Edwards Family

I Am Special

2011-10-10T18:24:00.000-07:00

I Am Special

by Isabelle Edwards

6 Oct 2011

(by assignment for her 2nd grade class)

Are you special? Everybody is special in their own way. Now I am going to tell how I am special. Well I'm special because I say please and thank you and I listen alot at school and home. I am respectful and caring and I love one another because I give cookies to neighbors who are hurt or sick. I also love to be very responsible. I keep the commandments and those are, love one another, read the scriptures, go to church, do not say bad or inappropriate words and I believe in Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. That is how I am special. (I corrected the spelling but the words are hers.)

Summer Chores Experiment

2011-08-03T06:07:00.000-07:00

So, I went into this summer with this idea that if the kids were super busy every day they wouldn't have as much time to fight with eachother or whine about bordeom. Plus, I really don't like the TV/Computer and I could just see them spending the whole summer on one or the other. So I came up with a chore list that requires up to 5 hours/day of work! That's right...5 hours, and no it's not child abuse.

Isabelle and Jack rotated by week with Kitchen, Laundry, and Bathroom duty (Christopher and I did the third). And that includes, mopping the floor on their hands and knees, scrubbing behind the toilet, folding/putting away laundry, switching loads, and starting new ones, cleaning all the dishes after every meal even if it meant they were up till 11pm. Lots of work, plus they each had four other DAILY chores, piano practice, read a chapter book, bedrooms, and lawn/garden chores. The point was to keep them busy, and it worked. However, it also kept me really busy because they are unable to accomplish all of these alone and needed adult assistance, so I had to do all the chores every day at a brutally slow rate (I could've accomplished all of it in 1 hr/day, instead I was doing 8 hours or more helping out all 3 kids). Over all however I think it has worked wonderfully. And lest you think I'm putting the kids to work as slaves, I should mention that they were being paid in Monopoly dollars.

$50 for a good week without too much complaining, $10 for a bad week. And $5 for extra chores (taking out the trash, cleaning the toy room, etc), $2 for helping with meals, $2 for exercising (basketball games, tennis practice, yoga at the Y), and many other ways to earn extra cash. There was however also a list of ways they could loose money. $5 for fighting, $5 for property damage, $2 for whining, $2 for sassiness, etc.

You may be asking yourself, what good is Monopoly money, how does that motivate hard work? There was a third list! One that allowed them to 'spend' their money. $100 bought them a $5 toy at Toys R US, $75 bought them an ice cream date with Mom or Dad, $50 bought them some candy from my secret stash (a combination of candy confiscated after parties and other events and candy that I've gotten doing couponing), $25 got them a $2 book at Half Price Books (my favorite book store). So as summer has gone on, has my system worked? Surprisingly well!

The kids love to spend their money, so the cheapest thing, is the thing I'm happiest to spend my cash on BOOKS! And the thing they want most, requires saving up. Yesterday each of the ninos had enough cash saved to buy both a toy and a book so I decided to brave the stores with all 4 of them (I have an 1 year old that I watch every day and Christopher was taking his GRE). First we hit up Toys R US, it was the best trip to that store I've ever had. Because it was 'their' money they were so careful in choosing just the right thing, they each took a turn and we walked through the aisles until they found just the thing they most wanted. They helped eachother choose by offering opinions like "well, I think you should choose the blue, because I know that's your favorite color." No one begged for anything that was beyond their $5 and everyone came out happy! We ended up with a Zooble for Isabelle, a small doll with three changes of clothes for Eva, and a set of 5 Hot Wheels muscle cars for Jack. It was lovely. On the way out the door I thanked them for being so good in the store and Eva said "That's the most wonderful store, I really love it."

Then we were off to Half Price Books. We had an equally good experience, except that Zoe was ready for a nap and needed a diaper change and therefore, royally cranky. Jack picked up a Magic Tree House for his collection, he's got about 20, Eva bought a cute book called Princesses Are Not Quitters (really cute story about working hard, love it) and Belle bought a Jewel Kingdom book, she's working on the whole collection.

In the end, the kids have been able to spend their money on things they've wanted throughout the summer, they love books, they only buy small inexpensive toys, they're learning the value of hard work, and they don't have time to fight with eachother. Best summer ever!!! What a way to beat the 100+ degree temperatures we've been enduring for the last 33 days.

Summer Piano Recital 2011

2011-07-23T19:16:00.001-07:00

Isabelle started taking Piano in September of 2010 from one of my friends in our ward. She caught on pretty quickly and is doing very well. Jack started in June after school got out, and he, too, is doing well. Karissa decided she wanted them to have the recital experience so they, and two boys from the ward, Bradley (Jack's best friend) and Ethan Farnsworth, who are taking from their mom, had a recital together at church on June 19th.

They each played 3 songs, then Karissa handed out some medals that we'd ordered with their names on them, and we enjoyed punch and cookies. The whole thing took about 15 minutes but it was loads of fun and I really enjoyed seeing them play like this in a 'formal' setting (it was at church).

They are using the Alfred's books, Jack is in 1A, and Isabelle has moved on to 1B. He played Old McDonald from memory, Lost my Parter, and Sailor Jack (of course). She played the Indian Song (from 1A) from memory, I've Been Wishin', and Hayride.

Six Flags

2011-07-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

Isabelle and Jack both earned free tickets to Six Flags for reading 6 hours in January and February. The both read independently, no help from Mom or Dad, and did a great job. Christopher also got a ticket because some of his students participated as well and I got to pay 'kids price' to go with them. So for a whopping $35, all 4 of us enjoyed a day at six flags. Besides the vomiting that started at 4pm and didn't end for a whole week, we had great fun. We think we actually had food poisoning, although we originally thought we'd gotten sick on the rides, that is until Eva got sick too, since she didn't go with us to Six Flags, we knew it wasn't the rides fault. Most of the time we did the rides together, but we split up a few times, there were some the kids wanted to do that adults weren't allowed, one that Jack and Dad did together and one the Belle and Mom did together. We had a great time.

Jack's Basketball

2011-07-23T18:54:00.001-07:00

Jack has played for the Rockets for 2 seasons now. He scored his first basket during a game on June 29th and I cried. Yes, I actually cried a little bit. It was so beautiful. I couldn't understand why everyone else wasn't appreciating the moment as much as me, I mean seriously people, why weren't you all crying too! He has so much fun playing, the hardest part for Christopher and I is not getting so into the game that Jack thinks where yelling at him instead of for him. I hope he stays on the same team for a while, Coach Marcus works really hard to make sure that he is an included part of the team. We love going to his games, they can have as much energy as a Mavs game.

