Pomeroy Chaos

The Trio Is Back...

2010-12-10T16:12:00.003-06:00

The trio of Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach that is! The kids wanted to be the Super Mario Bros characters again this Halloween, and of course, I had no objection to not buying new costumes! Well, Maya got a new costume because there was an actual Princess Peach costume at the stores this year, but I didn't have to buy all three kids new costumes.

Silly kids!

Emma was the CUTEST butterfly!

At one of the festivals we went to, I gave Emma a lollipop and she LOVED it! It's so much fun being the aunt!

Camden turns 8!

2010-12-10T16:12:00.001-06:00

Camden celebrated his 8th birthday in October!

The typical morning wake up - I sure wish I was a better singer!

Seems like it was a birthday year of "big"/family gifts. Braeden got the pool and Maya got Bella.

Camden's "big" gift was a kid/family computer

My sweet kiddos

Maya's Bible Presentation

2010-12-10T16:12:00.000-06:00

As you may remember from last year our church has a bible presentation every year for 1st graders. It's a really special event where the kids get to walk across the stage in front of the church and are presented with their very own bible. After Camden received his last year, Maya and Braeden couldn't wait to get their very own bible. Braeden will have to wait until next year, but Maya got hers a couple months ago.

Maya and her cousin Riley

Walking across the stage

So proud of you Maya!

Sports. Sports. And More Sports.

2010-12-10T16:11:00.001-06:00

I don't consider myself a sports fanatic necessarily, but I did grow up playing many sports. And I loved it. So, it's not unusual to me that my children are involved in many sports. I don't feel like I push them to play (as some might think) but I do encourage them to get involved in activities. We're involved in church, school activities, and many other things as well. We're just a family on the go. Always moving. Almost always doing something. So, it's no real surprise that after spring baseball last year, the kids went into summer swim lessons, fall baseball AND fall soccer (that was a bit much - but that was me not being able to tell Camden no). And now they're all three playing winter basketball. For now, being the family on the go works. Only time will tell if I'm singing that same tune 5 years from now! :)

Baseball... How could I tell this kid no?!

Soccer... This was a really fun season! I moved Braeden up an age group and they all 3 got to play on the same team. Braeden was definitely smaller than all of the other kids, but he played really well and held his own. It'll make him a tougher player right!?! ;-)

I love this picture of all 3 of them!

Maya in action

Braeden with a breakaway!

Camden with the corner kick!

Emma went to a lot of the games too!

Great season Salt Lake!

Great job kids! What a fun season!

Catching up - part too many!

2010-11-15T13:57:00.000-06:00

I think I will be "caught up", for the most part, after this post! Thank goodness! I know what you're thinking, "why didn't she just start with current time?" Well, I thought about doing just that, but the kids like to look at the blog - and I'm hoping to create books from the blog for the kids eventually - so I just didn't feel right skipping almost an entire year. We're almost back to live mode people, just bear with me.

Maya turns 6! Of course, I woke her up singing happy birthday as I do every year...

Maybe I should have done something with her hair the night before!

The morning of

We celebrated the weekend before...

Maya got a dog! Introducing "Bella Sprinkles Rosie Speedy" - and yes, she was called all of those names for a while, but we've finally settled with "Bella." I got her about a week before Maya's birthday and started to call her Bella, thinking I would be able to easily sway Maya once I gave her the dog. So, on Maya's birthday, I gave her Bella and told her a list of "approved" (by me :)) names and asked Maya what she thought. Maya gets close and whispers in my ear, "Sprinkles!" Sprinkles?? Ummmm... ok. Braeden decided he wanted to name her as well and came up with Rosie. Eventually, her name settled in as Bella and she just as sweet as she can be with the kids!

Maya loves this dog!

The first day of school! Braeden started Kindergarten, Maya is in 1st grade and Camden is in 2nd grade! I feel sorry for the teachers at their school...

Oh yeah.... I bought a mini-van! Yep, it's official. And I really can't say enough good things about this kid corralling, kid friendly machine. I love that the doors slide back to open (as to not hit any other cars because no matter how many times you tell your kids to slow down when opening the doors, they will still fling them open!), it's lower to the ground (which is great for us shorties), and the best part (and well worth the "taking away of my coolness" factor) is that the kids can no longer touch each other! I digress... back to the first day of school.

Their backpacks just swallow them up...

You made it Braeden! He's really been looking forward to going to school!

Isn't she adorable!

Wow! 2nd grade! I can't believe it.

Maya passed out after the first day of school last year too!

I was a little worried about how Braeden would act in school. Camden and Maya are so quiet in school, that I just knew I would be in for a rude awakening with Braeden. Not that I thought he would get in a ton of trouble, but the boy likes to talk (a lot). But so far, so good! Not only that, but Braeden won the first month character trait award in his class. Every month, the school teaches about particular character traits and each teacher from each grade picks 1 or 2 students they feel is best representing the trait being discussed. October was the first month and the trait was "respect" and Braeden's teacher picked him to be rewarded (with a yard sign for a month) and recognized at an awards ceremony. Way to start off your school year Braeden!!

Catching up - part 5

2010-11-04T15:54:00.000-05:00

We took a great vacation to San Antonio this summer! The resort we stayed in was absolutely wonderful. We really could have just vacation there and never left because there was so much to do. They had a water park, a river on the grounds to float around, ping pong, water volleyball, smores by the fire every evening, a playground, outdoor activities and more. We will definitely go back!

The sandy/beachy area along the river

Smores... Yummy!

The river

The playground

The lawn where they played games during the day and watched a movie at night

We watched "Finding Nemo" this night

Trails around the resort

The boys loved the ping pong!

Just hangin' out

Of course, we had to make a stop at the River Walk

All of the nonstop activities worked... finally asleep!

We also stopped by SeaWorld while we were there

Of course! Maya and I got soaked on the river ride!

The boys rode the Journey To Atlantis ride...

Maya and I waited...

We watched shows, went to the water park and had fun late into the evening!

Oh yeah! I can't forget this. Camden rode is very first "big" roller coaster, The Steel Eel. He was sooo excited. While we were making the climb to the first huge drop he was laughing it up. But, as soon as the coaster made it over the hill and dropped, he scrunched ALL the way down in his seat and his eyes got HUGE! I laughed so hard the entire time that I was crying. This particular roller coaster took pics of everyone as they passed by at a certain point. However, since Camden was on the side of the camera and was all the way down in his seat, he was out of sight to the camera and there was no picture. It was still fun and something I hope he remembers forever. He said he enjoyed the ride even though he didn't look like it while we were on it...

We'll be back San Antonio!

Catching up - part 4

2010-11-04T14:38:00.000-05:00

We had an amazing summer, spending many days out on the boat and at Lake Livingston. My niece Rachel came to visit and the kids LOVED having her around!

The kids went tubing and even kneeboarding. They started out going on the kneeboard on their bellies, but after just a few trips, they wanted to try getting up on their knees. Braeden actually pulled himself up on his second try! I couldn't believe it! Kneeboarding is not easy, at least not for me - but I'm sure that's in part because I'm getting old and I'm out of shape. Since Braeden was able to get up and get going before Camden and Maya, Camden had to try and one-up his little brother. So... Camden learned how to pull himself around while on the kneeboard, doing a complete 360! I can't believe how quickly kids can pick things up sometimes!

I wish I had more pics of them on the kneeboard...

We all hope Rachel will come back next summer!

Catching up - part 3

2010-11-02T13:36:00.000-05:00

I started a new job and they have a suite at the Rodeo, so I took my little cowgirl!

I don't know why this picture won't upload correctly, but it's too cute not to include.

We celebrated Easter!

Emma's 1st Easter!

We love confetti eggs!

Emma and Maya - they love their new cousin!

weeeeee!

Camden participated in his 1st grade school play "Bugz".

Braeden graduated from his Pre-K Mother's Day Out program at our church!

Braeden and Mommy

Receiving his "diploma"

And... He's off to Kindergarten!

Emma and Braeden

Can't forget a picture with Abbey-a, er Olivia.

Braeden turned 5!

The kids got a pool for Braeden's birthday!

Don't worry, he got plenty of his "own" gifts too...

Happy birthday my sweet Braeden!

Catching up - part 2

2010-11-02T11:54:00.001-05:00

My new niece arrived on January 3rd!!! Introducing Miss Emma Grace!

Maya celebrated her 100th day of Kindergarten. I was much more prepared this year than I was last year!

We made Maya's Valentine's Day box and I went to their school parties...

This letter (written by Camden) was hanging outside of his class. It reads that his Valentine will be his mom! (so sweet)

We made Maya's Star of The Week poster for her class. Again, I was more prepared than I was in the previous year!

Spring baseball and soccer took over our lives for a few months...

Opening Day Ceremonies

Maya and her cousin Riley

We're baaack! Catching up - part 1

2010-11-02T11:54:00.000-05:00

Well… It’s been a while to say the least, but the Pomeroy crew is back! Don’t worry – I’m not going to bore you with a ton of super long posts. But, I am going to give you all a quick rundown of the past few months (ok ok so maybe it’s been more than a few months :)). Even though I haven’t been blogging about our lives, we’ve been busy as usual!

Camden went from playing fall baseball to winter basketball and it was quite entertaining. I think all three kids are going to play this winter, but we'll see. It was a nice “energy release” for the kids since they can’t play outside as much and they’re not in school.

The kids had their school Holiday parties.

Braeden is no longer a visitor at the elementary school, but we’ll get to that later!

We had a wonderful Christmas!

We all got Snuggies (yes, my sister and brother-in-law even got me one). You may remember Camden's obsession with the Snuggie last year. So, now we can all look like cult members!

We became obsessed with paying Super Mario Bros on the Wii and the kids new favorite for a while, Just Dance. I would highly recommend buying Just Dance! That game is so much fun and SO funny to watch kids play.

I got a new camera! Finally! My old camera was probably 7 years old, which is a dinosaur in the world of electronics.

What am I thankful for?

2009-12-09T22:46:00.003-06:00

These three sweet kids of course!

Even when they're goofy...

Maya's Fall Party

2009-12-09T22:28:00.002-06:00

I went to Maya's fall party (Thanksgiving party) the week before Thanksgiving and of course, it was lots of fun. The kids were all dressed up, had lots of fun snacks and they sang a few songs.

My sweet Princess!

A picture of "Maya and Mommy playing outside" drawn by Maya on her vest.
The teacher asked each of the kids what she should put as an additional name on their hat and Maya told her "Princess". So her hat read "Princess Maya"... adorable!

The class right posing after their performance.

The teacher had the kids write on and color leaves that were displayed outside of their classroom of what they were each thankful for. And what is Maya thankful for you might ask? "I'm thankful for my mom" .... all together now.... *awwwww*

Dewberry Farm

2009-12-09T15:40:00.008-06:00

This post is long overdue. (As many of them have been lately!) We took the kids to Dewberry Farm last month and they had so much fun!! I didn't know this when we went out there, but entry is free after Thanksgiving. So, that's when we'll be going if we go back next year. Not everything came with the price of admission, but a lot of it did. There was TONS of activities for the kids to do. They also have a pumpkin patch and a Christmas Tree farm. We didn't get around to everything, but here are some of the things that we did.

They went swinging on large bean bags...
Fort Dewhickey! Braeden could have spent all day here...

This giant roller slide was made out of PVC pipes and the kids loved it. It was not all that fun from my perspective! Maybe it's a weight thing?!

The corn maze...

The jumping pillows. The kids LOVED this. I must say, this was probably the most fun for me as well!

The black momba...

Pedal cars...

Wouldn't be a farm experience without pig races now would it?

What they called the flinger... rope swinging basically.

The human hamster wheel!

The tractor pulled "train ride"...

And of course, snow cones that they got to make themselves.

Soccer is over...

2009-11-25T10:53:00.004-06:00

...for now! The Jets ended the season a couple weeks ago. It was a pretty good first year for Maya and Braeden. Braeden participated more and more as the season went on. He is actually a pretty good player for his age. He is really aggressive and works really hard (when HE wants to). Maya was always one of the fastest runners on the field, but that's mostly what she did, run! She would just chase the ball and the players around the field. She would outrun the other kids to the ball and then kick it one time only or run right passed it! I tried to work with her, but she just didn't want to be mean. Tough to teach a kid that you can be aggressive and not mean. She'll get there someday. Camden has decided he now wants to play soccer after watching his sister and brother. Basketball is next on the agenda, then baseball for the spring... we'll see if we can squeeze soccer into the summer!

Braeden finally got his "trophy" he so desperately wanted after Camden got his trophy last year. Braeden wore the medal to bed for almost a week! Great season Jets!

Portrait anyone?

2009-11-25T10:46:00.003-06:00

Camden and Maya have really been into coloring, drawing and writing together since Maya started Kindergarten. I looked over one night to see Maya posing for Camden so he could draw a portrait of her. It was so cute! Why can't they always play this nicely together?!

