Timing is Everything

Last night some members of my coven and I went to see Jacob Black kick Vampire butt.

Like true fans, we went first to the nine pm encore showing of Twilight and then safeguarded our seats against the mayhem of the midnight showing of New Moon.

Jacob was delicious.

But seriously, the movie was boring.

Yes I said it.

There wasn't enough Werewolf Action.

New Moon was my favorite of the four books, specifically for the Were Love.

I'd rather 108 degrees than the coldness of the undead.

Part of the problem last night, could have been exhaustion, but it was more blah blah blah, Bella's feelings about Edward and not enough of the shirtless Jacob and his pack of wolves.

And the Volturri, was rather anticlimactic. I wanted to see some bloodshed or more torture. I have to admit that although I loved that Dakota Fanning lended herself to the movie, her portryal of the evil angel Jane was BORING- and not true to the book. The screenwriter, makeup artists and costume people totally had it all wrong.

And don't get me started on her "twin" brother.

I'm certain I'll see the movie again, but I think as approach my 4th decade, I do not need to attend midnight movies.

It was a long drive home looking for the telling eyes of the werewolves.

I am however thrilled to have spent an evening with my coven away from distractions of Children etc. We all need a girls night out every now and again, next time, BEFORE the witching hour.

Too Busy or not Too Busy? That is the question

Mom came for a visit last week to share in the Halloween activities. On the 29th Joely and I drove to Brenham, TX to pick her up. We live EXACTLY 200 miles, door to door, from mom and dad, and Brenham is exactly 100 miles away, so it's a great place to meet.

On the way back we had some extra time, so we stopped at Arne's Warehouse to get some party stuff for the halloween parties. Well as per usual it started to pore down rain and to get into the warehouse you have to park in a parking lot across the street. EVERY time I go there, there is a torrential downpour. That day was no exception. We got the goods and then got stuck on

I-10 due to rain and an accident and the fact that people in general can not drive correctly in the rain. That night Quentin's practice was canceled.

The Next Day Friday- we went to the Dead Scientist Program for David. Came home got some lunch, and then Mom (THANKFULLY) stayed home with Joely, and I picked up David and went to Alice's party. Afterwards I picked up Quentin a little early and left hime with Joely who was napping so Mom, David, Alice and I could go decorate for the party.

Robert, of course, ended up working late. He rarely works late but when we are in a time crunch some ding dong where he works schedules a 4:00 meeting.

SO, We left at 5:00 from decorating, went back home and got Quentin off to football practice. In the meantime, Robert came home, got Joely and met me at the field. I went back for Alice and mom and we went back to decorate until about 9:00

Then Saturday we had the playoff game from 1-3- then the party started at 5. I came home around midnight.

Church on Sunday- we need to leave by 10:30 to there in time- Alice started to freak out because something gross was happening in the bathroom. She was right, the sewage was backing up into the tub-

GOOD TIMES-

So We made it to church in time for Sunday School and Robert worked on the sewer line and fixed the blockage- he's so awesome.

On Monday... we needed to grocery shop and have lunch- nice time- then after a quick dinner Robert and I attended the Parent Teacher Conference for David.

Tuesday- We Chillaxed somewhat around the house, but after school the fun started again. Quentin needed to be at football at 6:00 the same time Alice needed to be at Girl Scouts.

Wednesday was Quentin's birthday, so he got a special breakfast. I then went and got the car alligned (again Greatful that grandma was here to keep Joely) then took quentin his lunch and cupcakes for the class. Dinner that night was Quentin's request- roasted chicken, green beans and mac n cheese) Also he wanted a special cake- the day was very busy busy busy

On Thursday I took mom back to meet dad in Brenham.

She said on the way home, you guys sure are busy so on the go. I thought at the time, "what is she talking about?" -- but as you can see, she's right, it was one crazy week.

I'm going to miss the football, but I'm glad that one thing is going to be eliminated after Saturday.

I'll take My God, My Liberty and My Guns...

You can keep the change

I saw this on a bumper sticker yesterday when I came back from church and into our small town.
I've posted before how much I love Crosby, but that's another reason why- they are not afraid to share their ideas on the backs of their trucks. This truck didn't have the scantily clad girl on the mudflaps, because it was owned by a girl.
Know how I know that?

Because her other bumper sticker said,

"Silly Cowboy, Trucks are for Girls"

So this post is all about why I hope we never leave Crosby.. EVER and also to catch up on my two month absence.

First and foremost- Great friends.
David and Quentin both have awesome friends they met through our Cub Scouts (of which I proudly brag, I'm the treasurer and the Den Leader for the 4th grade Webelos)

This year we combined the boys birthday parties with their two friends Jacob and Travis and had one huge Halloween Extravaganza.

David is Damon Salvatore, when he's suffering from Blood lust.
He made a handsome vampire.