The 4th of July

2011-07-23T18:47:00.000-07:00

On the 4th we decided to go to Joe Pool Lake with the kiddos, Grandma and Grandpa, Aunt Kadi, Uncle Dave and Aunt Dana, and Cage, oh yeah, and we brough Bella and Chief (Dave and Gabe's dogs). We brought a grill and cooked, played in the water, and stayed to enjoy the fireworks show...so did everyone else in Dallas, or so it seemed.

Christopher's Birthday, 32!

2011-07-23T18:46:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Travels in the 4 corners region

2011-07-23T18:34:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the Indian dancing at 4 Corners. We happened upon a yearly event between the tribes of the four states, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It was great fun to watch.

Hiking to Bandera Volcano in Arizona.

Bandera Volcano, a 30 minute hike in Arizona.

Hiking to the Volcano with Grandpa.

The Ice Caves in Arizona. That's a glacier in the middle of Arizona!

Enjoying the rock formations at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado.

More of the Garden of the Gods

Holding up the rocks!

Last Day of School

2011-07-23T18:26:00.001-07:00

I know, I know...I'm 2 months late for the last day of school post. But here goes anyways...

Jack with Mrs. Richardson and Jack with Mommy, on the last day of school. He learned so much from her! I can hardly believe how fast and how well he learned to read. He could only read 5 sight words at the beginning of the year and now reads as well if not better than Isabelle and is testing at the end of 1st grade.

Isabelle with Mia Key and Isabelle with Mommy. Isabelle and Mia have been best friends since Kindergarten. They go through withdrawls if they don't see each other for a few days. Her parents tell me it was torture for her when Belle was out of town at Uncle Dane's wedding for a week. They said they couldn't wait to have Belle back so that Mia would act like herself again. 1st grade was so much fun!

My Artist

2011-05-10T11:35:00.000-07:00

We are so proud of Isabelle. This is the 2nd year in a row that she has had artwork on display at the Mansfield District Elementary Art Show. Here is her piece from this year. I checked her out of school at lunch time to take her down to see all the art and while she was there a journalist for a local magazine, Mansfield Now, took her picture with her artwork for an article about the art show and the artists. I'll be buying the June issue!

The Farmer's Market and Preserving

2011-05-10T11:25:00.001-07:00

I had a great couple of days working with my good friend, Laura, on some food storage! We went down to the Dallas Farmers Market and got some great deals on Tomatoes ($12.50 for 25 lbs, 4=100 lbs of tomatoes) and Strawberries ($5.50/flat, 12=96 lbs of berries), plus $7 for a 50 lb bag of those awesome purple Onions, and we bought all the other supplies we'd need for Salsa. Then we spent the next two days blanching, saucing, freezing, drying, jamming, and everything else you can imagine. Here is the end result of all our hard work. And the best part is that it came out to about $1/item (Bag of frozen berries, jar of Salsa, etc).

Easter 2011

2011-05-10T11:11:00.000-07:00

We spent Easter weekend in Lubbock TX with a bunch of the family. Gabe's birthday was the day after Easter and between that and the fact that he just got an awesome promotion that will move them to Oregon, and Casi was headed to Paris for 8 weeks so we thought we'd make the trip out there to see everyone. We had a great 3 days, it was the perfect break. We swam at the pool at Texas Tech (thanks Aunt Leslie) so everyone was slightly sunburned, we picniced at the park, we stayed up late every night playing games, and we talked a whole lot! Great fun. Here's some pictures from our Easter egg hunt in the park before church.

Eva's First Soccer Team

2011-05-10T11:04:00.000-07:00

The Royals! A friend of ours invited Eva to play on their soccer team this year. She didn't love it and it probably won't be repeated for a few years, but we did have fun watching her. She's so funny about attention. She didn't want to play because she doesn't want people looking at her and she breaks into tears whenever people talk about her even if you are just repeating something cute she said or did earlier. She hates that! Poor dear, she's pretty adorable and I'm afraid I'm the worst culprit because I always want to tell Christopher about the cute things she does and it always happens at dinner and she runs away from the table in tears. Here's her soccer pictures!

Jack's hockey grin!

2011-03-25T18:23:00.000-07:00

His teeth have always been adorable to me, I love the big space in the middle of his two front teeth, but I'll admit, it gets rather old having to explain to people on a daily, yes I get asked at least once every day, basis that 'no, he hasn't lost a tooth he just has a big space.' So I'm not going to lie, I've been waiting for this tooth to fall out for a while and I've been pretty excited about it. The last couple of days it's been hanging on by a thread. When he was headed to bed I checked his tooth like always and it's barely in there. He freaked out thinking I was going to pull it out and hurt him. He got hysterical when Christopher suggested we get out the video camera and film him while we tie a string to his tooth and attach it to a door knob to slam. Amid all his hysterics, I asked him if I could check it again, at which time I pulled the tooth out without him knowing it. He continued to freak out about how much it would hurt him if I pulled it and then I showed him that it was in my hand. Hysterics done. Now we have this adorable grin to see and I don't have to explain away the space anymore, because "Yes, he lost his tooth."

Honk if you see me!

2011-03-23T10:28:00.000-07:00

This is my new ride, so if you live in Arlington, expect to see me out and about in this. Whenever you think to yourself "who is that crazy lady riding around with those kids," it's probably me! Honk if you see me! I'm loving this new way of saving gas money. All errands within a 4 mile radius are now pedaled to! Last week while Christopher was home with the youngest ones napping, I took Isabelle and Jack out. They each rode their scooters (Christmas presents) and I rode the bike, we went to 3 grocery stores (couponing) and returned home, the entire trip was 4 miles. We had loads of fun and the kiddos were troopers. No complaints at all, except on the last street on the way home they agreed with eachother that their legs were tired. Yeah for saving money, being green, and a healthier body!

Spring Break

2011-03-23T07:18:00.000-07:00

As with every year, we spent most of Spring Break working in the yard. Every year we have improved our garden space a little more as well as our landscaping, but this year, I think we finally got it right. When we moved into this house 4 years ago, this space was all grass. A little at a time we've turned it into a more functional and practical garden space as well as the perfect oasis for our family. We've got an out door kitchen on the porch as well as our out door dining room and Christopher got a brand new grill for his early birthday present, The main garden has all of the vegetables and we ran a hose underneath the porch and under the path, it comes up in the middle of the vegetable garden so watering will be much easier. There is an herb garden in my garden boxes (on the right of the picture), and the path looks wonderful, there are also flowers blooming all over the rest of the yard. Christopher works so hard in the yard and I am so glad that it turned out so well. I'm proud of all that he does for our home and family.

Rodeo Day

2011-03-23T07:15:00.000-07:00

Kindergarten had a Rodeo Day to wrap up their Texas unit. The kids got to dress as cowboys and bring and props they wanted (except for toy guns). Jack loves his stick horses so that worked out well. He apparently ropped quite a few stuffed cows during gym class. Uncle Gabe brought out a couple of belt buckles for him to choose from. We couldn't find the right kind of belt, unfourtunately so I had to tape one side of the buckle onto his belt, yes, I am that ghetto.