Every time she would move Camden would yell "Stop moving Maya! I'm going to mess up if you do!"

He even drew her adorable freckles on her nose and cheeks! Notice how large her right arm is in the drawing? He traced her actual arm to draw that one?!

Happy Birthday JoJo!

2009-11-25T10:37:00.004-06:00

My dad celebrated his 60th birthday (I'm sure he won't mind me telling his age!) this month and the kids wanted to make him cupcakes. Well, they really wanted to take him to Chuck E Cheese, but I told them we could make him a cake instead. Of course, just to argue, they wanted cupcakes, but I talked them into a cake instead. Cakes are a little easier! I let the kids each have a quadrant of the cake to decorate. I had to help some otherwise we would have been eating all sprinkles and colored squeeze icing.

Happy Birthday JoJo!

Halloween Chaos

2009-11-09T19:24:00.005-06:00

Halloween was chaos in our house this year as usual. We had a soccer game early that morning. Then we were off to the house to get ready for the day. We hit up 2 festivals and of course, we went trick or treating in the evening.

Introducing...

Super Mario!

Luigi!

And Princess Peach!

Camden and Braeden were constantly pretending to punch each other (and Maya) all day!

They jumped and slid in bouncies...

They got to pet animals...

They went on a "train" ride...

They played musical chairs...

And much, much more! And of course they got tons of candy! Happy Halloween everyone!

Surprisingly, we actually only saw one other Mario and Luigi all day! So their costumes were a hit everywhere we went! Braeden LOVED the attention!!

The Infamous Abbey-a

2009-11-09T19:14:00.006-06:00

Braeden has been calling a lot of little girls "Abbey" for a few months now. I kept thinking that it was because of a sweet little girl he has in his Sunday school class, and I’m sure that’s how it started. There is a girl named Abbey in his Sunday school class that he told me about a few months ago so I just assumed she must have made such an impression that Braeden kept mentioning her and sweetly calling each and every little girl he met Abbey. But the name "Abbey" eventually turned into "Abbey-a" and he was talking about her all the time. He kept saying his best friend was Abbey-a, he couldn't wait to see her and she likes tickles! Then about 2 weeks ago, he flipped out with excitement that the cartoon Olivia was coming on TV. He would get excited everyday when it was time for the cartoon. I kept asking Braeden questions about her and finally realized that this little girl was in his Mother’s Day Out class as well as Sunday school class.

Braeden’s MDO fall festival was a couple weeks ago and I was so excited to finally get to meet this mystery girl my little boy was head over heels for. After the kids parade around the school, I went to his class to tell him how good he did and had hoped I would get to meet Abbey-a. I gave my little man hugs and kisses and told him how great he did in his parade and immediately ask about Abbey-a. Well, one of his teachers overheard me and said “Oh Abbey-a!? Well, her name is actually OLIVIA and those two just love each other! They run to each other every day as soon as they get to class and hug. They play so well together and are both very smart!” I said “Oooohhh! Her name is actually Olivia?! It makes sense now that Braeden changed the name Abbey to Abbey-a – I guess he was trying to combine the names?” Ms. Tonya then tells me that he has actually been calling her Abbey and Abbey-a and they have been working on him calling her Olivia. Braeden just ADORES this little girl and I’m so happy he has someone he looks forward to seeing at school.

Braeden was the line leader for his class! He did a great job!

All of the kids dressed up - it was adorable!

And.... Olivia! I'm sure it doesn't hurt that she's such a little cutie!!

A scary moment...

2009-11-04T23:07:00.013-06:00

If you're a parent, you've probably had one of these. A scary moment. I'm typically the calm parent. Probably known as the mean parent to some. I'm the one yelling at my kids on the sidelines of a game to get up and shake it off. I really think I can tell the difference when my kids are crying because they are actually hurt or when their feelings are hurt. So, I encourage my kids to get up when they fall down, to keep going when some kid has pushed them down or to not cry when they strike out. I'm sure some parents would disagree, but this is how I handle many situations.

I think this is in part because I watched many parents over my sports years growing up (especially with girls) coddle their kids. And more times than not, I watched parents make the situation worse by doing this. I'm not sure if I despised it because I wanted to be one of those kids that could cry when they got an out or didn't score the goal or if I just thought then as I do now - are you kidding me? Seriously? You can't cry every time you get an out, don't win a game or score the winning run! I can't cry now, as an adult, when I don't get a good evaluation at work, or when I don't like my boss. I'm a firm believer that sports and many extracurricular activities teach kids many valuable lessons in life. Are they all good? No, I'm sure they aren't. But my point in all this rambling is that I feel like I've learned many valuable lessons through the years with all of my extracurricular activities - and of course, I must give much credit to my parents, to not overreact to every situation.

(Here's the but - and it's a small, brief but, but still a but) However, a couple of weekends ago, I woke up to Braeden crying *er, screaming* in the middle of the night. This is not typical, but does happen occasionally. I went upstairs to check on him and opened his door without turning any lights on.

Me - Sweetie. What's going on?

Braeden - (crying and sobbing hysterically) I have a wizard!

Me - You have a lizard? Where? On the wall? (we had been playing outside a lot the last few days because the weather had been so nice and they were chasing lizards one day, so that's what I thought he was saying. And I thought he had been dreaming about them and it wasn't real.)

Braeden - NO! I have a wizard!

Me - What are you talking about? Where is this lizard?

Braeden - Right here mommy! (he says this as sad as can be and points to his lip)

I finally turn on the hall light and when my eyes focus a little I let out a huge gasp! The gasp, of course, freaks him out so I immediately say "oh it's ok, mommy just got scared with the light on, I thought I really saw a lizard on the wall. Let's go downstairs and get you some medicine."

Little did I know that he couldn't really talk properly because his lip looked like this! The entire time he was trying to say BLISTER, not wizard or lizard!! terrible mom moment.... terrible mom moment...

I wouldn't have even taken any pics except I thought if I take him to the pediatrician the next morning I want him to see just how big his lip actually got. Not the best pics because they were taken with my phone. But my poor baby!! :(

This was one of those scary moments where the cry really meant something and I would have panicked had their dad not had similar allergic reactions. (and let's just say that my extracurricular activities over the years helped my reaction since I said all of the above! :) ) I am not sure what happened with Braeden or why his lip swelled the way it did, but I knew enough to give him benadryl. Which I did and then slept the rest of the night with him on the couch so that I could monitor him. Not even 4 hours later his lip looked close to normal. My little man was running around as normal as could be the next day, but it was still a bit of a scary moment!

Baby Nixon Baby Shower

2009-11-04T22:51:00.005-06:00

We had a baby shower for Kim and Jon a couple weekends ago and it was a hit! Kim and Jon are so loved and have such wonderful family and friends. This baby is going to be spoiled! I feel so terrible that I didn't get more pictures, but I'm going to blame it on trying to be a good hostess! :)

All of the food was yummy!! (or so I heard - I'm going to blame that on the good hostess thing again!) Although I did manage to get plenty of the sangria!

Can you say SPOILED??! Congrats baby sis! I love you and can't wait to meet my new niece!

Bible Presentation

2009-11-04T15:25:00.004-06:00

Our church had a bible presentation for 1st graders and the pastor signed and gave each child their very own bible. It was so sweet and a big moment for Camden. While I thought he would be really nervous and possibly not want to do it, he did such a great job walking across the stage to get his bible.

I say "get closer guys" and this is what I get!

Always being silly these days!

Great job Camden!

Time for the signature… did I mention that Camden only takes silly pictures?!

Camden turns 7!

2009-11-04T15:15:00.004-06:00

I can’t believe I have a 7 year old!? Where has the time gone?

My sweet, chubby first born at a couple days old....

My silly, skinny first born 7 years later...
We had a small family party at Chuck E Cheese

We had cupcakes!

Yuck! Wonder if that will come off easily?

And the gifts…. Yep, you guessed it, the boy got his very own Snuggie!

And he's been wearing it... Often!!

He is getting so big! He is reading everything. He is such a smart kid. He is silly and funny. He is making good decisions (mostly :) and being a good example for his younger brother and sister. And while he’s TRYING to grow out of kisses and hugs, I’m REALLY trying not to let him. He is a secret nighttime snuggler – kissing and hugging me after his sister and brother are in bed – but you didn’t hear that from me! I’m so proud of you Camden! Happy 7th birthday!

Downtown Aquarium

2009-11-04T15:04:00.003-06:00

Once again I’m back on the bad blogger list! Well here goes my attempt at a quick catch up over the last several weeks of happenings…

We headed to the Aquarium in downtown Houston for some fun a few weeks ago. I found coupons for all day passes for $5 so we were off to enjoy all of the events more than one time. The kids haven't been downtown all that often and they were amazed by all of the tall buildings!

We went through the Aquarium Adventure Exhibit. Camden being silly sizing up the fish...
We rode the Ferris Wheel a couple times...

We rode the carousel a few times...

We rode the train around the area and through The Shark Voyage.

It was a gorgeous day! We had a blast!

The Jets!

2009-09-28T15:37:00.004-05:00

I guess I'll have to stop calling the kids soccer team The Rugrats because they are now known as The Jets! The kids had their second practice Friday and the team mom had the team vote on the name. When she asked if they wanted to be called Jets or Tornadoes one little girl yelled out "How about The Soccer Mermaids?" Of course, all three girls raised their hands in agreement while the boys looked at them like they were crazy!

The second practice went better for Braeden. He was pumped and ready to go when we got there, no crying. He lasted most of the practice until he decided he'd had enough and then he ran over to sit by me. I pushed him back out on the field and he lasted another 10 minutes or so. (baby steps)

Their first game was Saturday morning and they both did pretty well. It's quite entertaining to watch kids this age play sports. Kids were running and falling all over the place. Maya ran around and didn't want to be "mean" by pushing the other kids so we'll have to work on her aggressiveness. Braeden had no problem being aggressive! He was running around pulling on jerseys and trying his hardest to get the ball. They both had a great first game and will hopefully enjoy the season!

They're ready!

Pre-game warm ups... Braeden and the goalie had it out because Braeden kept wanting to kick the ball when the goalie didn't want him to.
Braeden in the middle of the action pulling on jerseys!

Braeden decided after half time he didn't want to play anymore, but I made him sit, watch and cheer on his team!

Great first game Jets!

Maya The Chef

2009-09-28T15:31:00.003-05:00

Maya really wanted me to make cupcakes the other night but I talked her into a cake instead. It's a little less work than cupcakes. Less work for me is better! :)

I put Maya to work while I made dinner.

The best part - licking the spoon!
The finished product...
YUM-MY!!

The... uh... Rugrats?

2009-09-20T19:14:00.006-05:00

Maya and Braeden started soccer last week (just practice) and they don't have a team name yet so I'm going to call them rugrats because that's typically how I refer to those two! They were both SO excited to have their own sport, but when it came down to actual practice Braeden froze. First, he didn't want to wear the shin guards so that started the crying. I finally got that stopped, but once we walked on the field the crying ensued. So I decided I would go out on the field and warm-up with him thinking he would see how fun it was and I would be able to sneak off after a few minutes. Well, not exactly. I stretched, did jumping jacks and ran a couple laps with the kids. Once Braeden had an opportunity, HE ran off the field! Wait a second, that was my plan?! We ended up playing with Braeden most of the time on the sidelines and finally got him out on the actual field after everyone left - so we stayed and practiced for another 15 minutes or so. Maybe next time will go better for him! Maya, on the other hand, had a blast!

Maya is ready to go!

Braeden is still crying...

Maya is telling him it's going to be ok.

Does anyone else see a future soccer star?!

Nice kick!

Some of the kids were 6 - which I think scared Braeden because they were so much bigger.

Our "practice" after practice begins.

Braeden really has it in him and wants to play... stay tuned.

Gooo Razorbacks!

2009-09-20T19:02:00.003-05:00

Camden started fall baseball a couple weeks ago and the team name is definitely better this season! Camden has graduated to the pitching machine! I was a little worried how he would react his first few pitches and he was a little hesitant, but by the second practice he was making steady contact with the ball. Their first game was today and Camden was 2 for 2 up to bat. He was the 5th batter and the team's first up to bat Camden was the first kid to hit the ball. I think all of the boys were still a little terrified and just needed one of them to make contact because after that the team did much better. While they didn't officially keep score, the Razorbacks took away the win and it was a great first game.

Ready to go!

Camden is just as serious this year! He is definitely a hard worker!

Camden has a few of the players from The Lugnuts on this team which is nice for them...

Great first game Razorbacks!