Sadly, I did not get a picture of quentin in his full gear. Right now he looks like an effeminatePeter Pan or a woodsman.

He was really Beowylf.
Robert made the costume and it was awesome, just a little warm to be running around in for a Party.

The girls were cute

This Alice, a mutated werewolf with bat DNA, because a Bat wasn't scary enough.

She was a good sport. Robert was originally going to take the girls home early so they could trick or treat, but Alice said, and I quote,
"I can live withouth trick or treating this year, I just want to be with the boys."

So they stayed. Here is Princess Snow White

She had a blast too, there were enough little sister princesses to keep her happy. And a cute little pug named Herme, that she played with all night.

Second Thing I love about Crosby-

Being close to the beach. We are only about 90 minutes from some good clean fun at Surfside, I've posted about our old friend Surfside before, but recently we went back for more than just sand and surf-

The Bohanons were in town visiting Gala's parents, so we went and spent the day with them. It was just what I needed to get out of my funk. It was like they never left, we just picked up from when they left us all alone in April (HEE HEE just kidding, but we dooo miss them everyday)

Joely and Delyla. Joely is 10 months older than Delyla, but Delyla does not let Joely boss her around (much to Joely's dismay) Delyla has two older brothers, so nothing gets passed her. She had grown up so much in the last six months I hardly recognized her, but she still has her big smile and cute laugh.

Alice and baby D- I realize that I'm not the best photographer, but I love taking the shots. I love how it looks like Delyla is paying close attention to Alice, and I love that Alice never misses an opportunity to pose for the camera.

Here are the boys playind seperatly, but together. They always did this in Crobsy too, Darrion would be playing leggos or building something and Quentin would be playing something else and David would be reading a book. But they LOVED to be at the same house.

Third, our wee library

I try to meet Megan and her tribe at the library on Tuesdays for Toddler Time. The librarian is wonderful and she makes it so much fun. We often miss but just as often we go and we always say we need to do it more for the kids. Naturally they had a Halloween party and the kids got to Trick or Treat at the Library. Joely really caught on tot he concept of Trick or Treating. She has a very sweet tooth.

Fourth thing I love

FOOTBALL!

I have become what I used to mock, a football mom. Quentin has done so well this year. He has improved dramatically throughout the season. Saturday is their last game and it's the superbowl. They are playing the Longhorns, if you are in texas, it's at 4:30 in Crosby off of Hare Road, behind the Community Center and Library.

Pictured here is Quentin after his victory at his first night game. He plays nose guard, so he gets hit A LOT-- too much -- but he hits as hard as he gets hit. Their last game was a shutout and Quentin recovered a fumble. I told him that it was cool the offense scored two touchdowns, but it was way cooler that his defensive line did not allow any touchdowns.

Yes I am scary.
For instance, one boy, a local boy was playing VERY DIRTY and he even kicked my precious son in the chest (AFTER THE PLAY AFTER THE WHISTLE- it's on video) and that's when I got loud. We were 3/4 of the way through the season, but after that I can't sit still or quietly through a game.

There are a ton more things to be thankful for here in Crosby but I'll leave with

My fifth Favorite thing

The Crosbty Volunteer Fire Department. I had to call them this morning- about an hour after I cooked toast, the house filled with smoke. Apparently a piece was stuck and it continued to burn. I did not realize it, because the house was literally full of smoke. I called 911 and got Joely and the dogs outside. As it turns out it was nothing but a lot of smoke. But they came fast and they were courteous and knew what needed to be done.

Here is a picture of the Brave little Toaster.

Dead Scientists

Norman E. Bourlag

In fifth grade you don't get to party on Halloween. But you can dress as a dead scientist. So we researched a Nobel Prize Winner who Robert listened to once during a lectur on Economic Geography.
Originally I said, hey let's do Bill Gates- he's a computer scientist, then I got the instructions and found out it had to be a dead scientist. So Robert suggested this amazing person who dies last month. Our world is a better place because of him.

Back in 1970, when he won the Nobel Prize, it was for actually doing something, not just talking about- oops this isn't a political blog, so back to David.
He came in as second runner up in the contest.