Snow Day (that turned into a week)

2011-03-23T07:06:00.000-07:00

In Texas we generally get about 1 'snow day' per year, usually it's just ice though, not really snow. However this year our snow day turned into a snow week. Christopher and the kids were out ALL WEEK, starting February 1st, and it was wonderful. We played games and did projects and spent time together and since it was cold and miserable outside we didn't leave the house. On friday, we ventured out in our snow gear to walk the 2 blocks to the nearest Redbox for some movies. And we only had one fall on the trip, Christopher and Eva slipped on some ice and went down together. The only pictures we took were from the first day. The kids woke up and looked out at the snow, they immediately noticed some foot prints that seemed to come from nowhere and go nowhere. They woke us up to show us and we decided to solve the mystery! It became the mystery of the footprints, we went out and measured the footprints and mapped the trail, following it as much as possible and then we let each of the kids come up with a possible solution to who could've left the prints. Each of the kids dressed themselves for the cold weather, as you can see they were rather creative. When they had all submitted their answers Christopher got on the computer with them and 'researched' until they determined the prints to be from a common housecat. It was so much fun!

Crafty!

2011-01-21T06:50:00.000-08:00

This is just to prove that I can be equally adorably crafty as all the rest of you! (Much to my own surprise)

Eva turns 4!

2011-01-21T06:38:00.000-08:00

Each of our kids, on their 4th birthday, got to have 4 friends over for lunch, games, a craft, and cake! Eva had three friends come celebrate the day with her, Ava K, Lola B, and Ally M. Eva's party had a My Little Pony theme. The girls put cutie marks on Rainbow Dash (pin the tail on the donkey), painted ceramic ponies, and licked icing off of cupcakes (I don't know why kids always prefer the icing, myself, I like the cake!)

In the evening Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Kadi, Aunt Dana, Uncle Dave, and Cage come over for spaghetti and presents, and of course CAKE! Eva got 2 of every present which taught Mom that in future I will need to communicate a little better with Grandma :-) Same toy, same coloring books, luckily at the last minute Aunt Kadi switched out the pony she choose, thus getting one Eva didn't have instead of the one she had already gotten that day (unbeknownst to Kadi)

Gingerbread Village

2011-01-21T06:14:00.000-08:00

A work in progress!
It's all in the details

This years creations!

Beautiful Children

2011-01-21T06:07:00.001-08:00

I just like pictures of my beautiful children!

Christmas Tree Hunting

2011-01-21T06:03:00.000-08:00

We like to get our Christmas Tree up the day after Thanksgiving. This year we walked around the corner to a Christmas Tree tent that was set up in a parking lot and since Heather Gavin and her kiddos were with us, they helped us choose the perfect tree. Then, of course, we had to walk home with it! BTW, we were bundled up much more than necessary but it was fun and the kids hadn't gotten to wear any hats or gloves yet so they wanted to.

Halloween Costumes

2010-11-07T18:22:00.000-08:00

Storybook Character Dress-up Day

2010-10-29T05:53:00.001-07:00

The kids are NOT allowed to wear Halloween costumes to school, but conveniently (or inconveniently since I have to do 2 costumes each, every year) Storybook Character Dress-up day always falls on that weekend.
Belle chose Fancy Nancy, who dresses up in jewelry and hairbows and fancy shoes and fancy clothes all the time. Thanks so much to Grandma for the tu-tu. It looks great. This was the prep to get her ready. Rag curlers, ahh...the memories.

Jack chose Jack from the Magic Treehouse, his favorite series, mostly because of the name thing. Not much work for this costume. He wears solid colored t-shirts or hoodies, jeans, tennis shoes, and a back-pack. Oh, and glasses which is the only thing we had to buy for him. Thank you, end of summer sunglass clearance :-)

Pumpkin Patch 2010

2010-10-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed the pumpkin patch with Aunt Angie & wee Forrests on their last day in Texas. GG Sue and Grandma were also there and we all had fun seeing the different kinds of pumpkins and just hanging out. Thanks for coming to visit!!!

Garden Greens

2010-10-27T20:36:00.000-07:00

The first full crop of green bell peppers. 19 here with at least 2 times that many still on the plants.

Texas fun

2010-10-27T20:14:00.001-07:00

The Fort Worth Stockyards

Zoe, Grandma, Eva, Kelli & Ammon, Dana & McCager (in the stroller)

We rode the DART train to the State Fair in Dallas

Hanging with the Eyerlys

When Aunt Kelli and Ammon (Uncle Wade was here too but he didn't join us on our adventures) got into town on Tuesday before McCager's blessing we all decided to head first to the Fort Worth Stockyards and the next day to the State Fair of Texas (in Dallas). We did lots of walking, lots of exploring, lots of tasting, and totally exhausted ourselves. It was so much fun!

Eyerly Family Pictures

2010-10-20T19:31:00.001-07:00

Camping

2010-10-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

We went camping as a family over conference weekend. We had a great time except for 1 thing.

There were HUNDREDS of large orb spiders all over the campground.

We were keeping our distance and trying to ignore them for the most part (not easy for an arachnaphobe) and as soon as dusk started coming on they whole camp ground came alive with them, it was really scary and kind of beautiful.

We stood up from our campfire dinner and counted how many we could see from where we were eating. 42. All visible just from where we were standing.

As soon as dinner was done we went inside the tent and stayed away from the 8-legged campers.

When we got ready for bed we had to make our way to the bathroom so we stood in a line, each person holding onto the shirt of the one in front and Dad leading the way with a big stick to hit the spiders out of the way. We did get some decent pictures, both of the camping trip and of the spiders. So here they are.

Nighttime pics of the creepy-crawlies. I don't know how well you can tell but they were quite large. Each had a body as big as a quarter and when the legs are moving...I get the creeblies even thinking about them. I do not know how I managed to sleep that night.

Kindergarten & First Grade

2010-08-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

First days of school for Jack and Belle! It's hard to believe how big they are. I handled it well for the most part. I'm so excited for all that they will learn and do over the next year! Of course we had to get some pictures of Eva on the first day of school also, despite the fact that she doesn't attend any school.

So proud of my kiddos! They will have a great year!

Even Eva wanted into the action, she woke up to find a backpack full of her favorite things, markers, crayons, colored pencils, chalk, etc.

First Grade!Kindergarten

Roswell!

2010-08-29T14:39:00.000-07:00

We LOVED Alien Zone!