Mini-Me

2009-09-20T18:48:00.003-05:00

One of Maya's recent homework assignments was to decorate a doll representing herself. Her teacher sent home a blank "gingerbread" shaped cutout and wanted the parents to help the kids use different items to decorate the doll. Well, it's no secret that I'm not an artist and really not all that creative. So, my brilliant idea was to get on the internet and search for paper doll cutouts for the clothing and we would pick out an actual picture of Maya's face for the face of the doll. Of course, I let Maya pick out the cutouts and accessories. I then printed them out, cut them and let Maya color them to her liking. I tried to let her glue the items on but she was just making a mess so I took that over. Once the doll was done, it looked a little odd without hair so I cut off a few strands from the end of one of the blanket throws in the living room! That's pretty creative for me!

The end product.

"Allow myself to introduce.... myself."

Maya turns 5!

2009-09-18T09:07:00.003-05:00

Along with the excitement of the first day of school, Maya celebrated her 5th birthday! I can't believe how fast they're growing up! My baby girl is too big already.

I woke her up that morning singing happy birthday. Gotta love the bed head hair!

She got her very own iPod Shuffle. I downloaded a bunch of her favorite church songs - she loves it!
Braeden trying out the Shuffle. Look at that mischievous look!!

More cupcakes...

"I'm 5!"

The first day of school...

2009-09-18T08:41:00.004-05:00

...wasn't nearly as bad for me this year! I knew Camden was comfortable and had a really great experience last year, so I am hoping Maya will have the same. I also know Camden is there to help Maya along the way if she needs it. Unfortunately for Camden, he gets a lot of "being the big brother" talks. I use the term unfortunate loosely because while he sighs and doesn't always understand why HE is the one getting the lecture, he likes being the oldest many more times than not. He likes to act like he's been there done that and tell the other two just how easy it is.

I took the day off again this year so that I was there when the kids got off the bus. Honestly, the bus ride is my biggest stress and fear for the kids. I'm not sure why really, but maybe it's because I never rode the bus. Well they made it home safely and seemed to have a great day!

We're ready!

A hug bye from brother Braeden...
"Enough with the pictures Mommy!"

A final hug before they part ways...

Maya sat right down and started coloring!

Cousin Riley also started Kindergarten and is right across the hall from Maya...

Part of Camden's "big brother" talks involved making sure Maya got off the bus with him and not wander off. My dad meets them at the bus stop most of the time, so this isn't really an issue, but I wanted Camden to know what he should do just in case. It's hard to tell in this picture, but Camden was the second kid off the bus and he bolted! He took off running immediately! I stopped him and he said "oh yeah. I forgot about Maya"

Maya was just about the last kid off the bus, but I was able to breathe again once I saw they made it home safely!

Maya crashed after a long day...

Lake Livingston - Take 2

2009-09-17T20:48:00.007-05:00

The weekend before school started, we headed back to Lake Livingston for our boat rental that didn't quite work out during our first "24 hour" camping trip. It was a gorgeous day this time around. We boated, fished, swam, ate lunch and boated more. We spent about 7 hours out on the lake and the kids loved it! It was a great way to end the summer!!

Waiting patiently to get on the boat...
Practicing his army crawl... The Sandman

I had to bribe Camden to get in the tube that was being pulled behind the boat! Then, once he was in and realized how much fun it was I couldn't get him out!

As the day went on, the kids got more daring on the tube - raising both hands in the air, trying to stand up, etc. (the boat only went about 5 mph) Camden did lose another tooth while performing his "tricks" - the kid is missing 5 teeth at the moment!

Can't forget about the fishing. Maya dropped her fishing pole about 5 minutes in!!

Children's Museum and Bowling

2009-09-17T14:58:00.006-05:00

I've been such a bad mommy blogger the last few weeks so I'm going to try to get caught up in a few posts.

During my week off with the kids we did a lot of fun things and one of the days I took them to the Houston Children's Museum . They had a lot of fun although we all wished the museum hadn't been so crowded so we could have explored a little more.

"Hey Maya! Can you see me?" (standing on the other side of the periscope)

Camden is trying to listen to Braeden yelling into the pipe from across the room...
Braeden bustin' a move on the dance floor!! This boy LOVES to dance!

Teamwork gets it done...

Maya wanted me to make her look like a cat... I'm definitely not an artist!

Maya drawing a self portrait...

Look Mommy - My hand is stuck!

All done! We had a blast!

After the museum we hit the bowling alley. I didn't realize it was going to be "league" night so the older couple next to us got annoyed with the kids and moved lanes. :-/ The kids were actually really good, but I guess when you're really focused on something you don't want kids screaming about hitting 1 pin down?!

Palm Beach and Kemah

2009-08-19T22:02:00.030-05:00

I took the kids to Palm Beach at Moody Gardens in Galveston yesterday and we had a blast! I've been there but it's been years (pre kids) and I really couldn't remember what it was like. It's not a place I think the kids will like as much as they get too much older, but it is perfect for them now. There isn't a place there where the water is over 4 feet, which is great for kids who "think they can swim!"

Not sure exactly what I was thinking, but I decided to take the kids to Kemah after Galveston. We ate dinner, got ice cream and played in the water some more. And... the kids slept great last night!! I'm sure that was part of my reasoning for going all day nonstop! :)

Who knew cleaning could be so fun?

2009-08-17T11:53:00.006-05:00

Well it's not for me, but Maya had fun "helping" me clean this week. While I do feel much better when things are organized and clean you can't tell that by my office space!? However, with school and fall sports quickly approaching, I felt the need to get my house in order sooner rather than later. So this weekend was spent organizing and cleaning - closets mostly. It's amazing how unorganized closets can get. As I organized 5 years of messiness in my closet, Maya ran across a few things...

First she found my wedding veil - I forgot I even had that in my closet! Should I be worried? She does look very adorable!

Admiring herself in the mirror... Then she got into my shoes...

I'm not sure why she chose these shoes, but let me just say, I wore these in a wedding and NO they weren't tied up on my calves like that!

Hmmm... I have no comment on these shoes... :-/

We eventually made our way upstairs and got to Maya's closet. With three kids, I have given away many clothes and baby items to cousins through the years. However, I saved things that I thought my sis would want once she finally had kids of her own. So this weekend, I sent my sis and Jon away with a truck full of items that I no longer have to store in my house!! Ahhh... purging feels oh so good!

Maya was in a picture taking mood this weekend and wanted a pic with her and all of her old clothes!

looks like the kids new cousin will be a...

2009-08-13T10:35:00.002-05:00

GIRL! Kim had an ultrasound yesterday and they found out they are having a little girl!! The baby is perfectly healthy and Kim's pregnancy is going great. Kim and Jon graciously allowed me, both of their mothers, Jon's sister and our grandmother in the room to find out the good news. Even though I've personally been through those ultrasounds a few times, I'm still amazed looking at that little baby growing and kicking inside the belly. I am so happy for Kim and Jon and I'm sure I speak for both families when I say "Congratulations and we can't wait to meet the new addition!!"

The Snugglette

2009-08-05T16:07:00.003-05:00

It’s the Snuggie for kids!! Seriously! The kids were watching TV the other day and the infomercial "The Snuggie For Kids" came on and they were all yelling over wanting this thing! I guess the next logical production was going to be for kids. So, if you’re so inclined, everyone in the family can sport the ridiculous yet oh-so-comfy Snuggie while watching TV, playing video games, eating dinner, or going to ball games. For just $14.99, kids can now humiliate themselves in their very own blanket with sleeves. With the first day of school coming up soon, I think I’ll buy all of us one so we can all dress up like cult members!? Riiiight!

Who am I kidding… my kids will probably get one if they keep bugging me about it.

24 hour camping

2009-08-04T10:03:00.007-05:00

I have such fond memories of going camping as a child. Running and playing in the dirt, swinging from ropes into the river or lake, fried biscuits in the mornings and so on. My parents and I have been talking about taking the kids camping for a couple of years now, but I kept copping out saying Braeden was too young. It can be a lot of work to follow three young kids around an unfamiliar environment! Well, I finally gave in this year thinking they are now the perfect age. I would be able to let them run around the camp site and get dirty and play and not have to worry as much as I would chasing a young toddler around.

So, my parents, my sis, the kids and I loaded up last week and headed to Lake Livingston for the kids very first camping trip. Camden was really not looking forward to it much. He didn’t like the idea of sleeping outside (he was afraid he would sleep walk out of the tent and get lost?!), no TV, and being in water with sharks (I cleared that one up quickly). We had planned on definitely staying Thursday and Friday night, and possibly Saturday if the kids were doing well. We arrived to our camp site early Thursday afternoon and got the camp set up and the kids were slowly getting used to the idea. After we set up camp my sis and I took the kids to the designated campsite swimming area and while they were a little hesitant at first, they LOVED it! That’s all they needed, they were now fans of camping! I was so excited because we rented a boat for the next day and I just knew they would love that even more! We swam for about an hour and then headed back to our camp for dinner. I personally love grilled food, so I was very happy about dinner! :-) The kids ate and ran around and played some more as we settled in for the night. Camden went right to sleep in my parents’ tent. My sis and I were not so lucky with Maya and Braeden… I finally gave in and pulled out their Leapsters. It worked and everyone eventually fell asleep. Unfortunately, a rain storm woke me up in the middle of the night, but the kids were not fazed. We woke up the next morning hoping that it was just a summer shower and would pass so we headed to get our rental boat. Once there, my dad went inside to get the boat keys and the weather was on the TV and unfortunately the bad weather was there to stay. So we went back to camp and loaded up to head home – a mere 24 hours after we arrived.

The set up...

Our view... next time we're getting a site right on the water...

Wondering if he should eat the dirt...

Oops! They got a little crazy with the dirt and it ended up all over Maya's face...

Playing his Aunt Kimmy's Nintendo DS...

"I'm ready to fish! Can I wear JoJo's hat?"

The kids were a little disappointed that we didn’t get to go fishing, but we are headed back for our boat rental in a few weeks so they will finally get to fish then! Even though the trip didn’t last long, the kids did have a good time and we will definitely be going on another camping trip.

$453.78...

2009-07-27T16:54:00.003-05:00

...is how much the kids and I cashed in this weekend at Coinstar! Of course Coinstar charges a nice 8.9% fee, so we got a little less, but it was well worth not having to roll all of those coins! I got sick of looking at the three large "coin" containers in the kitchen corner so I thought it be fun for the kids to cash in the coins and get a toy (I hesitate to call them actual coin containers because they were 2 vases and 1 large powder protein container - about the size of a large pickle jar). Little did I know we had so much change! I also was not aware of how noisy this machine would be. Along with the typical noise in the customer service area in Wal-Mart , the loudness of the kids fighting over each having a turn to drop in the coins and the yelling about the coins dropping on the floor, we were very loud and the entertainment for quite a few people in the store yesterday! Regardless, the kids were very excited about getting new toys (as if they don't have enough). The boys each got a new Wii game and Maya got a new "Darbie" toy. She calls Barbie, Darbie and I can't get her to keep it straight... might be that she doesn't have many "Darbies." I think those coins have been collecting for about 4 years, so maybe in another 4 years we can do the same thing! :-)

this might be payback...

2009-07-27T16:15:00.005-05:00

I was a daredevil as a little kid. I had little to no fear and would try almost anything once. For example, I can remember jumping off a friends' rooftop into her pool in highschool. But I refuse to list anymore examples because my parents read this blog and they don't need to know all the times I could have ended up in the emergency room! :-) And I don't need to give my kids any ideas for the day they start reading the blog!

The other day, Camden and Maya wanted to get on the water slide in the backyard while I was making dinner. I opened all the blinds so that I could continue to cook and still watch them. (Braeden wanted to stay inside so he could have the Wii all to himself - must be tough always having to share!) At one point, I look outside to see Maya pushing her "bigwheel" (similar to the one below)

UP the slide so that she can ride down the slide on it! I immediately go outside and call her to the porch to tell her and Camden they can not do that. Of course they both ask me why and I tell them they could really hurt themselves. Camden then tells me that he didn't hurt himself when he went down and it was fun!!! Maya backs up the sentiment saying "it was a lot of fun mommy and we didn't hurt ourselves!!!" .....greeeeaat! I look away for a few minutes and this is what they're doing..... I took the tricycles away and told them not to put anything else on the slide without asking me!

This weekend I was cleaning out the hall closet and I pulled out the kids sleep mats they used at Mother's day out and the kids wanted to lay on them to watch tv. Before I know it I hear a bunch of thuds and giggling - I knew they were up to something. I go around the corner to see this....

Camden and Maya using the mats to slide down the stairs!! It was pretty funny so I snapped a couple pics and took the following video with my phone. Not the best quality video because it's from my phone but it's still pretty funny!

Guess this is payback for being such a daredevil as a child. My mom used to always tell me I would end up having 5 fearless boys as payback...

Did you get your "can" with this book?

2009-07-27T15:53:00.004-05:00

Camden has been bribed to practice his reading this summer. I told him I would pay him for every book he read, but I wouldn't agree to a set price per book because I knew he would be tricky about it and choose a ton of smaller books. (he's a sneaky little kid!) He is keeping a running list of the books he's read because I told him that at the end of the summer I would pay him and he could spend the money on whatever he wanted - within reason of course. He has done a great job because he REALLY wants a new Wii game.