Here is his report

Norman Bourlag was born March 22 1914. He is credited with starting the green movement. His most important contribution to the world is his development of breeds of wheat and rice which allowed for higher yielding and more resilient crops. Because of his continued work in this field worldwide, he is credited with starting the Green Revolution and with saving more lives than anyone on that has ever lived.
He grew up working on a farm in Iowa. His early education was very primitive. The country school he attended had only one room and one teacher and was from first through eighth grade. In high school he excelled in football, baseball and wrestling. He wanted to attend the Iowa state Teachers college and worked as a farm hand earning fifty cents a day to earn money for his first year of college. The depression hit Iowa especially hard but because of it he was able to earn a grant to attend college in Minnesota. He majored in forestry, agricultural science and became an accomplished wrestler. After marrying his wife Margaret he earned in a PhD in Plant Pathology.
He graduated during World War 2 and began working for the Dupont Corporation doing research in Mexico. In Mexico, the farmers were having problems with crops and were unable to produce enough to feed their own country.. The problems included a rust fungus in the wheat and small crops. Also the farmers in Mexico were hesitant to change their ways of farming and listen to an American who did not even speak Spanish. His childhood experiences helped him to keep trying for 13 years before he and his team were successful in creating a disease resistant type of wheat that provided for a large crop. When he left his studies in Mexico the country was self sufficient in their wheat production.
He was asked to work his magic in South Asia. Because of his research and agricultural expertise he was able to teach them to increase their crops by 400 percent. In the previous century over 160 million in Asia had died from starvation. In 1968 he and his team created a miracle rice that would double the crop size had more nutrition than regular rice. His work in Bioengineering led him to be the Father of the Green Revolution.
He received the Nobel Prize in 1970 for his accomplishments in India and Pakistan and for his role as the Father of the Green Revolution. When the announcement came that he had been chosen, he was working in a remote field in Mexico. His wife had to drive hours to reach him and asked him to return home to answer the interviews and phone calls. He refused to leave because he still had lots of data to plot and research to be done. He is the only agricultural scientist, so far, to have received this prize. In the 4 decades since receiving the Nobel Prize he has worked harder than he did before the prize.
Borlaug continued to participate actively in teaching, research and activism. He would spend much of his time in Mexico and then would come to Texas A&M and teach one semester each year. This is how I heard about him, because as a student at Texas A&M my dad attended one of his lectures on economic geography.
Norman Bourlag died on September twelfth of this year. His children released a statement that says, “We would like his life to be a model for making a difference in the lives of others and to bring about efforts to end human suffering an misery for all mankind.”
Sources
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Borlaug
2. http://www.worldfoodprize.org/borlaug/borlaug-history.htm
3. http://www.mi-cherries.com/art14.htm

I'm glad to know about this man. David's teacher was impressed because she had never heard of him and really enjoyed the presentation.

David was happy he got extra credit.

I also went and got him out of school at one so he could go to Alice's Party. Here are some pictures of him helping out the "little Kids"

At one point the teacher said, "who hasn't had a chance to ...."

and the kids around David were screaching.. "ME ME ME"

so David said," Listen very carefully, the following information will bring your very far in school and in life. Just raise your hand, don't say anything and the teacher will call on you."

He later told me little kids need these types of life lessons.

Little boys all wanted David to help them make their necklace. He taught them that they either needed or didn't need a pattern, it was up to them.

Helping the clean up of the mummy contest.

Friday Night Lights

Hey Dayton Broncos, We're after YOU!!!

The Best thing about living in a small town, is the community.

Right now we are in Football Season and everyone gets into the
CROSBY COUGARS.

All the billboards say "go big red" "Go Cougars" etc.

The Football players eat lunch with the elementary school kids.

Ticket bought in advance are cheap and you can get them at any school.

Everyone is pumped up.

The Best fundraiser I have ever seen is for the cheerleaders and they do a

(drum roll please)

Mini Cheer Camp

They let the 1-4 grade girls learn cheers 4 days after school for the low low price of only 20.00

And then...
They get to cheer the first quarter of the game that week-
SWEET!!

So our little princess had to be a part of it this year.

(she's in the red)

This year had a little quirk from Mother Nature.

COLD COLD COLD RAIN-

But as you know,

In Texas, nothing stops a game-

So Alice stayed out there as cold as she was for the whole quarter.

We left shortly after she was done, since it was so cold and wet and we didnt' have anyone playing on the field...

But Crosby went on to Beat the Dayton Broncos, I'm sure the extra cheering during the first quarter is what kept the momentum going.

And here is the money shot- Alice got to see her most favorite person ever-

MRS. RANDOLPH--

She's an avid booster of the football team, so she was selling spirit gear. It was wonderful to see her, she was being showered with hugs from her previous students.

It was a very fun night. Best of All, big brother Quentin let her wear his jersey so Alice looked extra cool and very spirited.

They cheered some old favorites, 2, 4, 6, 8 who do we appreciate- Hey let's fire it up-2 bits 4 bits 6 bits a dollar-- Come on cheer with me!

And now we can't stop but say "you got to rock with the red and roll with the white"

Hey Hey you, You know what to do!

I fell off the wagon-

Vampires are back in my life.

It was peer pressure

The New year started with a resolve to close the coffin on Vampires.

And I lasted until about a couple of weeks ago when my friend Gala convinced me that I would love the Salvatore Brothers.

and I Do love them.

Time stands still on Thursdays from 7:00-8:00.

