in one house including 12 children!

I was pretty excited about this trip until we took Sophie and Jason ice skating in early December. Neither of them enjoyed learning the ice skating and they didn't really like the cold either. So, after that event, I started coming up with ideas of what I could do to fill 5 days in the snow with children who didn't like cold. I brought travel games, books, art/craft supplies, and ingredients to make rice krispie treats.

I am happy to report that we have not had to depend on any of them. Even earlier today I got to make the rice krispie treats by myself. Here are some pictures of our week so far:

Walk back from the slopes to our castle (in the background)...
Sophie in ski school...
Allison taking her time getting to the sledding slope...

Sophie and daddy sledding ...
Kids sledding together...
Desert/bedtime snack (brownies, ice cream, rice krispie treats, grapes and blueberries ---it's vacation!!!)...

First Crush??

2009-01-09T20:30:00.004-06:00

Sophie is a Daisy Girl Scout this year and this weekend started the annual cookie sales. Sophie's troop has decided to participate in the Project Troop to Troop program which is part of the Gift of Caring Community Service Project. In this program, the girls can ask potential customers if they would like to purchase cookies that will be donated to our military personnel both at home and abroad. Sophie, to my suprise, has taken quite an interest in this program and was very excited when the first person order a box for the Troops. It was later in the day when I finally found the root of her interest. Here is the conversation we had on the drive home:

Sophie: Mommy, do the cookies for the Troops REALLY go to the military people.

Me: Yes! Why?

Sophie: Do they go to the army people?

Me: Yes.

Sophie: Will they go to the people who are still training and learning?

Me: I think that they could....Why?

Sophie: Just wondering.
Sophie (gleefully trying to whisper to Jason): I think Yuri is going to get some of the cookies that I sell!!!

FYI: Yuri is a young man from our church. He graduated from high school last spring and entered training for the Army Reserves. He has always been very sweet to our little Sophie.

Great News!!!

2008-12-30T19:57:00.002-06:00

Here is a picture of John on Christmas Eve. This was a week after his surgery to remove a tumor.Now, John had given me a SHORT list of questions to ask the surgeon when he talked with me after the surgery. When Dr. M. came out, the first things he said were, "John did great" and "It was benign!" I was so grateful and relieved that I forgot to ask any of John's questions.

Anyway, we went in this morning for the post-op follow-up and John finally got the opportunity to ask all of his questions. The tumor was indeed benign and of a variety that has less than a 10% chance of reoccurring. Dr. M. is sure that he got it all out. So, now John just has to do a bit of therapy to get full range of motion back in his arm and fingers.

I feel very thankful to and blessed by God for all his love and mercy. I am also thankful for all the support and prayers that we have received from our friends and family furing this time.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas....

2008-12-24T20:24:00.002-06:00

We have started up the tradition that my mom had for my sister and I as children...new pajamas for Christmas.

So, now the kids are all in bed, only an hour later than usual, and it is time for me to go finish the last little bit of wrapping. Wishing everyone a blessed and merry Christmas!

Surgery Complete

2008-12-17T22:56:00.002-06:00

This is John after the second hour-long delay to his surgery today. And he had a headache...but never fear, the drugs would soon be here!
This is John's arm post surgery.

The tumor was removed and found to be benign! Thank you for all your prayers!

It would be easier if it were me....

2008-12-17T11:18:00.005-06:00

John is headed in for surgery this afternoon to remove a growth in his left arm. I am WAY more nervous about him going in for surgery than I have ever been for any of my surgeries. It's just outpatient surgery, so we should be home later today. Of course, John has never been under anesthesia and we do not know how he will react coming out of it. So, hopefully, the nursing staff won't be too eager to push him out the door afterwards.

Anyway, we are praying for a smooth surgery, quick recovery and favorable results from the tests.

Jason's Turn

2008-11-29T23:22:00.005-06:00

Back in September, I took Sophie to her first Dallas Stars game. Friday night Jason got his turn. Aunt Crystal was going out of town for the holiday weekend and forgot to give her tickets away. She called us just before leaving and told us where she was leaving them so we could use them if able. We had our big Thanksgiving Dinner (actually lunch) on Friday. When everyone left around 3-ish and Rhonda was thinking that she was still a bit wiped out from the past few days to really enjoy the game, we decided to offer Jason the chance to go. We were not really planning on having Jason take a nap that day and he had expressed his glee about this many times. I gave Jason the choice .... he could stay up now and play the new playstation game with Daddy and Sophie OR he could go ahead upstairs and take a nap and then go to the Stars game with mommy. He thought about if for about 30 seconds .... then said " I am veeery tiiiirrrreeeddd!!!" and went straight up to bed.

We had a great time! Thanks Aunt Crystal and Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!

Halloween '08

2008-11-02T13:54:00.002-06:00

Here's our Princess, our clown, and this year's winner for most original ... our pillow (his own idea)!!!!

Can you feel it?

2008-09-28T13:27:00.004-05:00

The cool breeze is in the air. The leaves are turning beautiful colors. We are getting to pull on our sweatshirts and jackets. Oh, wait a minute .... this is TEXAS. The temperatures are still hitting the 90s and the trees are still bright green!