The other day he was reading a book and decided to turn it over to see the price of the book. So he's looking at something similar to this...Camden - Mommy, this book cost "seven, nine, nine." Oh hey! Did you get your can with this book?

Me - Can? What are you talking about?

Camden - It says right here that the can is "eleven, nine, nine." So did you get a can with the book?

Me - OHHH.... No sweetie. The book didn't come with a can. The book has that on there because there is a different price for a different country. CAN is an abbreviation for Canada. Like US is abbreviation for the United States.

Camden - Ohhh. I get it. So you paid "seven, nine, nine" for this book, but if we lived in Canada we would pay "eleven, nine, nine" for the book.

Me - Yep. That's right.

Infomercial Overload!

2009-07-14T13:08:00.005-05:00

I’m sure my kids are similar to most kids when it comes to wanting every toy and game they see on TV. My kiddos are constantly yelling out while watching TV “Mommy, look at this! I want that!” I typically glance at the TV and tell them “Yeah that would be cool to get, we’ll see” and go on about my business. Our television has been known to be on a cartoon channel fairly often because it’s difficult for me to actually watch/hear any adult show with all three kids running around. So, I usually leave it on cartoons while I do things around the house until they go to bed. Lately, Camden has been paying attention to a lot of commercials (in particular infomercials) and it’s amazing the things kids believe and think is cool!

Camden came into the living room last night to tell me about his latest discovery… the Space Bag! I was sitting, finally watching my own show, when he walks in to ask me “Do you know how you can save a lot of closet space?” I paused the TV, look at him with a confused look and said “No, I don’t. Why don’t you tell me.” He replied “With the Space Bag Mommy. Your clothes will all shrink into the bag and when you pull them out later, they’re as fresh as when you put them in the bag!” I asked him a few more questions and was just crying I was laughing so hard at how he was repeating the infomercial almost verbatim!

This past weekend while we were in Target, we passed one of the end caps and Camden yells out “Mommy! You HAVE to get that! You can wear the blanket without removing your arms because it has sleeves! It’s so cool! And you can even wear it to my baseball games next year!” I look over to see the Snuggie and I start cracking up. Of course I told him that I appreciate the thought but I think I’ll pass on buying a backwards robe… and then I had to explain that to him.

A few weeks back all of the kids were amazed by the ShamWow when it came on TV. I got bombarded with just how much liquid it could pick up and we really needed that in our house because they all have spilled drinks. I told them not to spill drinks and we wouldn’t need it! Of course, smarty pants Camden reminded me that they are just kids and they just can’t help it sometimes and that they don’t spill things on purpose!

Kids are funny with the things they pick up on and pay attention to. I just didn’t realize I would have to say no to toys, candy AND “fancy” infomercial items at this point in their lives. I had never paid attention to just how many informercials they play on the kids channels - but there are quite a few. Just one more thing for the "mean mommy" to say no to!

Must. Zip. Purse.

2009-07-13T16:08:00.002-05:00

I have got to learn to zip my purse shut when I'm with the kids. I got to work today, stopped at the door to look through my purse for my key card to get in the office and pulled out a piece of popcorn! After lunch I found a peanut. I'm not sure if this trumps the time I found rice in there? The winner has to be the time I looked in there and found a chicken nugget!! I'll learn one of these days...

My 3 favorite guys!

2009-07-13T15:44:00.006-05:00

I took my 3 favorite guys to the Astros game this weekend - my dad, Camden and Braeden. (Maya headed to the movies and shopping with my mom - which she loved!) The boys seemed to enjoy the game for the most part... when Braeden wasn't crawling all over me or flirting with the chatty Cathy's we had sitting behind us. (I had to hear all about their horrible boss and how much they hated their jobs. I felt bad for the one guy that got tricked into going to the game with his wife for the gab fest! I think he ordered quite a few beers to make up for it!) My dad seemed to have a good time as well. I'm so glad that the kids are so close and love my parents so much!

My 3 favorite guys in the whole world! Notice my dad won't even look at the camera - must be a guy thing!? And as usual, the boys have to have each other in some sort of choke hold!

Camden decided to eat cotton candy and popcorn at the same time! Although, I think salty and sweet is yummy too - not sure about that combo though.

I'm sure Braeden's thinking... "wonder what will happen if I throw something or spit out there - mommy's behind me, she won't see it"

Once again with the hitting!

gotta love long weekends...

2009-07-09T12:49:00.012-05:00

We took full advantage of the 3 day weekend over the 4th of July. Friday morning, me, the kids, and my sister headed to Galveston for some fun on the beach. Friday evening we met my parents at the movies to watch Ice Age 3 and the kids loved it! Kids movies can be funny, kids yell at the screen and laugh out loud the entire time.

Burying their feet. It didn't take long for the sand to start flying!

Saturday, we headed to our church for some fun activities before the fireworks show across the street.

Right after this pic, we all ended up falling on the ground because the boys can't seem to do much these days without trying to wrestle with each other.

Maya and Braeden really wanted to ride this camel - which meant I had to as well! :-/ I tried to talk them into riding the mini horses, but nope, the camel it was. The things we do for our kids!
The "train" ride... pulled by a tractor!
Isn't she sweet
They had a classic car show and Braeden really loved all of the cars. Every car he saw "WOW! Mommy, look at that car! It's awesome, I love it!"
They slid down and jumped in the bouncies.
They ate ice cream. Although, I think more of it ended up on their shirts and the ground than in their mouths!
Of course we ended the night watching fireworks! Had to post this picture because Braeden is actually looking at the camera and smiling! :-)

Now and Then

2009-06-30T22:53:00.004-05:00

This is now... Yep that's a new slide for the summer! This is then... Almost 4 years ago to the day!

Time has flown by! I love you all so much my little sweet peas.

speechless...

2009-06-30T22:42:00.004-05:00

Well, I wasn't exactly speechless when I came home the other day and saw Maya. However, the words that came to mind, I couldn't exactly say to my own daughter! Let me explain the pic you're about to see. First of all, Maya chose the entire outfit all by herself! In this pic, she has the sweetest, most innocent smile on her face (makes me wonder what she's really up to). But then as you scroll down the pic, you will notice the lovely teal and floral top. This "top" is, however, a dress and a size 2T! Maya is a size 5T! Maya has made this dress a "top/shirt" and no longer a dress! Then, there's the skirt that you can hardly see. This skirt is really cute, but it must have shrunk in the wash, because it's now a mini-skirt on her and it's not a 2T. Oh, and let's not forget the oh so lovely dress up heels... that don't match! .....head shaking..... She needs help, but I love her all the same!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

2009-06-30T22:34:00.004-05:00

I went to a co-workers wedding this weekend and all of us girls had a great time cuttin' a rug on the dance floor! The wedding was absolutely beautiful and the bride and groom looked so happy! Below is a pic of us girls and the groom (who is our co-worker as well) who decided to sneak in the pic at the last second. Thanks for the pic Carrie!! :-)

Braeden is 4!

2009-06-26T16:17:00.004-05:00

My sweet Braeden turned 4 this week and he wanted a party at Chuck E Cheese. Since his birthday fell during the week it was perfect because Chuck E Cheese wasn't nearly as crowded! I officially have two 4 year old kids (not twins) and a 6 year old. I can't believe how fast time is flying and how big the kiddos are getting.

I started the day off singing Happy Birthday when I woke him up that morning. He even got to eat a brownie for breakfast!

Then he got his first gift of the day - a "Cars" chair. He LOVES it!

That evening we were off to Chuck E Cheese...

The other two had to "help" open all of the gifts!

Happy 4th Birthday Braeden! We love you!

We miss you Grandma!

2009-06-23T22:01:00.002-05:00

Last week, Camden and Maya went to Vacation Bible School at our church and they had a blast! Unfortunately, Braeden didn’t meet the age requirements so he couldn’t go with them. Little did he know he would have a pretty awesome week all by himself. My grandma came in to town to visit for the week and she stayed at our house, so Braeden had every morning with her and he didn’t even have to share. They would play card games (Memory and Go Fish), read books and watch cartoons. Braeden was in heaven, he had all of the attention and he enjoyed every single minute. When Camden and Maya would get home from VBS the fun and games would continue into the evening. My grandma played almost non-stop with the kids for the week she was here. The kids miss her a ton and can’t wait for her to come back! We all miss you and love you grandma! Come back soon!

Fun in the Sun!

2009-06-14T21:08:00.007-05:00

The kids and I spent most of Saturday outside having fun! That morning, Camden took a 4 hour road trip with my mom and sister to get my Grandma. Maya, Braeden and I headed to Galveston for some fun on the beach. We jumped the waves, gathered seashells and just relaxed on the beach for a few hours. We all had a great time!

We even buried Maya...

Who knew the Ice Cream Man made appearances in G-Town??

We had a really great time!

After Galveston, we were off to my Aunt Annie's house to meet up with Camden and more fun in the sun...

Chess and Queen of the house

2009-06-11T13:11:00.003-05:00

Camden has recently decided that he wants to learn to play chess. Why? I don't know. I have no clue how to play chess and have never had a desire to learn. I think this may be the reason he wants to learn - it's a game he will be able to win and manipulate because I will have no clue whether he's right or not. About a week ago he talked my dad into buying him a chess game and my dad has been trying to teach him some of the basics of the game. The names of pieces and the moves those pieces can make. One morning, I hear the following conversation take place between my dad and Camden.

JoJo - "Camden, you can't move that piece that way." (I'm sure he said the name of the game piece, but since I'm sure I'll get it incorrect I won't try to remember which one it was) "You have to move it in the shape of an 'L'."

Camden - (he moves the piece again in the same manner) "JoJo! I did! Look (motions the movement again) that is an 'L'."

JoJo - "Camden, you have to move it in the shape of an 'L' meaning one move over and one move up." (OK I could be a little off here - it might be two over and one up or one over and two up, but you get the idea)

Camden - (in his typical 6 year old sarcastic voice) "JoJo!! I DID move it in the shape of an 'L'... a LOWER CASE 'l'!!

He's so funny! I told him I would let him teach me to play, but I think I better do a little reading on the game first otherwise he'll make up his own rules!

The other night we were riding in the car and again, with chess on the brain, Camden starts telling us about all of the pieces and the moves they can make. He got to the queen and tells us that queen is the most powerful piece in the game and then this conversation takes place.

Camden - The queen is the most powerful piece of the game. Kind of like you mommy. You're the queen of our family, right?

Me - Uh. Sure. I like that analogy.

Braeden - (very confused) Mommy is not the queen. She's mommy!

Camden - Nuh uh Braeden. She's the queen of us. She's more powerful and is in charge of us all! Right mommy?

Again, very smart kid! :-)

End of the season

2009-06-08T21:18:00.006-05:00

Camden had a great T-ball season. I was honestly very shocked at how focused and determined he was to play so well. He worked hard all season and it really paid off, he made great strides. He practiced sliding all season – well as much as 5 and 6 year old kids can slide. Many times, it was a full speed run with the kid landing awkwardly on their bottom. Camden and a couple of the other boys slid into a base every chance they had. In the last game of the season, Camden had a really good feet first slide. He even popped up quickly ready to run to the next base!! All of his fans cheering him on in the bleachers were very impressed.

T-ball is over, Kindergarten is over, Mother’s Day Out is over… bring on the summer!

The Lugnuts had their team party and this is the trophy Camden received for his first year of T-ball… Yep it's a bobble head!

Field Day

2009-05-21T21:53:00.005-05:00

Today was field day for the Kindergarten classes at Camden’s school. The kids seemed to have a blast! They set up relays for each class to run including a 25 yard, 50 yard and 75 yard dash. It doesn’t sound like these are very far distances, but the kids actually had to run double the distance because they ran to the designated distance and back to their line to tag off to their classmate. The 75 yard dash was pretty tiring for most of the kids! After the running relays, they had skipping and galloping relays. Then they moved to the potato sack races, which was hilarious, dribble mania and then ended with the bigfoot race. This was a great time for the kids!

Check out the "karate chop" hands... the boy is serious about his running!

He's checking out his competition. Which he did a lot of the race, or he would check out his running form by looking at his shadow!!

Braeden got a little tired of cheering and the sun...

He kept himself entertained!

"Dribble Mania" - down to the final two and Camden pulled out the win.

The "Bigfoot" race. The kids raced with big plastic feet.

a... uh... typical night

2009-05-18T20:33:00.007-05:00

The evening started out pretty typical...

The ice cream trucks are out and about again and tonight the kids got an ice cream treat.

The kids are playing quietly outside when Maya walks in the house WITH A FROG! Of course I screech, jump back and tell her to get it back outside!! She has never picked up a frog, bug or anything of that sort. The closest the kids have come to this is smashing ants with their feet - with shoes on of course!