Me and the rest of the teens who watch the CW are now hooked on the mystery of the vampire history of Mystic Falls.

Admittedly I was slow to jump on the bandwagon and therefore fall off the wagon.

My fellow vampire loving friends told me I "HAD" to watch it.

But I was a snob, after all it's on the CW- which used to be the WB and when they had Charmed on I would watch it, but really I'm not their target audience.

So I didn't watch it.

But then Gala called.

She said I needed it in my life.

She was right.

There are books written that the series is based on, but I'm not reading them, yet anyway.
I'm too entranced in the mystery, excitement and absolute terror.

For those of you who has missed them, you can catch them on this link.

So the gist of it is, there are two brothers, Damon who feeds on humans and Stefan who feeds on animals. They return to their ancestral home of Mystic Falls (I think Virginia) and the mayhem begins. There are some in Mystic Falls that have retained a knowledge of how to hunt the vampires, but most people dont' remember.

In this tale, you have to invite the vampires into your homes. Thus confirming my fear of ever inviting anyone into my home. I just hope that anyone that I've already invited in, is not a vampire.

So the other night, I was waiting for everyone to go to sleep so I could watch it and not traumatize the kids and it was probably midnight, you know the bewitching hour!!!

Of course Truffles needs to go outside and since she's still in potty training you have to go out there with her and praise her. I was petrified. It was a typical hot muggy SE Texas night and I had goosebumps, I just knew a hungry vampire was "fixin" to attach his teeth to my neck and drain me. Leaving Robert to raise the kids alone, without a mother.
Luckily we made it back in unscathed and Truffles took care of business in a quick manner.

So I dare you, invite the Vampire Diaries into your life.

Corny

Putting a lid on drugs

Today was hillarious hat day for day four of Red Ribbon Week-

Alice went a little corny- as did Big Brother David

About 4 years ago, we had a similiar day, that ended not quite as hillarious

Quentin circa October 2005

He made his own Hillarious Hat and nobody laughed.

Poor Q-bone.

Prince David celebrates the advent of his eleventh year

In addition to it being David's birthday it's also day two of Red Ribbon Week.

Today is retro day.

He told me last night before bed that he wanted to dress up.

I'm not my mom, I can't pull something fabulous out of thin air-

so this was the best I could do, a greaser circa 1950.

I can't beleive 11 years have passed.

He's such a great kid.

He's also very very funny. You have to listen close because it's sometimes quite subtle.

He's got a great sense of humor.

Here are a few of his favorite things

His mama- (LOL)

Pokemon

Video games

Cartoons

Missing school

His grandparents (really should be number one spot)

Another thing he has shown an interest in is "bulking up" and he's been bugging us to get him a weight set. I didn't want to go all nutso and buy him a brand new set to rust away- so I went to craigslist and with the help of Rob's parents-

He got his wish.

A "new" weight set.

Without the grandparents truck and muscle , Robert and I would still be trying to fit it in the mini van.

Clearly he's thrilled. Soon he will be building brawn and dawn and "pumping it up"- we'll call him Arnold soon enough.

He had a great birthday, he got an "early" birthday present from Grandma and Grandpa Mullens a couple of weeks ago. (Scribblenauts for DS- sweet)
My mom and dad were with him this weekend and so he got another early gift (fossile fighters for ds- apparently it's AWESOME)

And then last night Grandma showed up with Action Replay a device that lets you get cheat codes for various games. He's been bugging me for months to get him that- I refused but that's what grandparents are for, to get things that parents dont' want to get.

He's having a great day so far and it's only going to get better-

"I Only got Five Bucks!"

Appalachian Alice

Alice lost one of her big front teeth last week.

She has been wiggling and wiggling and wiggling it for quite some time now.

If finally came out.

When she bit David.

There was blood everywhere.

Apparently David was Trash Talking the Girl Scouts.

So Alice bit him and out came her tooth.

The next morning she awoke screaming.

I thought she was excited over her bounty.

But she was dissapointed.

Apparently a crisp five dollar bill isn't the going rate for a large tooth.

Rocket Science

This is my fabulous husband, with a masters degree in Political Science.

And a PHD in keeping his wife happy.

One day we were watching an episode of this old house that was showing cool science project type things to do with kids. They showed a watter bottle rocket launcher- I looked at Mr. Robert (as they say here in Texas)

and said, "PLEASE!!!"

and of course he complied.

He made a couple of different launchers and found that the plans on

http://www.sciencetoymaker.org/

were pretty good but he tweaked them

First off he made it much shorter and therefore easier for the kids to do.
He also didnt' mess with the "trigger" it didn't really do that good of a job, and the bottles shot off without the need of a trigger- it just needed enough air pressure.

The Webelos were very impressed and declared,

"this is the best den meeting EVER!!!"

I am so glad he caters to my every whim!

