Oklahoma here we come !!!

WOW what a weekend !!! Our first BIG roadtrip, well actually only 450 miles, but that seems big to me. We went for a cousins wedding and were looking forward to a small family reunion. It worked out perfectly and I think the kids kind of liked all the hotel pools. I'm sure that is what they will remember mostly, oh and their cousin Ms. M. She is a party animal, full of something all the time. Her energy and zeal for things are enough to inspire anyone. Here are a few pictures from our visit :

I would like to deny this but DQ is always the first stop on any road trip.



Little Mama enjoyed her dip cone very much.......



The Rhino felt totally at peace with his ice cream......


and last but not least Little Man ate so quickly I only got one picture of him and his treat.....

The rehearsal dinner was great fun. It makes me really want to move out to the country. The kids had a ball running free in such a big open space that wasn't a park. They look all pink and outdoorsy, I love it.


Little Mans first attempt at Boccie Ball....
WATCH THE TOES !!!

"Where did that ball go????"



I want to feel and look like this.......




or this.......

or even this, although I'd probably end up with a really bad neck ache.




This is our little cousin Ms. M. . Little Mama completely fell head over heals for this beautiful little girl and I think she was more than happy to be big sister like for a while.


This is the memorial marking the Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City . It was an amazing memorial to all those that lost their lives in the bombings that took place here in 1995. Each chair represents a life lost, all 168 lives.

No More Hand Holding

I guess I knew it would happen I just guess I thought there would be some warning bell or something that told me The Rhino was about to really crush me. He told me today in a very casual walk across the restaurant parking lot. I think he said something like he didn't feel the need to hold my hand anymore. The only thing that I could say was "ok I still want to hold your hand but why don't you let me know when you want to hold mine and we can grab hands then". I thought it was a good response for a mom who was having her heart broken at that moment. I never want my kids to feel guilted into things like that, I'm willing to guilt them into good behavior still but not handholding or kisses. So I got a little retrospective about The Rhino and found some pictures of times when it never would have crossed my mind that he would some day tell me that he didn't want to hold my hand....

all he ever did was laugh at me, I felt like the funniest person alive

Or smile at me, I felt like the most beautiful girl in the world




Or hug on me, I felt like the softest most squishy mom in the world




I felt like he would always take the time to stop what he was doing and give me a little pep smile.



I think what I'm seeing now is him giving himself a pep talk, figuring out how he alone fits in this place and I'm not sure there is anything better, or more important at this moment in time. Although if he asked me to I would still probably wipe his bottom ! Thanks goodness he doesn't ask!

Bumper Stickers

The things that people will put on their cars, I LOVE IT !!!

This one says I'll keep my guns, freedom & money, you can keep the "Change" .

And this one speaks for itself.

Discovery Green !!!

Discovery Green, a big green park in the middle of downtown, was a ball. I have never taken the kids there to play in the water but they loved it. The park was just so so, although Little Mama seemed to like looking cool in MY sunglasses. I did tell her that she needed to stop worrying what she looked like and play like a kid !!!

HOW HANDSOME ARE THEY !!! I THINK I'M IN LOVE

There were some good photo ops while we were there. I was reading another ladies blog and she just said that you have to take pictures with your kids no matter what you look like. I find that I have what feels like to few pictures of my mother and myself. So that's ,y new purpose in life, to make sure I take pictures with my kids whenever there is someone around.

A lovely picture of me with the kids, aren't they lovely !!!





Then came the water feature at the park. It was a mega mall of huge projectiles of water, that smelled so much like chlorine that I had not a worry near my head. It took the Little Man a while to warm up to strong shots of water going in his ears and up his nose and in his eyes but once he did there was no slowing him down.



Little Mama had no problem, she was the first one in, reverting back to her big old kid self !!!

and last but not least The Rhino loved having the water squirt anywhere up, down, in , on, or through his swimsuit. It was a great day and a really great water feature. Sometimes I think I am raising fish. WHy do kids or people like water so much? Next time do I dare to wear my swim suit??? It was so HOT !!!