When she walked into the house with the frog she had it in one of the kids' toys, but she eventually got brave and tried to pick it up.

I felt bad for the poor frog so I showed her - well told her - how to pick it up a better way. She was so proud of herself.
Wouldn't you know that neither of the boys would get close to the frog. Notice the green toy in the right of the photo - that is Camden "protecting" himself in case the frog jumps toward him!!
Braeden got a little close, but that's only because I was trying to take a picture. Once I was done he moved away pretty quickly. Maya walked around the yard for 10 minutes trying to find the frog's bed because I told her it had to go to bed. She wants to check on the frog in the morning too!

I hope I made it clear enough to the kids that frogs, and other animals, are not allowed in the house without my permission!!

Pre-K Graduation

2009-05-15T16:37:00.002-05:00

Maya graduated from pre-K today and it was so cute! The kids sang songs, recited pledges and then walked across the stage to receive their diploma. Maya did so well! We're proud of you Maya! Kindergarten here she comes...

He loves his sister...

Great job Maya!!

"Addition" to the great Mother's Day post!

2009-05-13T12:12:00.004-05:00

I had to get permission to post this entry, but my sis said it was fine so... My little sister gave my mom one of her greatest Mother's Day gifts on Sunday - she told everyone that she is pregnant!!!!! I can't believe it! Seems like yesterday I was forced to walk with her to school and give her rides on my scooter. sigh... now I really feel old! Back to Kim - Congratulations Kim and Jon!!!! I can't wait to finally be able to spoil a child instead of always being the one saying "no" in the room! Woohoo baby! Payback's a coming my little sister!! muwahahaha...

I don't have a recent picture of both Kim and Jon so...

A great Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T21:54:00.004-05:00

Today was a great Mother's Day! We went to church and then it was back to our house for burgers, family time and the water slide. The kids were SO excited to see their water slide back up in the backyard! They had a blast and we all had fun watching them.

As I watched the kids play and thought about the day and being a mom myself I thought about what a great mom I have! She has always been there for me, taught me so much and is still teaching me to this day. I can only hope that I have the same impact on my kids someday! I love you mom!

Braeden's Day!

2009-05-10T21:33:00.004-05:00

I have really been trying to have more one on one time with the kids and Braeden finally got his day. I decided to take him to an Astros baseball game. I knew this was a risk simply because keeping a 3 year olds interest for more than 30 or so minutes at a time is difficult. But he's been so into Camden's baseball games that I figured it was worth the trip to Minute Maid. I bought the nose bleed seats just in case he only lasted an inning so then I wouldn't feel like I was out too much money. When we arrived he was so excited about the 'baseball seats' outside the stadium and how we were going to the 'really big ball field'.

Once we got inside he was a little overwhelmed with all the people and wasn't quite sure what to do. We walked and walked to get to our seats and as soon as we sat down Braeden yells "HEY, I can't see the batter!!" We eventually moved over to some other empty seats for a better view and he watched and cheered some, but eventually I had to give him my cell phone so he could play games during his 'not interested in the ball game' and he intermittently watched and cheered for the Astros. We lasted until the 8th inning which I thought was really well! Braeden seemed to enjoy the game for the most part but REALLY enjoyed bragging to Maya and Camden the next day about his day with mommy. I had a great day out with my sweet Braeden...

Aunt Kimmy... aka "Aunt Tee Tee"

2009-05-05T21:34:00.006-05:00

I had to post this because it's just too funny. Those of you with children know that when they are learning to speak that many of their words can be misinterpreted. When Camden was very young he used to call my sister, his aunt Kimmy, aunt tee tee. She fought it for a while but eventually caved knowing he would outgrow it and at some point call her by the correct name. Well, that did happen, he did correct himself and all of the kids now call her aunt Kimmy as she wants. Little did she know it would become so funny to all of us that we would tell Camden the story as he got older. Camden has a pretty amazing memory and remembers most of what is told to him!

In Camden's class, they have free writing time most days and he came home with this in his folder the other day. "I uost to coole my ant kame teu teu wien I was a bay." It took a couple readings, but he meant to write "I used to call my Aunt Kimmy "Tee Tee" when I was a baby."

I asked him about it that night and he couldn't stop laughing...

Artsy?

2009-05-03T21:45:00.004-05:00

I think not! I am in no way artsy or crafty, but I get the feeling that I will have to force myself to be as the kids go through school (thank goodness for the internet). Camden was given a "family bug project" from his teacher to make a bug using things from his home. He decided we should make an ant. I tried to get him to make a butterfly but I guess I'll have to wait for Maya to be in school next year because he wanted nothing to do with the "girl bug." Camden and I thought his ant, which he named "Rubsee" turned out very well - even with his arts and crafts challenged mom helping! You be the judge...

"I will never give up"

2009-04-30T21:36:00.004-05:00

Baseball, baseball, baseball... Camden can't get enough. We'll see how he feels in a few years!! But right now, he wants to practice everyday and it's really paying off. He has made great improvement over the last few weeks. He is so determined and focused (for the most part) when we practice. The other day we were throwing the ball back and forth when one of my tosses nailed him in the head! It looked like it hurt, but he wanted to keep practicing. I asked him if he was OK and he said "yeah, I'm OK. It hurt a little but I will never give up in baseball because when you give up you lose!!"

The stitches of the ball left their mark on his head. Camden thought that was pretty cool!

Movie Night

2009-04-26T20:54:00.003-05:00

I decided Saturday night would be a good night for a kid movie night. While the kids ate dinner, I made a pallet on the living floor, laid out the couch pillows and gave each kid their own spot. Of course, I put Maya (the peacemaker) in the middle of the boys. I was so exhausted by the end of the day that I figured this would be a great way to get through the last couple of hours of the evening and allow me some time to get ready for the next day without too much commotion. Once I got everyone settled I decided I would try to shower very quickly. This is not always the smartest decision and those of you with young children know this, but sometimes you do what you have to do. I gave them a rundown of the rules, made sure all doors were locked and keys were out of them and ran to the shower. A quick eight minutes later, I opened the shower door to hear nothing! Usually, when I try this quick shower “technique” I’m interrupted by a child coming in to tattle, or one or all of them follow me in the bathroom simply because I’m in there. But not this night, they actually sat still and watched the movie! They were being so sweet that I skipped my remaining chores and watched the rest of the movie with them. While we had seen Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa at the movie theater it was a successful movie night in our house this weekend as well!

Maya's Prayer

2009-04-22T21:09:00.004-05:00

During the kids nightly routine we try to pray. We don’t always do it and there typically is no standard prayer we say. Maya and Braeden have decided lately, after a long time of me saying the prayers, that they wanted the limelight. Braeden typically says “Thank you God for …” with the "…" being generally whatever is in his eyesight. So tonight it went something like this – “Thank you God for our food. Thank you God for Mommy. Thank you God for our clothes. Thank you God for lights. Thank you God for our beds.” He's so cute!

We don’t pray before our meals, but I know the kids do in their mother’s day out program. Tonight, after putting Braeden to bed and letting him say his prayer I went to Maya’s room to tuck her in and say our good nights. Her prayer was the typical prayer some might say before a meal, but I had no idea she had it memorized! I was so impressed even if she was a off a few words and it wasn't said before a meal, that I asked her to repeat it a couple times.

Maya:
God is good, God is good
Let us thank Him for this food
By His hand we are fed
Thank you God for daily bread
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-13T12:13:00.005-05:00

Camden is too cool to smile now!

Maya HAD to have this umbrella... She does look pretty cute with it!
Braeden had to have an umbrella too! He wanted a girlie one like Maya, but I talked him into waiting to look for one at another store and then of course I couldn't find one, so he got one from his JoJo.

I got one with my name on it!

One more picture before the chaos breaks out please!

What's Easter without confetti eggs?!

Braeden tried to break a real egg on Maya's head! Fortunately, I saved her and the dogs got a treat.

Ending the day with a game of Go Fish!

Hope everyone had a great Easter weekend!

my sweet baby girl

2009-04-09T11:51:00.008-05:00

Kids somehow know when you need them to be sweet! It's like they can sense it. I've had a pretty busy couple weeks at work and have just been exhausted and short tempered with the kids.

I hate that - why is it that when I have a bad day or week at work I take it out on my loved ones? I want to take it out on the people that are really the root and cause of my moodiness! Unfortunately, I can't always do that. I like my job and I kind of like getting a paycheck twice a month. :-) So... my family gets the brunt of it. I'm so sorry guys!

Anyways, I got home just in time to put the kids in bed last night. I was rushing them through their much cherished nightly routine. I put Braeden in bed, somewhat reluctantly told him a story, sang the ABC song and gave him his high fives, hugs and kisses. I moved to Maya's room to do the same when I just felt it necessary to hug Maya and tell her I was sorry.

Me - "Maya, do you know how much mommy loves you? I am SO sorry that I have been working so much and I promise I will make it up to you! We will do something really fun this weekend. You are such a good girl and I love you and your brothers so much. I hope you know that."

Maya (as sweet as can be - pushes my hair out of my face, scoots herself up onto my lap and wraps her legs around me, puts her little hands on my face and tilts her head to the side) "You're not sad because I make your heart feel better. I love you all the way around the world mommy."

How do kids know when we need that?! I love my kids so much, they are such a blessing in my life. I love you my sweet baby girl!

yet another one gone...

2009-04-09T11:40:00.003-05:00

Hopefully this is my last "tooth loss" post for a while because there aren't currently any loose teeth in Camden's mouth! He has now lost 6 teeth in just under a years time. That seems pretty fast to me. Now let the awkwardness of the adult teeth growing in begin!

Easter pics and that's the spirit

2009-04-05T21:12:00.004-05:00

We had another busy weekend in our house, but we had to make time for a quick trip to the mall for Easter bunny pictures before Camden's game Saturday. The kids were in top kid form! Meaning, they were all over the place. Skipping and running through the mall, not wanting to hold hands, and picking on each other. Fortunately, the line for the pictures wasn't too bad and moved pretty quickly. The people in front of us had two small babies and took forever! The photographer was patient and let the parents move the babies around, fix their clothes, take some pics with their own camera and even let the parents view the photographers' digital pictures and take more if they weren't happy with them. That was not the case when we got up there! I put the kids in their places and snapped a couple pics while the photographer was getting ready (or so I thought she was) and she cleared her throat and snapped at me "Are you taking pictures or am I?" I was startled and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, you are. Kids, look at the nice lady and smile!" I was a little shocked she was already in such a foul mood given it was about an hour into her 12 hour day!

One of the few calm moments while standing in line. The kids tried to take the bird house behind them down after I snapped this photo!

One of the pics I got in "trouble" for taking...

Aww... Isn't this sweet!

We were then off to Camden's baseball game. Another great game by the Lugnuts! Camden is so intense out on the field. It's hard to see in this picture (because my camera is ancient) but he's on the far left standing on 3rd base waiting for the batter to hit the ball so he can run home. Most kids at this age barely even run the bases, much less try really hard. Camden is standing in a "get ready, set, go" track star type position waiting for the gun to go off! His hands are stiff like he's about to karate chop a piece of board. That's the spirit Camden! Keep it up!

Mr. Toothless and Mr. Cool

2009-04-02T20:39:00.004-05:00

Camden lost another tooth today... I am going to be poor if he keeps losing teeth like this! He asked me on the way to baseball practice what would happen if he lost all of his teeth at once and how would he eat. I told him that if he keeps losing them at this rate he won't be able to eat any solid food and he will have to drink all his meals! :)

5 teeth gone in less than a year!

Braeden is a creature of habit and lately the habits have been changing every few months or so. He decided a while back that he wanted his hair spiked up every night after his bath, with gel! Recently, he's decided the gel is too much work (I don't know why he thinks it's too much work because I do all the work!) and he wants his hair dried with a blow dryer after baths just like Maya. Tonight, I let him have a go at blow drying his hair while I helped Maya brush her teeth. When he was finished he yelled out "Mommy, my hair is AWESOME! Give me high five!"

Mr. Cool and his awesome spiky hair...

You got me...

2009-04-01T21:46:00.005-05:00

Camden's teacher, along with many other Kindergarten teachers I'm sure, has a discipline chart. Each child's folder is sent home daily with a color coded face which is marked by the teacher of the child's behavior for the day. The colors are as follows: Green - right choices, Yellow - be careful!, Red - watch out!, Blue - wrong choices. Camden has been off of green one time this entire school year. Quite a bit different from his dear old mommy! But that's another story for another day. The one time Camden came home with a yellow mark in his folder I grounded him from the Wii for the night. Of course, I listened to what happened and why he was placed on yellow. Whatever he had done didn't seem like a big deal, but I felt like I should let him know not following the rules has consequences. I really didn't think this would phase him as much as it did, because as I said earlier, I had my fair share of "yellow, red and blue" marks in school and I just kept on trucking along. Camden is so sensitive and I just broke his heart, he really felt like he had done no wrong in school and it was just the end of the world to lose his Wii privileges!