And although he didn't complete A&M with a degree in aerospace engineering as was his plan when he entered- he was still able to make the rocket launch above the trees.

So attaboy, mr. Political Scientist!

Lo Hicimos

Lately my days are filled with the soothing repetitious songs for toddlers.

Go ahead join with me.

" I love you, you love me"

"they call him Kipper, Kipper the dog"

"Sunny Days chasing the Clouds away"

But the one I've been singing the most comes from our neighbor to the south

Dora.

If you've had a child in the last 7 years, you know how to say We did it in Spanish,

Lo Hicimos!

I found myself singing that yesterday when Joely copied her friend Keegan

and did her own seat belt.

She's not even three yet! Big Girl

Of course it means that it now takes 15 minutes to get the car going instead of 1 minute, because she HAS to do it on her own. Any attempt to help will result in a open gash to your face, courtesy of her talon like finger nails-
SWEET GIRL-

Nursery

LO HICIMOS!!

Yes, finally a full 22 months after she was eligible for nursery she agreed to go.

Of course it took the gentle persuasion of a sucker from dear friend Megan Love but she stayed and the tears dried up.

I'd really never given it much of an effort, to be honest.

But I would never have thought about a sucker-

Megan maybe a generation younger, but she's a genius.

It really wasn't that big of a deal, she'd wander about the primary room (jr. Sunday school in mormon speak) or sit by the pedals of the piano and eat goldfish color etc. Often times she'd accompany her brothers to their class- ADORABLE- yes I know- I'm positive the teachers thought her adorable too!

Or even easier, she'd rest at home with her Daddy and have some much needed alone time with her BFF-

But now that I'm teaching the adult Sunday School class, she really can't be roaming the room, I have to concentrate way too much to have her being adorable and messing up my train of thought- cuz once that train leaves the station, I need to make sure I'm on it!

And staying hom with Dad, not really an option anymore because that would make her miss out on "going" anywhere.

So Yeah Megan for the brilliant bribe!

Thank you Joely for acquiescing to your fate of nursery if only for the next three months when it primary begins for you!

And last but certainly not least-

she began to say

"kintin"

and well that just broke my heart.

Hearing her call him "hen" was adorable, very toddleresque,

But Kintin- well that's too grown up.
She Started on Monday and if she forgets she'll say Hen, and then correct herself.

I'm not ready for her to be "all growed up."

And yes I thought all of you that said,

"Where does the time go?"

"they grow up so quick"

"cherish these times"

were a little whacked in the head- You were all right, they do grow up too quick and our time with them becomes more and more fleeting.

So here's to hugging your toddler and little bit tighter today and singing all the fun songs and those older kids, go take them out of school after the attendence is counted!

Repulsed, yet drawn...

Yo Gabba Gabba

This is the newest creation to melt toddlers minds.

You may remember Barney, Teletubbies or any other reincarnation of stupid shows.

They all serve the same purpose, entrance and possibly brain wash children all while driving their parents completly insane.

In Joely's world it is all Yo Gabba Gabba.

I just rented from Netflix a DVD that lasts 98 minutes, and that's still not long enough.

The Good thing, we no longer are just confined to the main tv with the DVR and Noggin, we can now hear Yo Gabba Gabba anywhere.

Here is the sick sick sick part.
Jack Black.
He's in the DVD and he loves to Dancey Dance, he's a little ascared of DJ Lance Rock.

I heard him last night while I was cleaning the kitchen and I thought I guess they found some tool who sounds like Jack Black, but it wasn't any tool, it was Jack Black himself.

I mean why Jack? Why, for the love of all that is holy, would Jack Black come on and sing about being friends with these freaks.

Maybe he needed the community service, if so it would have been for a drug conviction.

He sings goodbye to all of them.

I don't think I will ever be able to watch Shallow Hal again.

Good bye Good bye Good Bye Good Bye

"You're Doing it Wrong!"

Thursday, while waiting in the car-pool line at Barret Primary School, my battery died.

I couldn't help but remember...

"Mr. Mom"

Remember when he was dropping off the kids and they kept yelling,

"You're doing it wrong"

All those people having to drive around me- The humiliation- And I couldn't find my hazard lights!

I thought I was so smart to wait forever with my car off with the windows rolled down and the breeze from the myriad cars racing passed us.

But I forgot that my lights were on, there was a light in the back on (and who knows how long it had been left on) and the key was in the ignition.

It was 104 degrees.

Fortunately April Clinger was ahead of me in line.

I sent out the distress call and she came to my aid.

She picked up the kids and then came back to jump the car.

We both called our husbands.

Robert said, "red is negative, black is positive, start with negative to ground it."

Matt (her husband) said the opposite.

Apparently it doesn't matter, you just need to make sure whatever color you put on the negative in one car you do it to the other car- and the same goes with positive.