So Many Critters

FRUIT FLIES !!! That's what we have and they are so invasive and so gross and everywhere. I read on the internet how to get rid of them and from that have concluded that there have been all out wars fought against these little guys. Some of the suggestions where basically bug torture, like my favorite one was something along these lines : Get a rotten banana and put it in the oven, leave the door cracked overnight and in the morning SLOWLY approach the oven, close the door and blast the little bugs with the bake cycle. Sounds a little crazy to me but I guess if you feel like cleaning up baked banana and baked fruit flies then great, that's the way for you. For us we have found this method to be the best so far :



A cup and some grape juice (that the kids won't drink), and some saran wrap and a rubber band. Presto, so far a trap worthy of the most crafty Fruit Fly !!!!

This Could Be Gross

So lunch in our house is always an experience. I always thought I had taught them, at least somewhat, about manners and using them. I'm not sure what happens when they get home, maybe they just feel so comfortable that they can actually let loose. Well I know what happens when I'm not actually at the table with them :

This happens.......

and this happens....

The Little Man was asleep during lunch so I can only imagine how things would/could have degenerated. I know that my children can do better, I have seen them. I have been to their kindergarten classroom and seen how they place their napkins in their laps and have polite conversation with the other child or two at their table. WHAT HAPPENS IN MY HOUSE ???? I'm also always amazed at the carnage that is left on the table after a simple meal. I won't show you that.

Summer is Upon Us

I felt the heat today. That kind of stifling heat that makes me have a really bad headache. The kind that makes you feel like you are actually thawing out when you go outside after a prolonged period of inside activity. The kind of heat that makes me realize we won't be playing outside again for a few months unless it's in the pool, or the early morning or if the weather sends us some random respite, like during Hurricane Ike last year. I'm posting some of my favorite pictures that feel a little summery. I'm also waiting for the pool to open, today would have been the ideal day for a dip.

The Ever Aloof Eight Year Old

Eight seems to be the age of no pictures. The Rhino wants none taken and for me to get one I practically have to beg and then I get some weird pose or something. The Rhino has grown by amazing leaps and bounds in the past 2 months. Two major milestones that I didn't ever think we would get to have actually happened.

The first was a reading milestone. Because of The Rhinos ADD and his learning issues with reading(I'm still not sure what they are I just know that he has to work so hard it's painful) I have been waiting patiently for the light to go on. Well it has finally happened. I don't remember the exact moment when I heard him read anything special but I remember this gradual love of reading starting to show up. He started wanting to read to me, nothing like this had ever happened. I know that this year when he had to take the standardized tests at school he hardly batted an eye. Now tonight he just finished the first chapter(EVER) in a chapter book. HUGE this is HUGE. He can read the menu at the Chinese Restaurant, he can read what is going to be on TV, he can read the little sign on the machine in the women's bathroom that says tampons(although I'm not too worried, he asked me if they were cigarettes). The world is a brighter place for me and The Rhino today, he is starting to read and I'm starting to realise that he will actually be ok.

The second milestone is something he might be embarrassed about but which we are so excited about that I think I will spare him any chance of embarrasment and let you wonder what it could possibly be.........

So not to leave him out I have included several pictures of The Rhino and hope that by just looking at him you can tell all of his very important and wonderful achievements that have happened recently.

Bubbles

BUBBLES !!!

They are such easy fun entertainment, I'm not sure how I have forgetten about them. At a friends birthday we got some for a party favor and here we are. I pulled out our Gymboree bubbles, the kind that never pop, and took them with us to family dinner at the park. Ms.E had a great time blowing them. I think she too forgot how fun they can be.

The Morning After or The Same Night

I am suffering this morning with a little symptom of the "night before" . Probably not the best time to actually create my first blog post but it's 7am and I have already been up for an 1 1/2 hours so am getting a little bored or maybe just avoiding what I should be doing. I had a great time at my little ones school fundraiser. There was a great bunch of people and alot of wine and some pretty good cajun foodand my husband was at the men's retreat for church. So this is Ms. T and Mrs. C who apparently both had a great time as well. Looks like fun anyway, I think it was fun, I remember laughing alot, I don't remember exactly why they were standing there posing for so long, but maybe they were showing us something important? Anyway it was fun, I'd do it again and I will next year.