Henderson Cousins

2010-08-29T14:35:00.000-07:00

Cousins, Cousins, Cousins

2010-08-29T14:21:00.001-07:00

After a day playing at the Sprayground

At the Trees of Mystery (Klamath, CA)

Mt. Shasta

2010-08-29T14:17:00.000-07:00

Hiking with the Nix cousins at Mt. Shasta after a day at Siskiyou Lake.

Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada

2010-08-29T14:08:00.000-07:00

Continental Divide

Meteor Crater

Grand Canyon

M&M's World (Las Vegas)

Route 66

2010-08-29T14:01:00.000-07:00

In our travels across America this summer we enjoyed some classic Americana, like the Route 66 Car Museum in Santa Rosa, NM, where we each picked out our favorite car.

And met someone famous!

Zuccumber

2010-06-30T11:25:00.000-07:00

This years garden we planted 3 varietys of tomatoes, 6 green pepper plants, 10 green bean plants, 2 zucchini, and 2 cucumber. I learn something new every time I plant a garden and this years biggest lesson has been that zucchini and cucumber should not be planted next to each other. The result is giant zuccumbers. The largest is 14 inches long as you can see (the blue stick in the middle is a ruler), and they are thick, really thick. We have so far enjoyed 3 rather large meaty slicing tomatoes and are getting ready to enjoy these 3 roma tomatoes as well as the zuccumbers (once we figure out which is which and if they're edible). We also have a really good crop of green bell peppers that should be ready for picking soon.n Yeah for gardens!

Christopher's 31!

2010-06-30T07:49:00.000-07:00

Christopher got Ticket to Ride (german map) for his birthday and then we had a BBQ at the park with 50+ of our closest friends. Great birthday!

A day at the Beach

2010-06-30T07:46:00.001-07:00

The kids love to go out to Joe Pool Lake and spend the day in the sand and water when Christopher is off work. Eva rarely actually gets in the water, mostly just digs in the sand, but the other two love the water!

More Graduation Pictures

2010-06-30T07:41:00.000-07:00

This is Elly Kokenes. Jack's best friend and girlfriend. She likes to dig for bugs, climb in trees, and loves Jack, what more could we ask for? She is in our ward as well as Jack's pre-k class.

Isabelle was sent home on the second to last day of school with a fever and pink-eye so she wasn't allowed to attend her graduation, but these pictures are from Jack's graduation.

Pre-K Graduation

2010-06-30T07:33:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Faustino and Ms. Nash

So proud of my boy!

Baseball/Softball

2010-06-30T07:30:00.000-07:00

More Ladybugs

2010-06-30T07:26:00.000-07:00

Last game of the season

Coach Lori and Coach Toby

Belle really learned first base this year. The last 4 games, she got 6 outs at first. She's amazing!

Frutis of our labor

2010-06-30T07:21:00.000-07:00

So yummy! Mom, Kadi, and I had hit the Dallas Farmers Market and scored on bananas and peaches. Kadi and I made 52 jars of peach preserves (some of them became syrup) and 4 jars of salsa. I love seeing all the jars on the counter at the end of the day and hearing the occasional pop as they seal. Thanks Mom for setting the example for me when I was young so that I would be interested in the canning process. I'm so grateful that I can do this.

Belle's Artwork

2010-06-30T07:17:00.000-07:00

This was submitted by Belle's art teacher for display in the distric Art show at the end of the year. She loved her Ms. Bailey and excelled in art class. Great job Belle!

Ladybugs

2010-04-30T08:50:00.001-07:00

Belle is a Ladybug! We put her in softball this year with all girls, she's having a great time. Several of the girls go to the same school as she does, only one other kindergartener on the team, most are 1st grade, which means she's smaller than the others. It's a great team, they all play soccer together too, so we might have to do that with them in the fall. I really like the coach, she's so professional at coaching these girlies. Belle is choosing to bat left, which means she has a tendency to hit the ball down the first base line, and then she gets out at first 2 out of 3 hits, but she's getting better, hitting harder, more precise. She throws pretty well. So far we're really enjoying the team. One of the moms made matching bows with ladybugs on them for all of the girls so most of them are too pretty to wear their hats. Girls will be girls!

Longhorns

2010-04-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

Jack is a proud Longhorn this year. He has the same coach that Belle had last year and he seems to be enjoying himself. He's one of the biggest kids on the team, like always, but this year it seems to be to his advantage because he's faster and hits harder. He bats left-handed which is weird but whatever, sometimes he throws left-handed too so we need to get him a glove for the other hand. He's a lot better player this year and more focused on the game. I think he has quite the future in front of him with baseball. :-)

First Bike Ride

2010-04-30T08:23:00.000-07:00

Isabelle is an official bike-rider. She had tried a few times without training wheels and wasn't getting the hang of it and it had been about 6 weeks since she'd tried, but we were working in the backyard with the garage open, she looked in and saw her bike, asked if she could ride it, got on and rode! She was just totally ready this time. She's such a cutie doing big kid things.

FIVE

2010-04-30T08:09:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late posting but here are pics from Jack's birthday. He got a basketball hoop from Mom & Dad and basketball cards from his sisters. We're still trying to figure out the right place to put the hoop so he hasn't got to use it much, for now it's laying down on the side of the yard waiting to be weighted down with sand. He had a pretty good party. He's getting so big so fast, sometimes it's hard to believe.

Metallic orange or tropical red?

2010-04-04T06:45:00.000-07:00

So it's only 4 months later than promised but Christopher does have a new car. Well, not a new car exactly but it is new to us, and sooo much better. The Taurus was a good car while it lasted (10 years, 169,700 miles), but it has been dying a slow painful death for some time now. A crack in the windshield that covered half the window, gas gauge broken so you had to use the number of miles to know when it was time to fill up, a smashed door and drivers-side window that doesn't roll down, car cancer (rust), no a/c, paint oxidation, etc, etc, etc. Yesterday was the end of an era.

Since the car was worth nothing as a trade-in we applied for the Clean Air Texas voucher ($3000) and were approved. After much searching and huge headaches and walking out of several dealers who couldn't understand that we were there to buy a car not a payment, we finally managed to locate the perfect car and the perfect dealer. If you ever need to buy a car in DFW, we suggest you head over to Texas Motors Ford on the west side of Fort Worth and speak with the Snell Sales Team (father and son). They were wonderful, not one spec of pressure or haggling. We told them we saw the car online, $$ was the amount we were willing to pay, on x terms, and no extended warranty. Done deal.

The only question that remains is metallic orange or tropical red?