Mr. York, the principle came out to "save the day"-

We got the car going and what would have had me in tears had me giggling-

Thanks April!

I had my camera in the purse, but thought it innapropriate to keep the traffic at bay for any longer than necessary-

Orange Drink? What were you thinking Tropicana?

David is a picky eater/drinker. And he really hates to eat in the morning. I can really only guarantee he'll "drink" his breakfast which is orange juice, (so I make sure to get the calcium fortified with Viatamin D) occasionally he'll eat something if I cook Bacon.

So this morning I baked biscuits, fried some bacon and began pouring his Orange juice.

What I got instead was FREAKISHLY ODD ORANGE DRINK!

It's caled Trop 50.

It looks like all the other Tropciana's on the market. But it tastes something fierce, and not fierce in a good project runway way-

I couldn't believe my eyes, when as I was pouring it said,

"1/2 the sugar of orange juice"

I was like "uh no way did I get an orange beverage or drink"

In this house is 100 per cent fruit Juice all the way.

Ironically, Robert and I watched a Dave Chapelle clip called Grape Drink (for mature audiences) just last Saturday night, it's on you tube.
We laughed and laughed, and now Tropicana is laughing all the way to the bank.

The price was a dollar less than the other brands, even the "store brand" so I thought

"woo hoo, I'm almost stealing this orange juice"

David said he thought it tasted "horrible." He was right, imagine diet tang, but thicker.

EWWW

So it's Day three of School

Alice (first grade) loves it, but Mrs. Loggins doesn't want her talking during school. What's up with that?

Quentin explained that she should be listening and learning and not talking.
You can imagine how well Miss Oil took advice from Mr. Water.

Nice.

Quentin (fourth grade) LOVES his teachers. They are creative and funny and he has some good friends in his class. His teachers and classmates have always been great. (well maybe not his first grade teacher- but she was going through a lot of personal problems)

He's very blessed, I'd say he lives a charmed life.

And Poor David (5th grade)

We have a rule about no video games during the week but David used his persuasion skills to allow us to let him get up early and then if he has time while he's waiting for his ride, he can play his DS. The deal is he has to get himself up, so he gets up with his alarm clock- Good Boy!

Well my post with my aprehension towards his teachers was dead on. His first day was horrible. The Homeroom teacher didn't give him back his school supplies, so his second teacher, language arts, gave him a strike for being unprepared. When he tried to tell her that the teacher had not given him his school supplies, she told him that was just an excuse.

I called the school the second day and he was moved immediatly.

He came home much happier.

I said, "why was today better?"

And he said, "Apparently you demanded I be moved."

"yeah, I did I told them you were a darling charming little boy and you deserved a highly qualified and CERTIFIED Math teacher and a language arts teacher that would engage your creativity."

"Whatever you said, fine, because things went a lot better" and then he went on and on about how cool his new science teacher was and how he could see one of his Best friends JT Whiffen now and they have PE Together etc. etc. etc.

And with that I was pleased for being the advocate for my child!

So a word to all Don't mess with SweetmamaK's little cubs, cuz she's one grouchy mama bear!

Oh and lets not forget Joely

She's sleeping late and watching cartoons. Yesterday she had breakfast in bed. It's good to be the only child. She does ask where everyone is when she gets up but she's not brooding over them.

I lay awake

I can't sleep- I'm afraid I'll miss the alarm. All week I've been thinking, I know I'm forgetting something, I know I'm forgetting something. But I couldn't remember. We had a busy week. It was meet the teacher on two nights, Quentin had football practice a couple of nights (thank heavens for a storm or it would have been a bunch of nights) and we had a Primary Activity this morning and we were informed on Wednesday that Quentin's opening game would be Saturday also. But I couldn't remember what I was forgetting. Do I havet snacks for Saturday (no) I kept thinking it was the Primary Activity- But really I had nothing to do with it, but show up, Myriam the Saint had planned everything out to a science my contribution was to play the piano (check) and bring the prizes, (ordered form oriental trading and the box was in the van, check) and do the gathering activity (coloring page in the car, crayons and markers in my piano bag- check) UIUH WHAT WAS I MISSING?????

After a fun filled morning at the church ( a fun music carnival) I realized what it was, when I saw the Bishop- Oh yeah, I need to prepare my Sunday School lesson. This is my first week to teach the adults. I prepared the lesson this afternoon and did more reading and more reading and now i'm nervous I'll sleep through church.

So now that its after one am, I am more likely to sleep late, if I ever get to sleep. I have two alarms set.....

pps For those of you keeping score, Quentin's team kicked butt and took names. (they won 43-13) Quentin tackled many a player and sacked the Quaterback two times in a row. He was doing some serious peacocking, when he causes a fumble and revocers it for a touchdown, we may never be able to live with him!

He'll be going to the pro bowl soon enough!

