Checking In

From the 4th of July to a week alone with Jax, my days have been full and I haven't been able to get on to tell you all the wonderful stories that you've been missing. Plus, my horoscope for the month says I need to chill and just relax, so who am I to argue with the Zodiac???

Anyway, the 4th was spent at the lake where we outdid ourselves decorating the golf cart for this year's parade, which the kids thoroughly enjoyed being a part of, but even better than that -- Shawn was there!! This is the first time in I-don't-know-how-many years that he's been able to take off for the 4th, so the celebration was as much in honor of his independence as the US of A's.

I've got to get ready for my annual check-up now, or else I'd write about all the excitement we had surrounding fireworks and the 5th of July. Patience, children. The story will come.

Anyway, Ryan stayed with my folks this week while she took tennis lessons from one of Menana's old students. Apparently she's become the social secretary of Horseshoe Bay, scheduling dinners and tea parties, hob-knobbing with the cream of the crop, and keeping everyone on their toes. She oversaw the hatching of 2 baby birds and became a vegetarian for a few hours (until she learned that chicken tenders were banned).

Jax and I have spent the week together playing, napping, baking, and cleaning up one mess after another. We're very ready to get our girl back, although I think she's more excited about seeing her friends than seeing us, especially after the conversation we had yesterday:

Ryan: Did you clean my room?

Me: Uh, NO.

Ryan: Is it still messy?

Me: Uh, YES.

Ryan: Do you think you could take care of that for me?

Me: Uh, NO.

Ryan: Am I gonna have to do it when I get home?

Me: Uh, YES.

Ryan: hmmpphh!

Good times, good times.

Anyway, we were supposed to be heading to Corpus this weekend, but Shawn's been working non-stop since the holiday and is feeling inder the weather so we're forgoing the beach to hang around the house and just be chill.

Wish us luck with that.

A Great Big Huge THANK YOU...

to everyone for your thoughts and wishes for my birthday!! Thanks to you, I had the...

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

and a...

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

Details to come...(still recovering from Perfect Birthday Dinner)

Easter, Easter Everywhere

Yes, yes, I know Easter is over, but does it have to be?? I love it so much! Spring-y and pastel-y and happy and bright and bunnies and chocolate and dresses and chocolate and peeps and chocolate...

We had a wonderful weekend, marked most importantly by Shawn's confirmation into the Catholic Church! Mwahahahaha!! One down, 6 billion more to go!!! He's slipped into his Catholicism quite easily, both displaying feelings of guilt and dispersing guilt all at the same time, like when he guilted me into saying I would bring Jax with me to the 3 hour Easter Vigil service, then calling back 5 minutes later to tell me not to worry about it, he didn't want me to have to be stressed. IT HAS BEGUN!!!!!!

Though it was quite quite long, and aside from the fact that Jax leaked everywhere and had to be changed into his swim trucks (sweater vest + swim trunks= FIERCE!), the service itself was gorgeous, and celebrating with all the newly confirmed and baptised was so exciting. I especially enjoyed seeing our elderly priest walk out of the baptismal font in his wet, white robes, with his black shorts bleeding through. Very sexy. Lucky for him, he doesn't have to concern himself with such matters.

Alas, the party had to end, and we finally made it back to the lakehouse around midnight, where Jax had been keeping the rest of the family hostage until I arrived. (Midnight + Jaxson= FIERCER!!) Oh my God, he was awful! It was all I could do to bundle him in a bear hug, roll him onto the bed, and spoon him until he fell asleep. Why was I so late getting back? Shawn and I had to do Easter Bunny duty. Procrastination rocks!

Note to self: when purchasing pre-made Easter baskets, avoid doing so at WALMART. The Precious Moments Doll that came with Ryan's basket had measure markings on her face (slightly hidden under her bangs, but still), and all four of the race cars that came in Jax's basket are now broken. And so it goes.

All that aside, we had a lovely Easter with the fam, Ginger came up and ate the wonderful meal Menana had put together, and we all enjoyed watching Ninny attempt to give Ryan a swirly.

Who can blame me for not wanting all the Easter goodness to end??

Without Further Ado...

I give you...PICTURES FROM HALLOWEEN!!! Woohoo! Lalo found my camera this weekend -- apparently she'd thought it was her's, took it home, and it's been sitting on her counter ever since. Yay! All is not lost!!

And since it's been mentioned that "no one wants to read about your personal enlightenment yadayadayada, Amy -- we come here for the kids," I will get right to the point and post those pics.....NOW.

Jax, as "Ghetto Rocket" from Little Einstein's.

Ryan, as Elphaba (Wicked Witch of the West) -- the School Girl Years.

And with her Daddy...

...Maximus!

I'd show you my costume, but with all the time it took me to create THEIR costumes, mine fell a little short. In other words, you could see the pic, but then I'd have to kill you. Don't ask me why.