Today, Camden came home from school and I asked how his day went. He wasn't answering me so I went to the kitchen where he was standing. He was cowered in corner of the kitchen mumbling something. I immediately go to him and say "honey, what's wrong?" He mumbles in a sad voice "mommy, I got on blue today." I took a breath so I wouldn't overreact and calmly asked "well ok, what happened?" He can't keep a straight face or contain himself any longer. He turns to me with a huge smile and yells "APRIL FOOLS!!! Did I get you? That was funny!" I said, "You ARE funny! How do you even know what April fools' day is?" (we haven't played any April fools jokes on each other) He was so proud of himself that he repeated the joke on my dad a few minutes later!

You got me Camden! Very funny April fools joke! Still not sure where you came up with that one...

another first!

2009-03-29T20:14:00.005-05:00

Camden had his second game of his first baseball season today. The game was originally scheduled for yesterday, but thank goodness, it rained too much and was postponed to today. Yesterday was freezing (for Houston), mid 40's! Today was much nicer, high 60's. It was a great day for baseball! I wasn't aware of this when we signed up for t-ball, but they don't keep score, they let the entire line-up bat each inning, they don't keep track of "outs" and the coaches pitch 3 balls to each kid and if no hits, they are then allowed to hit off the tee. It seems to be really great for the kids, they seem to stay interested and really enjoy themselves. Camden was placed at the "pitcher" position (the kids don't pitch in t-ball) for this game and he did really well. As you can imagine, in t-ball, most balls are hit to the infield and the pitcher gets a lot of action. Camden did really well fielding almost every ball that came his way and he made very good throws to first base to get a few "outs" for the team. After the game was over, the coach passed out 2 game balls and he handed them to Camden and the first baseman!

Way to go Camden! You got the first game ball of the season!!

ahhh..... the memories!

2009-03-24T08:37:00.008-05:00

With 3 young kids, I feel like I'm constantly behind when it comes to sorting through their clothes, weeding through the old, dingy and too small. This last weekend I spent some time doing just that and of course, some clothes bring back memories. Some sweet, some funny, some not so funny. I'm kind of middle of the road with this memory - between funny and NOT so funny. People always say "Oh, you'll look back and laugh at that someday!" Well this story I laugh about (a little) but I still boil a little inside when thinking about it.

A couple years ago I was in the kitchen cooking dinner when I realized the kids were being entirely TOO quiet to be doing anything good. I walked to the front of the house where the kids have taken over the front two rooms as toy rooms to check on them. I see Maya and Camden sitting in the foyer covered, and I mean completely covered, in black permanent marker! I really try not to get too frustrated at first because they're kids and they're curious and I must take some blame for leaving a marker within reach of two curious toddlers (they are probably 4 and 2 years old at this time). But I can tell as I start to ask Camden what happened that my blood is starting to boil.

Me - Camden, what in the world happened in here!
Camden - Maya did it!
Me - Really? Well then why is there marker all over both of her arms, legs and face? You're telling me she did ALL of this herself? And if so, why didn't you come tell me? You know this is bad!
Camden (realizing that I know he's lying) - Well... uh.... uh... I'm sorry mommy!

At this point, it's all setting in and I start to look around to survey the damage and there is permanent marker everywhere! The walls, the floor, their clothes, ALL over their bodies! I'm thinking to myself... there is no way they have been quiet for more than 5 or 10 minutes and they've done all this damage!? I decide I'm just too angry to spank them so, as usual, I start to lecture them!

Me - Camden and Maya, this is SO bad! You are NOT to play with markers, crayons, pens, pencils, or ANY writing utensil except at the table when you are coloring and an adult is watching you! You NEVER ever write on walls, floors, furniture or people! Do you understand me?
Camden - Yes mommy!
Maya - ....she's just crying at this point
Me - This marker may stay on you forever! I can't believe you guys did this! I'm going to have to re-paint the walls now!
Camden - Well mommy, can't you just paint the walls black??

How can I stay mad at him after that? Such a smarty!

I'm not sure if this is the shirt Maya was wearing that night because I seem to remember marker being all over her arms. So obviously she found a marker another day as well... you can see the black marks on the sleeves and on the belly! Regardless, this shirt brought back the memory of that night.

Oh and the markers and all other writing untesils are out of all of the kids reach now!

a quick shout out!

2009-03-22T20:39:00.006-05:00

Over spring break the kiddos were lucky enough to visit my Aunt Mary and Uncle Roger and they had such a blast! They keep asking if we can go visit them again. What they seem to forget is that Kansas City is quite the drive - so we can't just go on a Sunday afternoon. They had such a great time and can't wait to go back. I'm sure all the toys that were bought for them had nothing to do with it. ;-) Thanks for a great visit!!

We love and miss you guys! Thanks for the t-shirts... Love Maya, Camden and Braeden

Can't have a serious picture without a goofy one...

A 3 year olds favorite sayings...

2009-03-19T20:34:00.007-05:00

Well at least these are my 3 year old Braeden’s favorite sayings. He uses the following phrases often and sometimes together and generally with a sassy little 3 year old attitude!

I KNOW that!
Weave (leave) me alone!

I sorry. I made a mistake!

For example…

Almost anytime Braeden is disciplined these days for doing something he shouldn't be doing he says “I KNOW that!” Like I’m the stupid one for disciplining him. I can tell him “Braeden, we’re in a parking lot, grab a hand and don’t run in the street.” Of course, at the time he doesn’t have a hand and he’s wondering off, but he quickly recovers with “I KNOW that!” and grabs a hand – like he intended to all along and I was out of line implying he wasn’t going to do that in the first place!

His "I KNOW that" snarl...

I think the ‘Weave (leave) me alone!” is a given for most toddlers, but Braeden mostly uses this one when he is “hiding” and trying to avoid going to the bathroom. For some reason, he is still terrified to do more than pee in the potty. He’ll do it, but he doesn’t like it. And if he thinks he can avoid it by hiding then that’s what he’ll do.

He also likes to use the “Weave (leave) me alone!” phrase when someone is telling him to take his thumb out of his mouth. This is another one he thinks he can “hide” from us. He’ll cover himself up with his blanket and just leave enough of an opening to see through and he thinks we can’t see his thumb is in his mouth.

His attempt at hiding his thumb sucking...

Maya and Braeden were taking a bath the other night and Braeden hit Maya over the head with a toy and he immediately says “I sorry. I made a mistake!” as if saying this forgives him of all wrongdoing.

Braeden will steal some food off of one of the other kids’ plate and after it’s in his mouth, with a mouth full of food, he’ll say “I sorry. I made a mistake!” Again, as if saying that will forgive all and bring the food back.

But then I see this adorable face and am reminded why I love him so much!

a night of firsts...

2009-03-13T08:27:00.004-05:00

Last night marked Camden's first ever baseball game!! It was SO cold that I'm not sure the kids enjoyed the game as much as they would have in nicer weather. Camden started out playing second base and he stood there most of the first inning "holding himself" (think Al Bundy from Married With Children). So when they ran off the field to bat I ran over to take him to the restroom, thinking surely that must be why he's standing there holding himself!! But no, I guess he was just cold! Camden was the first batter, got the first hit, scored the first run and got the first and only defensive out for his team!

On top of all the baseball excitement, Camden lost the other one of his front two teeth!

His first time at bat...

It's freezing mommy!!

When Braeden didn't have that thumb in his mouth he yelled the same few things throughout the game:

"Aww....good try everyone!"

"Way to go!"

"Good job guys!"

Great first game Lugnuts!!

Get me out of here... no more pics please!

THAT party...

2009-03-09T21:37:00.006-05:00

You may recall a few posts back I wrote about Amber's birthday party. Camden was really looking forward to going to this party - he said he was excited because the party was at Chuck E Cheese, which I'm sure was a part of it, but I think mostly he really likes Amber. Well the party was this weekend and it was pretty cute to see Camden interact with Amber. When the kids were called back to the party table for pizza and cake I could see Camden panic a little. He walked up to the long table to see that most of the girls were already seated and just a couple of the guys had sat down. Camden immediately walks to the very end of the table and sits down by himself. One of the other girls from his class, Taylor, got up from her seat and went to sit next to Camden (if you read back to the Open House blog she was the little girl chasing Camden). As Amber walked up looking for a place to sit, she sees Camden at the very end of the table with Taylor sitting next to him. Amber walks up to Taylor, taps her on the shoulder and says "Taylor, can you move down? I want to sit next to Camden." Taylor said "no" so I offered up a solution for Camden and Taylor to switch seats so Camden can sit in between the two girls. Camden looked at me like I was crazy and said he wasn't moving! Well Amber ended up sitting next to Taylor and I sat at another table and watched the kids interact and laugh and play, it was so adorable! Until I look over and see this...

Camden had decided he would be the funny, cool kid and eat his cake with no hands!! Of course it worked, all the kids laughed and Camden talked about how funny HE was the rest of the afternoon.

Opening Day and School Carnival

2009-03-08T20:51:00.018-05:00

Saturday was yet another busy day in our house! We had the little league opening day ceremonies and Camden's school carnival. It seemed like we ran all day long. I had to have Camden to his parade float by 8:15, but I also ended up helping with some of the decorating of the float. We then rushed to the road the parade route was traveling on because the road was supposed to be closed at 9. The road closure didn't happen until closer to 9:45 and we had to entertain two small kids on the side of a pretty busy road until the parade started. After the parade, we went to the fields for the baseball carnival for a short time. We were then in a mad rush to grab some lunch so that we could make it to Camden's school carnival before it closed. After the school carnival I forced the kids home for a sugar crash and a quick nap before we had to make our way back to the ball fields for closing ceremonies at 5:30. We literally moved all day long except the hour and a half nap I made the kids take... which I couldn't tell you with all certainty if they slept because I fell asleep myself!!

I looked it up and to my surprise there is a minor league team named 'Lugnuts'...

Waiting for the parade...

Reminiscent of Mardi Gras...

Bring on the candy!!

Finally!!! The parade and the candy is here!

This is about the time I got nailed in the head with a Tootsie Roll Pop!!!

Can we please go to the other carnival?!?

And we're off to the school carnival...

Everyone had a few turns down the big slide!

Then they were off to the bouncy 'tension' run... not sure what it's called, but you run as fast as you can and a pulley/tension rope pulls you back once you pull it so far...

Back to the ball fields for closing ceremonies...going all out with fireworks!

"I guess I'll line up if i have to!"

another one gone...

2009-03-03T08:15:00.005-06:00

Camden finally lost one of his front two teeth! I was so glad to see the little sucker go because Camden kept messing with it, moving it all around and grossing us all out. The tooth fairy gave him $5 which I felt was pretty generous. Camden, on the other hand, felt that since he got $5 for each of his other two teeth when he was 5 years old that now that he's 6 years old he should have received $6 from the tooth fairy. Go figure! Can't blame the kid for trying!!

you want to go to THAT party... wink wink

2009-02-23T21:16:00.010-06:00

When I came home from work tonight Camden ran to his back pack and pulled out yet another birthday party invitation. I take a look at it and see it’s from Amber (the same Amber from previous posts) – so that’s all the fuel I needed to start asking more questions.

A little back story… Camden is a typical 6 year old and wants to go to any and every party he’s invited to. Well this last weekend, Camden didn’t want to go to one of the two parties he had been invited to. Of course I wasn’t going to drag the kids to a party they didn’t want to go to. Turns out this kid likes to say to Camden during their free time in class “oooohhhh, you’re not supposed to be doing that” when, according to Camden, he can being doing whatever he is doing. The point is, Camden didn’t want to go.

As I looked closer at the invitation, I see the party is set for Sunday at 11. Typically, that wouldn’t be a problem because we could go to an earlier church service. However, this Sunday I’m supposed to help out with the 4 year old Sunday school class.

Me – “Uh oh. The party is this Sunday, the day we have church.”
Camden – “Well can’t we go earlier?”
Me – “Well we could, but I have to help out with Maya’s class.”
Camden – “Can’t you just be sick that day?”
Me – “Well if I’m sick I can’t take you to the party.”
Camden – “Then maybe JoJo can take me?”
Me – “You really want to go to this party don’t you?”
Camden – “Well I like Chuck E Cheese.”
Me – “Well I’ll see what I can do. Maybe I can switch with someone else and we can go to the earlier church service.”
Camden – “Ok.”

A few minutes pass and Camden runs back into the kitchen.

Camden – “Ok. I’ve got it mommy! You can call someone and I can go to the castle at church that day (that’s the earlier service) and then we can go to Amber’s party! TA-DA!!”