Easter Morning

2010-04-04T06:32:00.001-07:00

Besides the fight over who got to have the egg with the dollar hidden inside and the insuing emotional breakdown by the oldest, the kids really enjoyed Easter morning. We learned all about how Easter eggs are just for fun but the real reason for Easter is "Jesus died and woke up on Easter." (Isabelle). And "before he died he had a feast and he let all the people come." (Jack). "Jesus died. On the cross." (Eva). We've been reading the Old Testament as a family this year and have recently been on the story of Moses so we talked a lot about Passover and Easter. I didn't think about it until it was too late (midnight Easter) but I should have bought a lamb roast instead of ham, in order to have our own Passover feast to reinforce the knowledge they've gained this week. Next year we'll definately do that, if I remember.

Petting Zoo

2010-04-04T06:24:00.000-07:00

Over Spring Break, while Aunt Casi and Uncle Jonathan were visiting we went down to the Fort Worth Stockyards to watch the longhorn cattle drive. While we were there we enjoyed a petting zoo that was set-up on the lawn of one of the buildings. Here are some cute pictures of the kids feeding the animals.

Stop in and stay a while

2010-03-23T07:16:00.001-07:00

We have been so busy with family the last 3 weeks. First we had Grandma staying with us for a few days then Aunt Kadi for a whole week. 3 days after she left Aunt Casi and Uncle Jonathan showed up to spend part of their spring break with us. That was a great 4 days! Then Aunt Lori and Uncle Richard stopped in for a night with 3 of their kids. We've been so busy seeing everyone that the house has been neglected a bit, but we had a GREAT time seeing everyone, playing games, talking, etc. We went kite flying 3 times, checked out the Fort Worth longhorns, did some Yoga, went on a few walks, ate great, and played games until we were sick of them, watched movies, even enjoyed some snow. So much fun, you are all welcome to come back any time you like, and if anyone else wants to stop in, there is always room!

Tree down

2010-03-08T12:42:00.000-08:00

This is the remains of our beautiful tree. You can see where we lost the big branch, the rest of the tree was weighted all towards the back and would have taken out some power lines if we waited for it to come down on it's own, so Christopher called a friend and the two of them hacked up our tree. It makes me feel like a tree-murderer. Christopher thinks it will sprout new life, but I don't believe it. With the shade of the beautiful tree, I used to sit outside and pretend that since I couldn't see my neighbors they didn't exist, now all I see are houses and powerlines. Yuck. On the bright side, my garden will be getting more sun this year!

Kite flying with Grandma

2010-03-08T12:28:00.000-08:00

While sitting at the park with Jack, Grandma noticed some folks out in the baseball field flying kites and thought it had been a while since she'd flown one. She marched the little man right over to Walmart to pick out a couple good ones, one for him and one for each sister. He choose a beautiful Transformer kite for himself, Ariel for Eva, and Barbie for Isabelle. Friday when he got home from school we packed a picnic lunch, checked Isabelle out of school for the afternoon, and headed to the park. Here are some pictures of the kite flying and the picnic. The kids all had a blast, Eva was such a natural at the kite flying, she seemed to know when to pull the string tighter and when to let it out some, without any assistance. Thanks Grandma!

Jack and Grandma

2010-03-08T12:15:00.000-08:00

Jack has been having a hard time, I don't know if it's middle child syndrome or what. He just has a breakdown on a daily basis. His Primary teacher doesn't know what to do with him. At school he has a behavior sheet sent home each day on his folder that has either a sticker to indicate a good day or a note to indicate something less than a good day. Usually his sheet is covered in stickers by the end of the six weeks, but the last one was riddled with notes. They usually say what he was doing that was wrong like 'talking to much' or 'not following directions.' I knew he was having trouble last week when his note said simply 'I'll call you'. His teacher explained to me how his behavior has changed and she wanted us to know that she's doing all she can to help him. Well, one of the things he says regularly when he's having a fit is "I want Grandma" or "fine, then I'll go live at Grandma's." One time he was arguing with Christopher over something trivial and he finally got so mad he proclaimed his intention of walking to Grandma's to which Christopher replied "have a nice trip." Jack pondered for a moment then said calmly "Dad, I need a map and my emergency backpack." I laughed so hard at his sincerity. So I finally broke down and called Mom and begged her to come stay for a few days and give Jack whatever extra love it is that he is needing. She was all too willing, she showed up on Thursday and stayed through Sunday. We had a wonderful visit, Jack took Grandma to the park to feed the ducks, they went to Walmart together, she sat by him at meals, she cuddled him while he watched to TV, she sang to him at bedtime. I guess sometimes a boy just needs his Grandma!

Snowmageddon--Dallas

2010-02-12T06:30:00.000-08:00

I was talking with my sister-in-law in DC a couple of days ago and she referred to the weeks weather as snowmageddon. I thought it was clever but never would have guessed Dallas would experience the same thing the next day. At least in DC they are used to snow and big storms. This is DALLAS! Here are some pictures from the last two days.

Thursday morning we got up to this gorgeous snow and thought how beautiful it was. At 3am there was nothing, by 7am, this was the view. The kids still had school and loved the chance to get all bundled up for it. Well it snowed all day! Seriously, it was 24 hours of big, fat, wet flakes, each with as much water as possible without turning into rain.

By mid afternoon we had 5 inches on the back porch and it was still falling. I know you can't really tell from the picture but Jack is measuring with a blue ruler, full 5 inches. The important part of this picture is that you look around the deck and take note, especially of the big tree in the background.

This is 8am Friday morning. Christopher and I both heard the noise during the night but assumed it was just snow falling off the roof or some icecicles or something minor. Obviously it wasn't, and boy am I glad that we didn't spend the time and money putting the tree house in this tree. I measured this morning in the front yard 9 inches, much of the city is under a foot of snow.

Adoption updates

2010-01-14T13:15:00.000-08:00

We now have a seperate blog completely dedicated to our adoption. If you know anyone who would like to learn about us please direct them to christopherandrobinadopt.blogspot.com. Check us out and see what you think! Don't forget to tell your friends about us.

Eva is 3!!!

2010-01-08T07:53:00.000-08:00

Tons of art supplies for our little girl this year. She got 15 coloring books in all, no two the same! She also got crayons, chalk, coloring pencils, paints, markers, etc. It will all go wonderfully with the easel she got from Santa Claus! She had a strawberry cake with pink icing and pink sprinkles. Such a happy birthday!

Christmas Morning

2010-01-08T07:32:00.000-08:00

Eva enjoying the presents

Best gift of the day, she carried this cat around like it was real

Plenty of joy

New hat, new PJ's, new chair, happy girl

Guns that light up!

Reading material

Awesome waffle maker

Man jewelry

Transformers, is there anything cooler?

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve Pajamas

2010-01-08T07:06:00.001-08:00

Another Eyerly family tradition is to open one present on Christmas Eve, not just any present, a specific present brought by Santa's elves. Everybody gets the same gift and usually it's something that can be used that night. This year everyone received a holiday mug to use for hot cocoa before bed and our kids also received new pajamas. Here they are!