Love, Marriage and a Baby Carriage

Had a dream last night that I was preggers...and you know what?? I liked it!


AAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day from my heart to your's!!

(NOT for little ears. Or really old ears. Or "Bossy" ears. You know what? Just skip it altogether...)

Hello? Anyone out there??

I know, I know. I've abandoned you all and for that I apologize. Don't get those panties too tightly wadded, though -- I've pretty much abandoned everyone lately.

The kitchen is decorated in a nice shade of hovel, the "Big Room" has been completely overrun by a vagabond band of inflatable toys, motorized cars, race tracks and dirt, and the rest of the house is just depressed.

Meanwhile, I finally caught up on our vacation laundry, cleaned the oven from an unfortunate pound cake incident, and have enjoyed many hours of Playhouse Disney, Hannah Montana and football.

In my mind, as long as the kids are on vacation, I am too. Shawn may not agree with this, but he's at work, so I'm pretty sure it's just blatant jealousy.

We had a very active holiday, traveling to the lakehouse, Houston, Port Neches, back to Houston, and then on to Katy.

We visited everyone who would deign to let us in, and then some. We saw museums, movies, parks and dogs, and even lit a sparkler or two on New Year's Eve. We are such party animals.

I've been trying to pull myself out of the sink hole of depression and despair that covered me around Christmas, and thankfully, I am beginning to see daylight.

Resolutions have been made, budgets are in the making, and the kids and I are enjoying our $15 box of firelogs while we wait for Daddy to return and make us whole.

Our upstairs toilet flooded and leaked into the kitchen...mmmm... soup, anyone? And no one even yelled, cursed or stomped their feet -- we truly are evolving, no? That, or we're just too worn out to make the effort.

Mom and Dad got us an awesome flip video camera, and I am working on putting together a movie montage of the holidays for all of you faithful to look at and laugh. Or cry. Or hide your eyes in embarrassment.

I miss my parents and my sisters terribly -- I wasn't very good to them on Christmas, shame shame, and if there is anything I could do differently it would be to not have had all those beers on Christmas Eve. Alas, Santa did not bring me the Time Machine I've so fervently been wishing for all these years, so I'll just have to settle for remorse and guilt. That sounds about right.

My resolutions are numerous and I really hope I can keep them, although I've already broken one, but that's okay because I didn't really care about that one anyway. Who wants life without coffee???

So I'll leave you all for now, with promises of more posts today and tomorrow and the day after that, and wishes for a wonderful New Year to you and yours.

A Kindergarten Christmas

Ryan's class had their Christmas party on Thursday, and man was it reindeer-riffic. Everything was Rudolph-themed, from the cute little obligatory Reindeer Hats:

(Look, Ma, No TOOTH!)


To Reindeer Bingo:

(BINGO!!)

And much much more. I'd show more pics of the activities, but there's the pesky little matter of other people's kids in the pics and privacy and all that nonsense. Trust me, they had a great sugar-filled time.

One kid I can show you is Ryan's Love, Dillon. They don't know this yet, but his mom and I have already put a downpayment on a church and reception hall. Shh, don't tell...

What I really love about the two of them is that they really are just great friends. Sure, they write cards to each other declaring their love, and yes, they have been on some dates (family-dates, but whatever), but they've yet to reach that teasing, kissy-face stage in their relationship, and I, for one, am thrilled.

They goof off, wrestle, fart and giggle together -- just like Mommy and Daddy!


But I digress.

One more fun thing about this year's Kindergarten Christmas? Their teacher put together a "cookbook" from the mouths of our babes, where she asked them what their favorite food is that their parents make and then she had them tell her how they make the dish and she wrote it down word-for-word and voila, a new cookbook was born.

Here is Ryan's entry, titled "Ryan's Imposter Cake" :

"We buy it at a cake store and come home with it. Then we put it in the oven so it looks like we made it. Then I put icing and candy on it."

WTF?? She would say that. I'm not sure where she got the idea, but I have a feeling that it came from Shawn's birthday party, when we bought his cake rather than make it. I'm not clear on the whole "put in the oven & pretend" part, but it does have a nice ring to it...

My Santa List

I'm sitting across the living room from my husband and daughter, watching them snuggle against each other watching a nature show. I haven't seen either of them so relaxed and at ease in such a long time. They are truly happy right now, and that's about the best thing I could get for Christmas.

*I'll go ahead and pass around the barf bags now.

Look & See

What's wrong with this picture?

(and who do you think is responsible?)

P.S. The blue & green yarn was Ryan's touch. We feel it gives the tree a certain je ne sais quois.

Next we'll be singing Kumbaya around the fire...

Make a free ecard!

Wanna share the love this Christmas? Check out these cool sites we used to send ecards, adopt a wildlife animal, and help people across the world.

www.smilebox.com

www.wwf.org -- instead of presents from Mom and Dad, Ry and Jax used the money to adopt an animal!!!

oxfam -- Thanks to smilebox, we were able to save $$ on cards this year, and used the savings to buy a goat for a family in Africa. Who knew???