Guess we'll try to go this party because Camden obviously REALLY wants to go!! :-)

The Children's Parade

2009-02-22T20:17:00.005-06:00

After church today, my parents and I took the kiddos to Galveston for the 2009 Mardi Gras Children’s Parade. The kids had a great time last year, so I figured it would be just as fun this year. However, this year was much more crowded than last year. Maya and Braeden seemed a little overwhelmed with the crowd and the noise. Camden jumped right in and started yelling for beads. I told myself I wouldn’t say much about this topic, but I’ll type this little conversation I overheard.

Young boy (around age 13) – “Mom, Grandma keeps b*tching at me! Can you tell her to stop?”
Mom of the boy – “Just chill out!! Get up there and catch the beads!!” (as she pushes him back out into the crowd)

The mom didn’t even seem shocked about her sons’ language! Needless to say, we weren’t around too many people that seemed to care if the older kids pushed, stepped on, or jumped in front of the younger kids as long as they were getting those precious beads! Thankfully my kiddos weren’t too phased by this and took what they could get and said they had a blast as we walked back to the car!

Might be a little too loud for Brae...

Every parade member seemed to have a sign as to who they were, but I have no idea what these guys were dressed as?? But they threw beads all the same...

Yelling for more beads...
The kids didn't "feel" like taking pics today, so I had to trick them to turn and look at the camera by saying I had candy!

Slugfest and Lego Mania

2009-02-21T19:08:00.005-06:00

This morning we made our way to the ball fields for Slugfest. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t quite certain what this event was except as the name implies – a hitting contest. All of the kids in the league had to sign up, but did not have to participate. My guess is this is the leagues way of raising money in a fun way that involves the kids. The cost was only $10 more to actually participate, so I thought it would be a fun event for Camden. Unfortunately, Camden is a better hitter when pitched to instead of hitting off the tee. But we worked with him some and he did pretty well today. Each kid had the chance to hit 10 balls off the tee. Camden was a little uncertain with the first few swings, but as he kept making contact his confidence grew and he did much better. It was so cute to watch him hit his last few balls because he was so intense and focused at that point that the look on his face was priceless. The results aren’t in from the day, but Camden did really well in my eyes regardless!

"I guess I'm ready to go"

The first of many walks to the ball fields.... "I think I did pretty well"

She knows she's cute....

Braeden is definitely ready...
And if anyone notices, yes, his glove is on the wrong hand. So if any of you know where to purchase a left handed glove that small feel free to let me know!

After Slugfest, the kids had to get home for naps because they had a birthday party to go to this afternoon. My friend’s son had his 7th birthday party today and I’ll tell you what, I’ve never seen so many Legos in one house! The kids had a blast! They each built their own Lego toy and the birthday boy voted on the best few. Then the dad showed the kids how to make their own Lego car that they each raced down a homemade ramp later in the party. Maya was in princess heaven because my friend’s daughter has a ton of girlie girl toys - barbies, dress up, etc. The kids and I had a ton of fun at the party. Stacey and Mike have such a wonderful family and an absolutely adorable and well kept home, it’s almost sickening – I’m not jealous in the least bit! :-) Thank you guys for inviting us to your party, we had a blast!

100th Day of School

2009-02-19T20:50:00.006-06:00

Yesterday marked the 100th day of school! Wow, I just can’t believe it. It seems like Camden began kindergarten just a few weeks ago. Tonight, he read his usual class guided reading books and another book that I let him pick from our home book selection (one he hadn’t read before). I’ve been challenging his reading lately because he memorizes the guided reading books he gets from class and breezes through them at home. He’s been doing amazing with the new books. He is properly sounding the words out and really learning to read. Tonight, he read a book without much help from me at all! I was very impressed!!

To mark the 100th day of school, the kindergarten classes in his school had a parade and the kids wore homemade t-shirts. Well, I missed the note sent home from the teacher (I swear the note never made it to Camden’s folder, because I’m pretty diligent about looking through it after the “star of the week” poster board fiasco). So you can imagine my shock when the teacher sends out an email on Tuesday to remind all the parents of the parade the next day and “remember to wear your 100th day t-shirt.” At that point, I panicked because I knew nothing about a t-shirt, but I did remember I was supposed to send him to school with 100 things in a baggy (so the kids can practice their counting).

I probably shouldn’t admit this little tidbit of information, but I had remembered that I needed to gather the 100 items a little earlier in the day while at work. I racked my brain thinking what I might have at home to use (so that I didn’t have to stop by the store on the way home) and came up with nothing. And here comes the “I shouldn’t admit this part” – I decided to gather office supplies! :-) I went and gathered paper clips, binder rings and binder clips. I figured no one else in the class would have these items, so he's set!

In the meantime, I reply to the teachers email asking if the t-shirt was being sent home that day or did I miss buying it? Of course not! She replies to me individually and then to the entire class as clarification that the 100th day t-shirt is a shirt that you make at home with your child (which is a little fishy to me because if she sent a note home, why is there a need for clarification?? well it makes me feel better to think that it wasn’t just me that missed it anyways).

Needless to say, I stopped by the store on the way home to buy materials to make the t-shirt and the gather 100 items so he didn’t have to show up with office supplies! We spent a couple hours that night making t-shirts (yep I said t-shirts plural because they all 3 got one) and counting the 100 items.

All 3 finished t-shirts.... note Camden's has 100 painted dots on it... since the t-shirt was requested to have 100 items on it!

Maya loves her t-shirt...

Camden counted the 100 foam letters for his baggy (NOT office supplies) out by 5's, his idea to count by 5's and all on his own...

The Missing Valentine

2009-02-15T21:03:00.012-06:00

Earlier this week Camden’s class made Valentine cards. As far as I could tell, they were asked to make one card each; Camden made his for cousin Kaleb.

*** I just got interrupted by princess Maya. (all of the kids are in bed, but Maya has recently been trying to stay up later) She opened her door, stood at the top of the stairs asking if she could watch TV. Of course I said no, so she asked if we could have dance time (she knows I love dance time – but we already had dance time tonight). I say no once again and tell her to get in bed. Then she breaks out the real deal…. “Mommy, Jesus loves you. I just want to snuggle with you for a minute.” How can I say no to that? Needless to say, she’s sitting here now as I type.***

Back to the story….When I opened Camden’s folder earlier this week, he had received a Valentine’s card from Amber in his class. Of course, when I asked him about it he got super embarrassed and wouldn’t even acknowledge that she is a friend of his. If you recall from a couple posts back, Amber is one of the girls that the kids in Camden’s group of friends writes about to tease each other. “Mark loves Amber. Jesus loves Amber.” etc.

Well..... Camden received two cards from Amber this week (outside of the cards the entire class handed out on Friday), see below. When we got home from the party on Friday, he was looking through his Valentine’s box and he could not find a card from Amber. He looked through all of the cards twice. “I don’t see one from Amber Mommy.” “Are you sure this is all of them? There isn’t one from Amber!” There ended up being one without a name and I think that was Ambers because he could find all the others. While at the party on Friday, I got to see Amber interact with Camden and his friends, and I think that Amber is actually really good friends with the group of boys but since they think girls are gross, Camden won’t admit it. She is a sweet little girl and seems to get along really well with Camden.

The first card...

The second card... "You are nice. I love Camden. Love Amber."

Party Day and Another Bragging Mom

2009-02-15T17:11:00.015-06:00

Friday was a day full of Valentine's parties for the kiddos. My first stop was our church where Maya and Braeden attend the Mother's Day Out program twice a week. This program has been just amazing for all 3 kiddos. Camden spent one semester there before going to Kindergarten this year and it was SO good for him. I took him in (wait no, I had to drag him in) kicking and screaming and by Graduation a few months later, he didn't want to leave.

Maya is very fortunate to have the same teacher Camden had last year and I'm hoping Braeden will have the same teacher next year. I didn't have the blog last year when this happened, but my first “teacher call” came from Braeden's teacher! My little two year old was apparently disrupting class and not behaving. He quickly got over it and now loves his church school.
Braeden was lucky enough to get the same teacher Maya had last year, that is, until Hurricane Ike. She decided to move out of state after that and Braeden has had a few teachers since then. He's had the same two teachers now for about a month and he seems to really like them.

Fortunately for me, Maya’s and Braeden's classes are right across the hall from each other, so I can go back and forth to each of the parties pretty easily. I helped Braeden's teacher set up and as the kids walk down the hall Braeden sees me and he yells out “Hey everybody!! That’s MY mommy.” After all the kids are settled, Ms. Courtney asks me if Braeden is 4 yet. I tell her that’s he is a late birthday and won't be 4 for a few months. She was shocked, thinking he was one of the older ones in the class, and then tells me that he is such a smart little boy. “He knows all of his colors, numbers, letters, and even some sight words!” I’m such a proud mommy at this point, but not to brag, I tell her that I'm sure he picks a lot of it up as his older brother, who is in Kindergarten, and has to work on those things. Way to go Braeden!

After Braeden's and Maya's parties, it was time for Maya to go to chapel. While she was in chapel, Braeden and I helped Maya's teacher clean up and get the room back in order. Since I just heard such great news about Braeden I decided to take the time to ask Maya's teacher about her progress in class. Maya is a late August birthday and honestly, I'm not worried about her being ready for school. My concern really lies with her being a 17 year old young girl going away to college. I mean, had she been born one week later, she wouldn't start school this coming year, she would have one more year to go and would be the oldest instead of the youngest in her class. I know I'm thinking too far out, but I just can't help myself. Well Ms. Connie said that Maya is definitely ready for school. She is one of the few kids that can write her name and completes all of her assignments in class. According to Ms. Connie, most importantly, Maya has a willingness to learn and take direction well. I'm so proud of both Maya and Braeden and this program has been amazing for them!

I decided to be brave Friday and take the two little rugrats to Camden's party as well. I’m not sure what I was thinking because Maya and Braeden had been pumped full of sugar all morning and were beginning to come crashing down. We showed up to Camden's school and of course Braeden yells down the hall “Hi Camden!!” Camden simply waves and turns bright red. Camden's class made ice cream sundaes and his teacher was kind enough to let Maya and Braeden make them too. (Just what they needed – more sugar! – but how could I refuse) They ate sundaes, played bingo and read stories. I had just heard such wonderful things about Maya and Braeden that I didn't want to push my luck so I was going to pass on talking to Camden’s teacher about his progress. However, she asked me while everyone was quiet and enjoying their sundaes if Camden was always so quiet and shy. (Camden is NOT quiet at home, but I knew he was shy and quiet outside of the house) I told her that he is around adults, but when he’s around his peers and is comfortable he is not quiet. She agreed and said that she'll catch him sometimes being the louder kid, but he’ll stop if he thinks a teacher saw him and he's about to get in trouble. She said that she just wants to shake him in class sometimes because she knows he knows the answer and could be a leader but he’s always so quiet about things. Hopefully, baseball and other sports will help him come out of his shell more and more.

Making ice cream sundaes...

I had to take this one out of the classroom at the end because he was disrupting story time...

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Sorry for the long post, but I’m a proud Momma and it's difficult to get me to stop sometimes. I’m so proud of all three of them and I hope they all continue to do well in school.

Another busy weekend

2009-02-08T20:26:00.009-06:00

This was one of many busy weekends coming up for our house. And I know, it's only going to get busier as the kiddos get older!

Our Saturday started off with a birthday party for one of Camden's classmates at Putt Putt Fun House. I have been to this place, and even taken Maya and Camden before. However, I had not been when one of the kids were able to enjoy it as much as Camden did this weekend. We arrived in our typical late fashion (was anyone else aware of the parking lot 45 South would become this weekend?), but it seems we arrived just for all of the fun. After opening the gifts, all the kids, mostly around age 6, went in to the 3-D motion theater. They gave all the kids 3-D glasses, put them in the chairs that moved and vibrated to simulate the real deal, closed the curtains and started the movie. The best part of it all was that the parents could watch the kids on a monitor outside the theater. This was hilarious!! In one scene, the kid in the movie fell in water and you saw one of the girls watching the movie trying to swim out! After the movie they moved on to bumper boats and all of the kids were old enough to ride in their own boat (which I was happy about because last time I was on these bumper boats with Camden I walked off soaked). After the bumper boats it was arcade time. The kids seemed to have a blast, but it was off to the next event of the day for me and Maya.

I try to take the camera to most events but unfortunately I didn't bring it to the birthday party. Camera phone pics will have to do.

I had originally planned for this Saturday to be "Maya's day with mommy", but Camden's birthday party threw a small wrench in that. Regardless, after Camden's party, Maya and I took off to one of my co-workers' baby shower. (Congratulations Carrie!!) The obvious choice of child to take to a baby shower is Maya, the only girl in the clan, but also, she loves showing off and being cute so it works out. I couldn't let the baby shower be the only thing she and I did together, so I took her to Build-A-Bear after the baby shower. She LOVED this place. She was a little overwhelmed at first but once she figured out what she could do there, she was set. She's definitely my daughter though. Once we walked in to the store and I explained to her what to do, she was quick and to the point. Maya knew what she wanted and wasn't wavering from her choices. I even tried to make her walk around a little to make sure there was nothing else she saw that she may want. I didn't want to pay for this bear and to have her leaving the store only to have a melt down because she really wanted a different bear. So we walked the store and she sweetly followed, but she ended up with her very first choice in all cases. I like that, she knows what she wants.... I'm teaching her well! :)

After Build-A-Bear, Maya and I went to a movie together. We had an amazing day for just us. She is such a sweet and loving girl, I couldn't have asked for a sweeter baby girl!!