My husband states that spring doesn't start until the PGA Masters, so I am declaring that fall begins when hockey starts!!! So to celebrate the start of FALL, we went out to support our team the Dallas Stars. Aunt Crystal and I took Jason and Allison to see the Stars practice on Friday afternoon. They were quite captivated (... all three of them).
Then Saturday night, I took Sophie to her first Stars game down at American Airlines Center. I wasn't sure how this would go since she doesn't usually like loud noises, but she loved it. She liked the crowd, the music, the food, AND the game - she kept tracking the score and the shots on goal! She's definitely growing into a great little sports fan!

Settling right in...

2008-09-19T08:13:00.009-05:00

Sophie is really enjoying kindergarten so far. She had a few bumps the first week (left her lunch box at school one day, teachers put her in the walker line instead of the carpool line for pick up, etc.), but overall she seems right at home.

Her class did a unit on colors where they had a different color of the day. The kids were encouraged, but not required, to wear something with the color for that day. Sophie picked out clothes for each day, but we also decided to paint her nails a different color each of the days. Here's a couple of the photos (purple day and pink/orange day):

Then there was the Buddy Bear assignment. This is one of their class mascots. They sent home Buddy Bear for us to cut out and dress up. Sophie could dress her (or him) up any way she wanted and could get help from anyone in the family. At first she was thinking Ballerina. Then Princess (think one of the Disney variety). But when we went to the fabric store, she fell in love with this black/butterfly material. Here is her creation:
Here is Sophie with her Butterfly Buddy Bear...notice Sophie in the matching skirt that mom made her with much help from Nana.

For Angie....

2008-09-19T08:13:00.006-05:00

Happy Birthday to ME!

2008-09-19T08:13:00.003-05:00

Here's me with my birthday present. I asked John for a sewing machine. I don't really sew yet (except for that home-ec class in 7th grade), so I didn't really know what I wanted. John did all the research, narrowed it down to just a few choices and then let me pick. My mom came over last night to help me with my first project ... a skirt for Sophie.

Check the next, soon-to-be published post for the finished product.

First Day of Kindergarten

2008-08-26T21:44:00.003-05:00

We've been practicing for two weeks. Getting up early, eating breakfast, and getting dressed all by 7:25 am. This from a family who used to sleep until a bit after 8am (...mom and kids only, poor daddy had to go to work) .

We had a special delivery from Grandpa and Grandma Pat custom painted to Sophie's wishes. It took her a few days of careful consideration on her part, but Sophie finally decided to relocate this beautifully pink desk out of Mommy's front hall and into the gameroom.
We went to Meet the Teacher and took a picture of Sophie and Mrs. Wirstrom.
Then the day finally arrived. We got up and ready...
drove to school...
Sophie found her own way to her classroom.
Loaded up her locker...
and settled in for the day...
Here's the after school shot just to show that she survived (...and so did mommy).

Hot Springs Vacation

2008-08-08T09:17:00.004-05:00

So we headed off for a vacation in Hot Springs, Arkansas last week. Our goals for this vacation... Kids - have fun, Mom - get some rest, Dad - hit some Dairy Queens. John's mom and brother (Oma, as the kids call her, and David) went with us for part of the vacation. As we caravanned there, the kids enjoyed talking to Oma and Uncle David with the walkie-talkies that we brought and our first Dairy Queen pit stop!

The first day in Hot Springs we headed off to Garvan Woodland Gardens where we did some hiking, fish feeding and lunching.

We went up in the Mountain Tower to take in the views.
We took the National Park Duck Tour... Sophie liked the wind blowing through her hair...
Jason liked the water part of the tour....
and Allison .... liked the nap!
Then we went to the National Park Aquarium quoted as being "Arkansas' largest fish and reptile exhibit." Well, the whole aquarium could probably fit in the downstairs part of my house, but the kids did love the turtle that roamed freely.
Oma took a little time to show Sophie how to work Sudoku puzzles.
After touring a bathhouse, which the kids found to be somewhat boring, and then having to say goodbye to Oma and Uncle David, we decided to take the kids somewhere that they could just play. Since it was over 100 degrees outside, we found Little Bitty City, an indoor play area. The big kids had two favorite rooms ... an exercise room with kid-sized exercise equipment (all the pictures came out blurry) and the princess dress up room (poor Jason).
Since we enjoyed the hiking and fish feeding from the first day, we decided to go back. Last time we took the stroller, so Allison and I had to stay on the wider paths while others went on some smaller trails and got to see neater things. This time we ditched the strolling and John carried Allison.
And at last, Mom and Dad's definition of a successful vacation...all three kids asleep!!!
On the way back home, we stopped by to visit Grandpa and Grandma Pat in East Texas and made our last Dairy Queen pit stop. It's good to be home.

Summer '08 First Half

2008-07-21T10:26:00.008-05:00

Sophie has decided that she wants to be a ballerina. So, we found her a class (http://www.whitehouseballet.com/)and she is loving it.

She has also spent some time with mommy this summer learning to read. She is doing very well. So, on one trip to the library, Sophie got her own library card. Only one more month until kindergarten starts.

Jason seems to have entered an 'Evel Knievel' phase.
So, after 2 busted lips and a trip to the dentist, we seem to be recovering.

Allison has almost mastered walking and climbing. She spends the day exploring, trying to keep up with her siblings, and napping because she is exhausted from the adventures.

Finally blogging!

2008-07-21T09:57:00.001-05:00

I'm finally out here. We'll see how this goes.