We Celebrated at Chuys. (but really that goes without saying)

waxing nostalgic about the firstborn...

This week the kids were able to meet the teachers and find 0ut what friends they'd be with etc. The first visit was for David- who is going to fifth grade- his teacher was not impressive at all and I had to will myself to not cry. Couple that with David losing all animation and acting as if he had no longer a will to live. I tried to keep it together and find fun things to say, but honestly the teacher acted as if her being there was a huge problem. Her room wasn't even decorated, in fact it was void of any life. How on earth can he expect to learn fifth grade math from her? She didn't even have a class list posted, so we don't know if he has any friends in his class. I was so greatful for an awesome science lab, after viewing it and the live bugs, skulls and skins, he perked up a little bit. I came home and wimpered a little bit and then called my mother in law to see if I could home school him- LOL- He'll do fine, he's a trooper, it's just soo much harder on me when he's the one suffering or experiencing a first.

For instance, when he went to Kindergarten, I walked him in and he sat down right in the middle of the class and started talking, the class previously was silent, then they all started talking. I walked away feeling that I had taught this boy enough and that he would do fine. I didn't shed a tear. Later that week he found out there would be pizza for lunch, so I went in to pay on his lunch account and that's when I lost it. I couldn't imagine him holding his tray or opening his milk. And the ladies in the lunchroom looked at me like I WAS A LUNATIC- and they muttered in spanish (we were in Laredo) and I thought, he'll never make it. I called Robert at work in hysterics and he reminded me that David shares my DNA he'll be ok-

He did fine, and he quickly learned to open his own milk and he never spilled a tray.

When we moved at Christmas time back to the US- I was worried to sick, will he be able to adjust how will he do??? etc. etc. He made friends quickly and his teacher quickly loved him and subsequently every teacher adores teaching him, even if he has a hard time paying attention- they tell me the same thing over and over - he's so sweet and he's so smart, he never acts up etc. etc.

Now he's off to the Fifth grade/ Sixth grade intermediate campus and I need to remember, that he didn't just get by all the other times, he did extremly well. Even though he steadfastly refused to meet his "switch" teachers (his science and language arts teachers) he'll find his class on Monday with his pencil sharpened and ready to go and he'll be fine. His friends may all be in different classes, but he makes friends easily.

He may be counting down the days until Thanksgiving Break, but he'll be fine.

I guess the real question is, "will I be fine?"

Taking a Break...

On Saturday Robert and I were getting the kids ready for a party we were going to. Our friend Alex had graduated from college and got a job all in the same week-so Saturday was a big celebration. Joely was excited all day, she just wanted "to go." But at some point she just gave into her body and crashed on the floor, after making some beautiful body art. We are still searching for the marker.

I was led to ponder, why don't we listen to our body like we did when we were two? If we are so tired that we could just fall asleep anywhere, why don't we catch a few zzzz's? I think in this fast paced day and age, we don't take enough meaningful breaks.

Joely didn't care that she might miss out on her favorite activity, going anywhere, she just knew she had her blanket and a desire to take a nap.

Are we really missing out when we spread ourselves too thin?

"chilling" at Bovay

Here is our Motley Crue

The boys and I had a fun filled three days at Bovay Scout Ranch in "Deep" central Texas. We slept in Tents and were fed cafeteria style. The boys were able to Canoe, do sling shots, pellet guns, archery, swim, make and light off rockets and search for all kinds of creeping creatures. They also rode their bikes all over the place.

There was even a "rodeo" one night. The rodeo had silly games and dancing. We did the cupid shuffle and the cotton eyed joe! David even danced a slow dance with Galadriel. She was the sweetheart of the rodeo!

We camped with two other families from our pack, John Lasseigne and his son Ian and Ricky Koester and his son Travis.

We also had an honorary member of our pack- My good friend Galadriel Hutchings and her son Dylan. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that David found out that Glad (that's what we call her) wasn't really his aunt and Dylan wasn't really his cousin. We've been friends since the boys were two. It was great to spend time with her and with the boys without any other distractions.

In our campground there were two other packs, one pack wasn't real friendly. The other pack was a dad and his son and they were a lot of fun. They blended right in with our little group and we spent a lot of time laughing and goofing off.

My favorite part was letting the boys roam free with flashlights at night and not needing to worry about them.

Here are a few pictures

Waiting in the line for food. We learned real quick that you can show up late and not have to wait in line. The only problem, you may not get the good dessert.

Mining for Gold Nuggets. This was fun, they went in a cave and got to mine. Hard Hats were required.

A rare shot of David consuming mass quanities. David was not a fan of the food choices, so one night we went into "town" Navasota Texas and picked up Dominos for the crew. Dominoes pizza never tasted so good. We had plenty left over for the kids to eat at lunch the next day, too. Playing Pirates on the lake.