Maya is ready for our girl day!

We all decorated tiles at the shower... Maya had a little help from Mommy, but she did write her own name...
Well she didn't choose a bear. Instead, it's Hello Kitty. Not sure why, but she named her "Astor." Well that's how I spelled what she was saying to me anyways...

Today, I was trying to get prepared and ready for the week as best I can. When I opened Camden's backpack to go through his school work I found the following paper. In case you can't read it -

"Marc loves Amber"

"Marc loves girls"

"Jesus loves girls"

"Marc and Jesus love Jessica"

This is so funny!! I think these boys are going through the "Girls are gross" phase so they're all picking on each other.

As I was making dinner, Camden was playing the Wii and Maya and Braeden were watching him. All of the sudden I hear Camden screaming at the top of his lungs. Apparently, he has a Wii injury! Is this possible? I guess so. He was jumping up and down for joy at his win on the game and I guess he fell wrong on his foot. (He's really not that injured, there isn't even a bruise, but he's going to play it up for all it's worth!!) Well Maya and Braeden felt sorry for him, so they "helped" him to the bath tonight.... Crazy kids

The name keeps getting better...er, worse!?

2009-02-04T21:17:00.004-06:00

I was driving Camden to baseball practice tonight and he was talking non-stop. He's being a typical, silly, 6 year old when the following conversation takes place:

Camden (snickering) - When the coach asks us the team name tonight Mommy, I'm going to yell out "my nuts!!" (the team name is The Lugnuts)

Me - Really? Do you remember the team name?

Camden (still snickering) - Wait no. Orangenuts! No. I got it. Bluenuts!!

I've lost it at this point, I'm laughing so hard. Fortunately, when the coach asked the team name tonight, Camden followed the lead of all the other kids and yelled the right team name. That is.... until the end of practice when thank goodness he chose to yell "The Chestnuts" to be funny as opposed to the options mentioned above!

Round 3!

2009-02-03T21:26:00.007-06:00

It was almost 3 weeks ago that I went to the doctor to find out I had strep throat. Pretty unusual for me to get sick before the kiddos (I'm generally the last in the house to get sick), but I'd like to blame it on helping out with the Sunday school class at church that week. So as out of the ordinary as it was, I was the first round of illness this time. Round 2... The following week, my dad took Maya and Braeden to the doctor to find out they both had strep throat. Poor little Braeden felt so bad, my little screamer had no screams left in him, he was so lethargic. Round 3... Today after work, I took Camden to the doctor to find out (2 1/2 hours later) he has strep throat. I'll blame this on the closeness of my kiddos. They have a bedtime ritual, as I'm sure many kids their ages do. A typical night involves dinner, bath time, story time and kissing each other good night time. However, their kissing each other good night time can be quite lengthy. They like to give each other high fives (it's both hands now), kisses, and then hugs - and it HAS to be in that order (the OCD nature of it all began with Braeden). Those of you with kiddos this young all know that no matter how hard you try, the kisses can be pretty wet or slobbery. So avoiding the transfer of illnesses is pretty difficult. Thank goodness Maya and Braeden are both still on antibiotics. Tonight was like a cattle call in our house, lining up all 3 kids for their antibiotics. Well hopefully this will pass soon and they will be back to the normal screaming, picking on each other household! Wait.... did I really just say that?

Awww that's cute!

2009-02-02T20:20:00.003-06:00

Braeden came running into the living room tonight to give Maya one of her purses, and of course he had one for himself. He then asked me to open one of Maya's play make-up toys and he proceeds to put on eye shadow, blush and lipstick. Once he's done I tell him how handsome he is and Camden interrupts to tell us that if he's wearing make-up he's a girl and girls are pretty, not handsome. Well you be the judge, I think he's very handsome!

Every time I take a picture of the kids Braeden insists on looking at it on the camera immediately after I take it. When he saw this picture he said, "awww, that's cute!"

Way ahead of the game!

2009-02-02T19:59:00.003-06:00

Well , for me, this is way ahead of the game. Let me explain. In case you missed it in my earlier posts, I'm just a little bit of a procrastinator. So I have a bit of a selfish reason for this post; I actually helped get something done early this weekend! I'm sure most of you remember the Valentine's Day boxes we used to make for school. Well Camden needed one for school by February 9th and believe it or not, we actually did it this weekend, a full week before it was asked for! I wouldn't believe it either if I didn't have the picture to prove it....

Ignore the silly face, he can't take a picture these days without being goofy!

Camden doing his nightly reading. I'm so proud of how well he's doing in Kindergarten.

Take me out to the ballgame...

2009-01-29T14:38:00.007-06:00

OK so it was just practice, but Camden was so excited. I finally signed Camden up for baseball and he had his first practice last night. I'm not quite sure why I've been avoiding sports because Barron and I were both heavily involved in sports growing up. We've always wanted our kids to play sports or to be involved in some type of extracurricular activities. Camden is only 6, but it seems that boys in particular, begin sports at a very young age and some of the parents get so intense about it. That's it! That's the part I've been avoiding, the intensity of it all. The pressure on the kids to play one sport year round and to do nothing else. I played so many sports and had so much fun doing so that I'd like the same for my kids. It doesn't seem like that's an option nowadays as the coaches and parents push the kids so hard to excel at a particular sport. Who knows, maybe I'll become that parent, I do hate to lose! :-) Let's all keep our fingers crossed that Camden enjoys this season because he has really been looking forward to it.

You might be wondering what the team name is. Well a woman calls me at work the other day to tell me when practice is and what team Camden will be playing on, The Lugnuts. I immediately bust out laughing and I quickly realize she's not joking. Oops! When I got home later that night I tell Camden is first practice is in a couple nights and that his team name is The Lugnuts to which he belts out "nooooo! I want a different name." The next day I get all his gear out and ready the following conversation takes place:

Me - Do you remember your team name?

Camden - The Peanuts?

Me - (laughing) No. The Lugnuts. (still laughing)

Camden - Ohhhh. The Lovenuts.

Me - (bent over laughing at this point) No honey. It's The Lug-g-g-nuts.

Camden - Oh. The Lugnuts. I still don't like the name.

Ready for his very first baseball practice.

Maya took her pink glove and Braeden wore the batting helmet (even in the car ride to practice!)

The coach trying to get all of the kids to yell out the team name....

Coach - Our team name is The Lugnuts!! On the count of three I want everyone to yell it. Ready? 1 - 2 - 3

Coach's son - THE CHESTNUTS!

Braeden wants to play so badly. Don't think we'll get to hold him off until he's 6!

Monster Truck Jam

2009-01-20T20:17:00.009-06:00

I took Camden out for some one on one time this past weekend to the Monster Truck Jam at Reliant Stadium. We had a blast!! It was SO loud (thank goodness for ear plugs) and a little scary for Cam at times, but he loved it. I had forgotten how different things can be with just one child. I wasn't constantly saying no or trying to hold 3 hands the entire time. The car ride there was a nice, peaceful conversation with no hair pulling or no whispering from one of the kids "I'm not touching you." I adore all of my children, but the one on one time can be so nice with them and this was a great time with Camden.

Little did I know when I bought the tickets that they were actually really good seats. We were in row K which I thought was about halfway up on the ground level, but we were really the second row because they block off rows A - I (my guess would be for potential flying parts??).

This was the scary part. They created this robot/Transformer thing that blew fire from the mouth and picked up a car and burned it in half...

Hard to tell, but he's got his hand on his chin trying to be "cool" in this pic...

The Holidays.... Part 3

2009-01-18T20:10:00.007-06:00

I promise, this is the final holiday post! Maya and Braeden had their holiday program at Mother's Day Out and it was quite entertaining! The teachers took the kids on stage in groups, starting with the oldest 4 year olds. Each group of kids (attempted) to sing a song and while it was very sweet, it was more humorous than anything. By the time the teachers got the 2 year olds on stage, there were more kids crying and yelling for their mommy that most parents were laughing instead of listening to the singing! Maya's class dressed as donkeys and Braeden's class dressed as camels. The little boy next to Maya kept messing with her and she was really good about it until the very end when she gave him a stern look and said something to him that made him finally stop! Braeden kept yelling from the stage "Hi Camden! Hi Mommy!" and he looked at the little boy next to him like he was crazy when he started crying for his mommy. It was a great show and the kids seemed to have fun (well most of them).

Maya in her outfit. I missed Braeden up close...

We had a wonderful Christmas. Lots of toys and lots of playing....

They really do love their sister...

Am I the only one that sees Punky Breswster in this pic?

Braeden had a little too much fun with Maya's new doll house... which he is still playing with these days!! ;-)

The Holidays... Part 2

2009-01-09T16:02:00.008-06:00

Here we come North Pole!! I am not quite sure where I heard about this train ride, but I think it may have been my mom. Regardless, there is an old train station in east Texas that runs special events year round and one of the events is "The Polar Express" train ride. The ride was about an hour long and ran between the Palestine and Rusk train stations. After boarding the train, they passed out hot chocolate and rice krispy treats for everyone to enjoy. We listened and read read along to the book, The Polar Express, and sang and danced to Christmas carols. The kids wore their pajamas and took blankets to snuggle up in. The joy of watching my kid's faces when the train arrived at the “North Pole” was just priceless. Santa then boarded the train and greeted each and every child and gave them their own bell. This might be one of my favorite ventures I've been on with the kids and they enjoyed every minute of the experience. There are too many pics to put here so check out the slide show for more.

Ready to go.....

Waiting for the train....

Enjoying the rice krispy treats and hot chocolate....

Dancing and singing along with the Christmas Carols....

Santa handing out the bells...
So much fun...

The Holidays.... Part 1

2009-01-08T16:11:00.012-06:00

I can't believe it's been almost two months since my last post! The sad part is that the two months have been jammed packed with fun and my posts would have been pretty easy. OK well I'll try to catch everyone up quickly so I can get back on track with more regular posts.

Camden had his school Thanksgiving Feast...

His picture of what he's thankful for.... his family!!

We had a great Thanksgiving!! Lots of family in town and we had a great few days playing games and eating a ton of food.

Playing with cousins enjoying the nice weather....
Everyone played the Wii.... even my Grandpa!!

Story time for all the kiddos...

Sports Sunday!

2008-11-16T20:00:00.006-06:00

Today was Sports Sunday at church. Everyone that wanted to, was supposed to wear their favorite team's jersey to the service. I must say, it was a little awkward to wear jeans to church. Camden even called me out when we were leaving the house this morning "Mommy, why are YOU wearing jeans to church? I don't think the adults are supposed to wear jeans!" Seriously, my own child just yelled this in our driveway. Oh well, at least I was comfortable because I was scheduled to help in the 4 year old class; which really just means wrangling the kids and making sure they're not pulling each other's hair or pushing each other. This is the same class that a little boy thought it was funny to dance while "flipping everyone the bird" last time I was in there! He knew what he was doing too, because when I shockingly asked "Kevin, what are you doing?" He quickly put his hands behind his back and acted like he wasn't doing anything but dancing to the music.

It was a great day and the kids all got a football from the church which immediately was banned out of the house and a backyard toy as soon as we got home!

All Houston fans...

Braeden never looks at the camera... (I had to "trick" him into this shot)

As we're about to leave this conversation takes place:

Camden - Maya, let me see your eyes. Mommy, what color are Maya's eyes? Are they weasel?

Me - Weasel? Do you mean hazel?

Camden - Oh yeah, hazel.

Her eyes are still pretty green if you ask me, but I guess they could change...

So you may be wondering what I wore on Sports Sunday to church. Well since I'm so last minute about things and not really wanting to spend money on a jersey for myself, I just assume I'll figure it out on Sunday morning. Well, when I first heard about wearing a jersey I thought, I'm pretty sure I have a Sam Cassell Rocket's jersey somewhere in my closet (yes, I'm well aware it's from the mid 90's, but I didn't care!). Sunday morning gets here and I search through my closet and find nothing, I have no idea where this jersey has disappeared to. Next best option you might ask? Well believe it or not, I have a University of Texas volleyball t-shirt from when I went to camp there back in high school and it still fits!! So I sported a t-shirt that is, let's see, probably 15 years old. Shockingly enough there are no stains or holes in this shirt! Camden called me out on this shirt as well, but not until later in the day. He asked me "Mommy, is that a day time shirt?" I have worn this shirt to sleep in a time or two. What can I say? It worked for Sports Sunday!! :)