Christmas Singing

2010-01-08T06:51:00.000-08:00

In the Eyerly family there is a nightly December tradition of singing Christmas carols as a candle burns down. We start with the youngest member of the group and once everyone has had a turn anyone can just yell out a song. The rules are 1) stop singing when the candle has lost all light 2) no 12 days of Christmas until the flame is almost out 3) Mom sings 'O Holy Night' when it's done. That's it, otherwise anything goes, including songs that no one knows more than a line or two of.

As we were spending the Christmas holidays with the Eyerly family we got to participate in this family tradition. We were joined at Mom and Dad's house by Wade & Kelli, David & Dana, Casi & Jonathan, and Dane (plus Mom & Dad, and Kadi). It was a full house but lots of fun. On Christmas Eve Wade and Kelli left to fly to Utah but we were joined by Dan and Kat Herring and Aunt Kerry.

We had such a blast. The kids loved getting to pick songs and trying to learn all the words. They also loved seeing so many aunts and uncles in one place. What a treat!
Since my pictures include most of the Eyerly side of the family, I'll post them on that blog.

Adoption!

2009-12-24T11:04:00.000-08:00

So...several weeks ago Christopher felt the distinct impression that we should apply to LDS family services for a new baby, without any prompting from me. When he told me about his feelings I was thrilled, to say the least, and we've been working on the process ever since. Right now we are working on getting our Home Study done, but Christopher says we should tell everyone so that they can start helping us look for a baby! If you are reading this, than you are our loved ones and we are asking you to help us out. If you know an unwed young woman who is pregnant and making decisions about her baby, please tell her about our family, (leave out our last name). We don't have a profile at www.itsaboutlove.org yet, but we will soon. Please keep us in your prayers as we work our way through this process.

Much love,
Christopher and Robin
Isabelle, Jack, and Eva

SNOW IN DALLAS!!!

2009-12-02T09:09:00.001-08:00

You'll never believe it without a picture so here it is. This morning I put Belle and Jack on the bus in a chilly rain, that's what the weather man said, so no surprise there. At 8:30 Eva came running in to me to tell me it was snowing, I thought maybe it was a little slushie outside, or she could see a flake or two out the window. I got up and looked and then sent Eva out to get a picture of her in it. It was completely melted by 10am but it was here and I have proof!

Christmas Spirit

2009-12-02T09:00:00.000-08:00

We decided that we just couldn't wait until Monday to get a tree so we went out within an hour of being home in Dallas on Saturday.

Picked a cute little tree from a neighborhood tree lot.

We made the poor kids wait until Sunday afternoon to decorate it for our Sunday familiy activity. Which was very hard on them. Looks fabulous! And really helped all of us get into the Christmas Spirit! We already have a little pile of presents underneath, thanks to the Nixes and Black Friday.

KC Friends

2009-12-02T08:52:00.001-08:00

We had a chance to hang out with most of the friends from Kansas City that matter to us. We went to church in Riverview Ward and were joyfully greeted by friends we've truly missed. We had dinner with the Munger's and LaPlants, the girls had so much fun re-getting to know one another.

We spent Monday evening with the Gavin's, Woodwards, and Twente's. I also got to see my good friend Mary Anne, who I met 9 years ago in the Philippines and who now lives in our old ward! So good to see her and her family.

KC family

2009-12-02T08:44:00.000-08:00

We had a blast spending Thanksgiving week in Kansas City. We stayed at Christopher's brother's house. Paul and Lucie were great, we loved seeing the kids. Eva and Ensley were quite the pair, it was fun to see them become friends. Arizona is an adorable little baby who I had a blast holding as often as possible. Jack, too, loved her. I had no idea he was a baby fan. I asked him why he liked her (he always called her 'it') and he said "well, I like this one because it smiled at me so it's my friend. I like to hold it."

Christopher and Paul spent a good portion of the week on the Xbox. Ensley and Eva ran around in circles screaming (happy screams) the whole week. We spent Thanksgiving day at Lucie's parents house, took the kids to the plaza lighting. And Lucie and I went Black Friday shopping at midnight! So much fun!

10 years ago!

2009-12-02T08:39:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I graduated high school 10 years ago, and yet, so it is. The reunion was not exactly what I thought it would be but we had fun anyhow. I talked with a dozen people at least who I never spoke one word to in school. I also got to catch up with a few friends and see where they are now. Just like in school, I pretty much just spent the time with Heather, we're still friends after all these years, 14 to be exact. Crazy! For all of you who've wanted to see pictures of my curly hair. Here they are!

HALLOWEEN

2009-11-03T07:46:00.000-08:00

I'm stirring and stirring and stirring my brew. Ooohhh, oooohhh. I'm stirring and stirring and stirring my brew. Ooohhh, ooohhh. Tip toe, tip toe, tip toe, BOO! Three witches haunted our house on Halloween (and the night before at the Trunk-or-Treat). We had a pink witch, an orange witch, and a purple witch. I wish this picture showed the costumes better. Isabelle has on bright pink tights and a pink belt and Eva has on orange and black stripped leggings and they both have awesome dresses and capes (that I made myself).

Daddy and Jack decided not to join with the theme and opted instead to dress as a fireman and a soccer player (he's been looking for a reason to wear this jersey since he got home from his mission). We all had fun and brought home loads of treats. Happy Halloween!

Storybook Character Dress-up Day

2009-11-03T07:34:00.000-08:00

No Halloween costumes were allowed at school but on Friday (Oct. 30th) the kids were allowed to dress-up as a favorite storybook character (had to be a book first if it was also a movie). And they had to bring the book with them to school.

Jack decided to be Max from the Max and Tiny books. He looked fabulous despite the fact that he has too much hair to make it all stand up straight.

Isabelle has been reading the American Girls books and picked Kit Kittredge to dress as. She, too, looked fabulous. And we didn't have to buy anything!

Belle's 6th Birthday

2009-11-03T07:02:00.000-08:00

Belle had an awesome birthday whose celebrations spanned almost 10 days! To start with, on Friday Oct 23rd she had a GNO (Girls' Night Out) with 3 friends. Allison Greenwood, from her primary class, Kacie Padovich, a long time friend, and Kailey Choi, who is in Belle's class at school and lives on our street. Dad took Jack to the YMCA so that it was just us girls at home, we had cheese pizza, Belle's favorite, and some cupcakes while we watched the Hannah Montana movie, also Belle's favorite. The girls all had a blast and when the movie finished they taught each other cool dance moves and did cartwheels 'til they were dizzy. This was the simplest and best birthday party ever. Unfourtunately I forgot to take pictures of the event. Oops!