I think the boys were trying to board each other's canoe. Quentin rode with Ian and his Dad and Galad had Dylan and David. I was in charge of photography. They kept the groups small as they went from place to place, so they had plenty of opportunities for fun. At the canoes they were able to paddle around the whole hour. Good Times.

Quentin got a little seasick. But he recovered in time to shoot some pellet guns.

We had a great time and I look forward to the next great scouting adventure. I wax a little nostalgic because David will be going to big Scout Camp next year- one that doesn't need parental supervision.... wah wah wah!

Alice and Joely were in the safe hands of Robert. They had a good time with their Daddy all to themselves. We sure missed them though.

One final shot of the camping fun.

Here is David and Dylan, doing David's favorite thing, Climbing. There was also a BMX Track a good time was definatly had by all!

Oh and if you think camping in texas in July is insane, you are right. However we were blessed with cooler weather, especially at night and best of all, no mosquitos buzzing around.

Meet the Texans

On July 21st Quentin got to meet the Texans. I entered he and David in a contest sponsored by Reliant Energy to benefit the Sam Houston Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. The contest was for Reliant to pay for Summer Camp (115.00) and the "consolation" prize was a training day with the Houston Texans. Quentin and his dad had a great time touring the facilities and running some plays with a handful of players and some of the coaches. Sadly Gary Kubiak (an aggie) wasn't there and neither was Mario Williams or Andre Johnson. He did meet Nick Ferguson, Mike Brisiel and Frank Okam and some coaches. Robert, ever the optimist, wondered if these players were mandated by a judge to do community service. The Texan Cheerleaders were there also, but Quentin didn't get their autographs. He did get his hat signed by some of the people there. He was flying high when he came home. His only regret was that he had to miss his first practice with his junior league football team. It was a good thing that Mario Williams wasn't there, or Quentin wouldn't have been able to stand at his locker.

"They even have their own cafeteria"
Sadly the "dinner" Robert and Quentin got was a brown bag from a sub shop, but still it's cool to see that the Texans get to eat.

Just practicing at the training field. Glory lasts forever Quentin, Glory lasts Forever.

Apparently, besides getting paid millions of dollars to play football, you can even get paid to swim. Quentin was very impressed with the aquatic center!

This is the weight room, the media is NEVER allowed in here. I put this picture in to show that some of the scouts wore their uniforms (insert laugh here) Robert wouldn't even wear his pack T-shirt. I don't think it occured to Quentin to wear anything other than his Texans T-shirt.

Quentin now has 5 practices (two and a half hours each practice) under his belt. He's well on his way to becoming a first class lineman. He plans on being a member of the wrking Crew at Texas A&M and then he'll buy his mama a new house when he plays for the Texans. Of course after his mission.

Most of Quentin's teammates have been playing full on tackle since first grade, some since kindergarten. I don't know exactly how to react when he gets his bell rung in practice or when I feel their is unnecessary roughness. I TRY to keep silent and just cheer him on and ignore my inner demon that wants to go hit the kid who hit my kid and well hope and pray I never become a football mom and bejewel myself with t-shirts that say "quentin's mom" etc.

BUT I KNOW IT WILL COME TO THAT!!!! QUENTIN ALREADY SAYS, MOM NEVER DO THAT!

His coaches seem nice enough, I havn't heard them yell and they do give encouragment. Quentin was afraid to miss his Thursday night practice last week when we went to my mom's, he made me get it cleared from his coach. I'm glad that he's showing dedication. His coach gave the OK and laughed when I told him Quentin was afraid he'd get traded.

When things get tough we remind him of the mantra, "Glory lasts Forever"

Having fun with Steff, Molly and Jacob

Do you have an old friend that maybe you hardly ever see or talk to,but when you do it's like no time has passed at all? That's how it is with Steff. I met her 11 years ago this summer. I was the nursing unit secretary at Spring Branch Medical Center and she was the cute doe eyed new graduate nurse. I immediatly dismissed her because she was beautiful, blonde and a had a rock on her finger that Liz Taylor would wear. I assumed she was a moron! I was wrong. She was incredibly smart and super funny. We hit it off real quick. She even invited us over for dinner, and Robert was sooo irritated, he hates to go out with" friends" he doesn't know. But after a few minutes with Pete her super cool husband, even Robert had fun. Pete and Steff are great and fun people! Since then we've both had kids and moved a few times, but they stay in the Katy Area because they have their own business, Equisite floors and rugs of Katy

It is always a joy to see Steff and catch up. Her kids are the ages of Quentin and Alice and they are a load of fun also. Last Monday we all got togethe at their house and played in the pool and ate pizza- It was a day that was awesome for everyone

Isn't the pool awesome? By the end of the day, even Alice was making the leap into the pool from the Rock Wall.

Thanks Steff Jacob and Molly!