There are so many more sites that are wonderful to visit this time of year -- Feed the Poor, Save the Children, buynothingchristmas.org....Join us, won't you??

Happy Birthday, Baby

Today my husband turned 30. Life is SWEET!! I am so glad he was born. He makes everything better. You know how there are people you meet and you wonder how life ever went on without them? It's like that, with a cherry on top.

Plus, Big Daddy went home today, so December 4th, 2007 has officially been named my favorite day of the year thus far.

We're all feeling a little sluggish, though. Shawn's passed out on the couch (it's 8:25), the kids are asleep, and I'm pretty close to convincing myself to leave kitchen cleanup for the morning. Who knew 30 was the new 60?

We'd planned to trim the tree to celebrate Shawn's birthday tonight (low key, after the surprise party we pulled off for him this weekend), had an early evening peak:

, and this is what we're left with:

Gobble Gobble

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all! We, as usual, had the most dysfunctional fun our little family is capable of having. Let's just jump right in...

We were ambushed Wednesday night by a woman claiming she was trying to get the word out about her carpet cleaning company, and would we like her to clean a room for free in exchange for word of mouth?? Well...sure, why not? (Do you have anything that will get up dried eggs?)

Suckers. She sent in her "guy" who then proceeded to spend an hour trying to sell Shawn a $1500 vacuum cleaner.

(Note to lying vacuum salesmen: If someone accepts a free room carpet cleaning at 6 pm the night before Thanksgiving, they probably can't afford to buy a $1500 vacuum. Just a clue.)

I sweetly weaved my way through that one, channeling my inner Brenda/Tami and using my best Texas drawl to explain to the (lovely, I'm sure) salesman that Daddy works every single day of the week, and that we would actually enjoy spending time with him, so you could you please pack up all your "look-how-dirtyYOUR-vac-leaves-your-carpet" materials and get the hell out?

And he did. More on this later. I'm not done with Kirby Cleaning Services just yet -- BBB here I come!! (Oh, and that super-duty top of the line wet/dry vac? Didn't even come close to cleaning the egg stain, which is unfortunate for them.Might have changed the whole outcome of that visit...)

Anyway, that ordeal ended, Ninny arrived and we all had fun eating, laughing, playing and finally, sleeping.

And then. AND THEN....TURKEY DAY!!!!

That's right, MY National Holiday, to celebrate what a ginormous turkey I am!!

What? No parents or grandparents here for Thanksgiving? No prob, I'll take care of everything!

Let's see...pecan pie, 4 layer pumpkin cake, crispy-topped creamed spinach, cheesy corn bake,crust-topped broccoli and cheese casserole, sweet potato casserole, 2 kinds of cranberry sauce and hmmm.....what am I missing????

What's that? A Turkey? Well slap my mouth and call me Fred! Why didn't anyone mention a turkey?? Off to HEB!!

But not before I fix everyone Baked Apple Pancakes. Note to self: when grabbing handle of skillet that has spent 30 minutes in 425 degree oven, it's best to wear protective gear.

Yep, I pulled a big ole Johnny Tremain, and now my left hand is burnt and mangled. Not really, but there will be a nice little scar. Thank God for next-door neighbors bearing bottles of aloe...

Eventually we make it to the big meal , which everyone gobbles down. Except for Ryan, who was heard mumbling "gross" and "blecch" and "do I have to eat this???" and Jax, who just threw himself on the ground and went off on one of his classic Jax-Attacks. It really made me thankful for Prozac.

What else can be said? The Cowboys won, no one watched the parade, and Shawn and Ninny had a "smell my feet" war. Pretty much on par with every other holiday...

Shawn went back to work Friday, the kids and I went insane, and Ninny saved the day with bags of new clothes she bought the kids during the circus they call "Black Friday".

We pulled out a few Christmas items, read some books, put out some decor, and now I'm staring down the barrel of a day of cleaning and decorating with no escape plan for the kids (No Daddy, rain all day)...should be a lot of fun!

Just a Taste....

Another Halloween has come and gone, and we've got the video to prove it:

Ryan went as school-girl Elphaba, putting her costume-IQ worlds beyond most of the other kids her age. Jax was Rocket from "Little Einsteins", though according to my mom, he could also have passed as a car....

I was able to pull off Shawn's "Maximus" costume, which then left me needing a costume, so I did the easiest thing I could -- I went as the Man of My Dreams. (Speaking of which, I had the most horrifying nightmare about him last night -- something to do with him and another girl unabashedly thumbing their noses at me from the boudoir. Haunting, indeed.)

Pictures forthcoming, once I find my camera...

The best part of the night was when we went to a Haunted House one neighborhood over, where they'd hoisted the sails on a huge sailboat, posted some "Cap'n Jack" wannabe's, and handed out free beer to all the moms and dads. My kind of trick-or-treating.