The following Wednesday, her class celebrated her birthday (the teacher was scheduled to miss the actual birthday so they did it early) and she received a book from Ms. Conine. Then on Thursday (29th, actual birthday) Jack, Eva and I had lunch with her at school and brought her a bouquet of flowers, she got to be on the announcements with the principal in the morning, she wore a birthday hat all day, and she had an overall fantastic day. Her friend Kacie came over to give her a present (Miley Cyrus t-shirt) in the evening and we opened all her gifts. Jewelry was the theme, and Christopher and I gave her a new jewerly box to keep it all in.

The best gift was a locket with pictures of Christopher and I that she loves (we watched A Little Princess recently and she fell in love with the idea of the locket which went perfectly with our theme for her birthday very conveniently). She says her locket holds hugs and every time she needs a hug she can just hug the locket and know that it's really a hug from us. After presents we went to CiCi's for some pizza, and since it's a buffet and they have dessert we put off cake until Sunday.

Sunday my cousins Daniel and Kat Herring came over for dinner and brought yet another present, Tinkerbell. Then we all enjoyed some Angel Food Cake with whipped cream and strawberries. Isabelle's not a big fan of icing on cakes so I was more than thrilled to introduce her to my favorie birthday treat. And it was yummy!

More Pumpkin Fun!

2009-10-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

For Playgroup today we went to a pumpkin patch and had a blast with all of our friends. I am really starting to enjoy time with just me and Eva but I always feel bad that Belle and Jack have to miss out on stuff. Belle almost cried when we drove past the pumpkin patch after school and she asked if we could go, I told her that Eva and I had gone early today and it almost broke her heart that we had done something so fun without her. However, I did have a lovely time with Eva as evidenced by these super cute pumpkin pictures. We walked around and enjoyed all the pumpkins for a little while and then decorated the ones we had bought with some awesome jack-o-lantern sticker kits. Oh, and I absolutely love Eva's leggings. They were $1 at Target and I couldn't pass them up. This was the perfect occasion to wear them, she just blends in with the surroundings. If I must say so myself, she's pretty adorable.

Getting Ready to 'BOO!'

2009-10-16T17:56:00.000-07:00

Christopher accidentally left his laptop at work (I hope it's still there in the morning) and he came home a little early so we took advantage of the chance to do some of our Halloween preparations. We started out with a couple of large pumpkins to carve and ate some candy corn while we did it. Christopher always has wonderful pumpkins and I always feel the lack of creativity and ability on my part so for the first time we purchased a little kit with tiny little detail knives and about 15 patterns (so that's how people make those fabulous pumpkins you see).

The girls set to work on a ghost that says boo in his middle and the boys cut out a skull. Neither group knew what the other was making (except for maybe Jack who couldn't help but look at ours as often as possible). Then we took them to the front porch, lit them up, and admired eachothers hard work. I'm rather proud actually, I think they both turned out spectacular (for the first time ever).

But our family night of Halloween fun did not end there. We had been recently Boo'd (doorbell ditched with a bucket of Halloween candy). It's going around our neighborhood. Everyone is supposed to post the sign that comes with their goodies on their front door showing that they've been Boo'd and then do it to two neighbors who haven't been Boo'd. So we packed up two ghost buckets full of goodies and the girls and I watched from the window while Christohper, all dressed in black, took Jack (all dressed in black) on his first ever doorbell ditch. Jack believes that the girl across the street is in his class, even though I have been unable to confirm whether or not it's true, but I'm sure she goes to their school nonetheless, so that's who he chose for his trip. Isabelle also chose a girl from her class who lives down the block from us but unfortunately we aren't exactly sure which house she lives in (it's around a corner) so we are spying for her car and we'll probably get to do her in the next few days. Isabelle doesn't understand why she can't just stand on the porch and hand the candy to her friend so she'll know who it's from. We had to explain several times that the point is we don't want them to know who it's from. When she found out that she's supposed to be a ghost and she'll get to act like one, she liked the idea a lot better. She is, after all, quite the actrice. My little ghosts are so adorable :-)

What a night! The kids are having a blast and it's great to get the full attention of Daddy for a few hours.

Toothless Grin

2009-10-15T09:12:00.000-07:00

So after 4 teeth I finally took some pictures. Yes that is Isabelle with a giant whole in the front of her face. Normally there a shining white teeth there but for now she'll have to do without. I have no idea how she'll even be able to eat but I guess it's all part of the Lord's plan so I'm sure she'll figure something out. Anyhow, here's my toothless girl!

It's amazing how this whole tooth thing works, really, it's almost like magic. Every time a tooth falls (or gets yanked) out Isabelle finds $1 under her pillow the following morning in place of the tooth she deposited there. She also finds a nice little note from a beautiful little fairy claiming to be responsible for the collection of her teeth. She loves it!

First Bus Ride

2009-09-15T16:02:00.000-07:00

So, the first day of school we waited for the bus, and waited, and waited. It didn't show up and it was getting late so I drove them to school. But by the second day things were a little smoother so they got to ride the bus and loved it. I don't know what it is about a bus that is so appealing to little ones. Anyhow, the first week, they loaded up onto the bus and then Eva and I got in the car and would be at the school waiting for them when the bus arrived to let them off. Then I could walk them to breakfast and to their classes and make sure everyone knew where to go. They did great and got the hang of it really quick. Now Eva gets to sleep in and I just say good-bye at the end of the street! So here they are waiting for the bus (the second day) and climbing on. I can't believe I am old enough to have kids that ride a bus.

First Day of School!

2009-09-15T15:59:00.001-07:00

Eva wanted a picture too!

Isabelle, ready for Kindergarten!

Jack is headed to Pre-k!

Belle and Jack are at the same school, although Jack is just 1/2 day. They love riding the bus together and they get to eat breakfast at school, which is Jack's favorite part.

Belle's haircut

2009-09-15T15:48:00.000-07:00

Isabelle had a big haircut two days before school started. She wanted to go short so we did!

It was so pretty long but it's a lot easier and looks cleaner most the time, being short.

Garden Goodies

2009-07-03T06:24:00.000-07:00

We are starting to enjoy the fruits of our labor, although the amount you pay in soil, plants, tools, etc hardly makes it worth it. Growing your own food is definately not cheaper than buying it at the store, but it is fun and the kids are learning from our efforts. Here are some pictures of our potato crop. Something about growing it yourself makes it taste SOOO much better. These were turned into three days worth of fabulous mashed potatoes.

Stitches

2009-07-03T06:09:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I never posted about Eva's stitches. She was jumping off the wall at the pool during her swim lesson, when she turned half way out and landed fast first against the wall. Her upper front teeth went through her lip. She got 9 stitches and a face full of gross for a week but it healed amazingly fast and she is completely back to normal.

Baseball

2009-07-03T05:56:00.000-07:00

Pictures will follow but for now I'll just tell you about it. Both Isabelle and Jack are on baseball teams (t-ball) this summer. Isabelle plays for the Rangers and Jack for the Red Sox. Isabelle practices twice per week and Jack only once. We are having a blast.

After the first practice we went out and bought batting helments, bats, cleats, baseball pants and socks, etc. Christopher wanted Isabelle to be the princess of baseball since she's the only girl so she got cleats that were puffpainted pink (pink ones at the store are expensive), a pink helment, a pink bat, a pink glove, etc. Everything is pink. Her teammates all have a crush on her which is really cute, they all want to stand next to her, do what she does, wait for her to take a turn, etc. She is learning fast and doing pretty well in the outfield she plays left-center or first base, she is still working on batting from a tee.

Jack's team is hilarious to watch, oh what a difference a year makes, the 4 year olds don't even understand the game yet. Jack is playing 1st base, he does pretty well chasing the balls that get thrown to him. There were as many parents as kids on the field, each standing behind a kid (not necessarily their own) trying to guide them about when to play and when to stand still. He bats pretty well though. He hits straight and clear, he just needs to put some more muscle into it and he'll be a fabulous hitter.

Between those three practices each week and Christophers softball games we are pretty busy. We are having a blast. Since Christopher is out of school baseball seems to be the biggest thing in our lives right now. Games start the week of the 13th. Wish them luck and I promise to post some pictures of the games. Maybe Eva and I should find teams to play on?

E-grits??

2009-07-03T05:53:00.000-07:00

We had grits for breakfast a few mornings ago and Jack kept calling them e-grits which we thought was funny but didn't understand. Did he think they were electronic grits? We often ask the kids where different foods come from and what categories they are in (food pyramid). When we got to the grits on our list of breakfast foods Jack answered quickly and firmly, they come from Egrets. Aah, the answer to our question.

Race Day

2009-05-27T18:59:00.000-07:00

On May 8th, 2009 Isabelle and I, along with my Mom and sister, Kadi, walked the Susen G. Komen Race for the Cure in Tyler Texas. 5k is longer than you think! I am so proud of Isabelle. She did her first 5k at 5 years old! That's fantastic! Hopefully it won't be her last. We've always seen her athleticism, especially when it comes to distance and endurance. She can out run any of the others her age and many older. Race day was beautiful. The four of us had bought matching shorts so that we could be a 'team'. Isabelle's little toushie in those running shorts was adorable. We walked pretty well the first mile. The second one was a struggle, Belle wanted to stop a lot. We ran a few times to distract ourselves. After the 2 mile marker I decided to see if I could run the last mile, I'd been working up to a 1 mile run at the gym, so I left Belle with Mom and Kadi and took off on my own. I ran most of it, walked on a couple hills. I timed in at 51 minutes, then walked back to the others at 1 hr. and 4 minutes. I know 17 minute miles aren't that great, but considering I walked two of them and ran only 1, it was a good time. I'm pretty proud of myself. It was a lot of fun and I'm way glad that I was able to share it with Mom and Kadi, but especially Isabelle. It was an awesome Mother's day gift. I'm sure we will do plenty more.

Cowboy Jack turns 4

2009-04-12T13:04:00.001-07:00

Cowboy Jack celebrated his 4th birthday with a round-up. He had 3 friends come over, all cowboyed out. They rode (stick) horses and rounded up the cattle that broke out of pasture (popsicle sticks with cow photos taped on, stuck all over the back yard). Then they stamped their names on leather arm straps and enjoyed a cowboy cake.

4 trips to the doctor in 1 day!

2009-03-26T16:43:00.000-07:00

Busy day yesterday. Eva had been throwing up all weekend but seemed better on Monday so I didn't take her in but when she started throwing up again on Tuesday I called the doc. and got a Wednesday morning appointment.

Tuesday afternoon on my way in to my radiation treatment I biffed it big time in the parking lot but besides being a very humbling experience (nothing like a grown adult sprawled out half way across a road bleeding from 5 differenct places) it was also rather painful. I decided to just deal with it. Well by evening I was in a deal of pain and was able to pinpoint better what hurt most. It was my wrist and one of my knees. So I needed an x-ray of my hand. In all the plethera of doctors I have on speed dial I don't happen to have a family practice doc. and the urgent care clinics won't take Medicaid so I was told to find an ER. I thought it would be better to do in the middle of the day rather than middle of the night because no normal people go to ER's, they go to thier regular doctor if at all possible, so I thought it would be less busy. Wendesday noonish I head in for an x-ray (fractured wrist).

Then I have to head in for my daily radiation treatment which I was expecting but was just one more doctor to see in an already to-may-doctors day. At least I didn't hit gravel this time.

While Eva was waiting to be seen at the pediatricians Christopher texts me to say that Belle has a rash at school. I figure it's no big deal, it's not like they kicked her out of class and she needs to come home. Noonish while I'm waiting on x-ray he says shes itchy now too. I suggest he run to Walmart for some Benedryl. She was on an anti-biotic for a UTI and they said if she got itchy to give Benedryl. Still I think it's no big deal. I come home from radiation at 5:10, just after the pediatricians office has closed and Belle is sitting on the couch covered from head to toe, I mean scalp to toe-nails in pink polka dots. They were growing so fast that they were beginning to blur together into one large itchy mass. Downtown we go to Cook Children's ER/Urgent Care. She was reacting to the anti-biotic, big time. Next time, Christopher knows not to say 'she has a little rash but rather 'our daughter is so covered in itchy spots that she needs to see a doctor pronto' so that I'll take it seriously.

Busy day. Glad it's over.

We Blog!

2009-03-08T15:13:00.000-07:00

After years of holding back we have finally decided to Blog! So here is our first attempt. We were enjoying a nice Sunday dinner in the backyard today (I love 80 degree weather in March) so I decided to take some pictures. We have been working really hard the last week to get our yard the way we've always wanted it to be. We have planted, weeded, moved, chopped, trimmed, fed, etc. all week long. Yesterday, Christopher got up in the tree with a brand new chain saw and went to work thinning it out a little and taking it out of the neighbors electrical wires. A friend encouraged him to try it without requesting the power company turn off those wires. I asked what he (the friend) would do if I lost my husband on the off chance that no harm happened (husband, chainsaw, tree, powerlines, not a good mix). He offered his 21 year-old son who is currently serving a mission as a replacement. Luckily Christopher is safe and Andrew is off the hook. The yard looks great! The sandbox is ready for play. We've got a big new rectangular patio table that actually seats all of us, as opposed to the small round one that didn't. Some of the plants are in the ground, others will be planted soon. We've started the lettuce, broccoli, lavender, chives, basil, and cilantro. We started our garlic in december. We also have a plethera of blooms from daffodil, lily, tulip, croccus, and muscari. We are so excited for spring!