Baby Fertilizer

Last night before we ate I told the boys to go wash their hands as they had been playing outside and were on the verge of what one would consider filthy. I emphasized the WASH WITH SOAP because they like to forget that step. Well, Chi-Chi dutifully fulfilled his obligation. Dew, who is every essence of the word defiant, decided to take a short-cut and went straight for the hand sanitizer instead of the sink. Chi-Chi immediately "told" on Dew because he had obediently followed directions and his brother did not, so someone needed to know about it. This is what he said, "MMMMOOOOOMMMM, Dew didn't wash his hands with soap! He used the baby fertilizer!" Chi-Chi was not happy!

I, of course, stopped dead in my tracks....then I realized he meant to say hand sanitizer. For someone who has spent 5 out of the last 8 years of marriage pregnant, baby fertilizer are two words I don't want or need to hear! So I responded, "Chi-Chi, did you mean to say hand sanitizer? Because we don't need any more of that baby fertilizer around here!"

It of course went over his head......

Breathing a sigh of relief-
S

My Little Q-T

Mom, what ya doin'?

What are you holding in front of your face? Enough with the camera already!

ARGH....spots! I see nothing but yellow spots floating in the air!

Whew! I am starting to regain focus......please, please, PLEASE no more pictures.....I'm begging you....you're always snapping that thing in my face!

Sorry Q-T! It's those cheeks!!!!! I just can't get enough of those cheeks! Love kissing them, 'nuggling them, and squeezing them.

I'm addicted to those cheeks!

S

What are these things?

We had the most beautiful day the last Thursday. After a day at school, we pulled in the driveway, unloaded ourselves from the car and spent the evening outside. Only coming in to eat supper about 7:00. That's the beauty of having a husband who does the cooking.....one can sit back, relax, and have absolutely no worries. (He also does the grocery shopping. Not because he enjoys it.....but because I spend too much money when I do the shopping, or so I have been told. Hey, I don't mind. It's one less thing I have to do. But that's a whole other blog.)

As we were basking in the sunshine, clear blue sky, and perfect temperature, I looked up and noticed that the leaves had popped out overnight. We have two beautiful trees that completely shade our front yard. Last summer, there were several branches that swooped down and touched the ground. However, my two rough-housers would swing on them like they were Tarzan, so we trimmed up the swooping branches....much to my dismay. We are already the noisiest people on the block....(with 4 kids that honor automatically goes to you whether you want it or not) and the last thing our neighbors need to hear is the Tarzan yell and see Chi-Chi swinging from branch to branch in his underwear. After such a long, cold, and merciless winter, this was a sight for sore eyes!

These little purple guys were blooming in full force.

The kids had a blast!!!! We put off homework and enjoyed family time.....come to think of it....the boys weren't yelling at each other....no name calling.....just good, old fashioned fun.

Dew shot some hoops.

Chi-Chi ran around with his shirt off showing the neighborhood his muscles. Doesn't he look like that cat that just swallowed the canary?

The Law buckled and unbuckled her baby dollies in the buggy. She did this at least a million times....and enjoyed every minute of it. I know. Cheap entertainment.


Dew zipped around on his scooter. Boy, the kid can fly on that thing! (I tried experimenting with some text on the pictures. As you can tell, my experiment failed as you are unable to read it....so just pretend as though you don't even see it.)

Lovin' Spring!

S

Easter in the Country

A couple of weeks ago my family went to Oma and Brupa's for Easter. It was a nice day away....and Oma has a way of making everything.........perfect. There was yummy food as far as the eye could see........and of course I ate more than my fair share.......and of course I shouldn't have. Just walk away! Ignore the temptation! Have I mentioned that I have absolutely no self discipline?!

There was a main course before the main course. (Notice the look on Ro's face. He absolutely hates having his picture taken. Hates it with a passion!)

No one could keep their hands out of the food. Although, I don't think anyone tried very hard.

Oma's house looks like it slipped off the pages of Martha Stewart's magazine.

The kids even have their own little table.....set with love and little sweet treats.

Everything in its place. Everything matches. Well, at least until we arrive on the scene. Such a far cry from my house. Notice I am not posting any pictures of my house for comparison. I don't think I could tell you the last time it was "Martha Stewartized".

Nope. Not my house. Still Oma's.

Brupa always finds time for his granddaughters. Look at him breathing in Q-T. He adores all of his grand kids.....but there's something extra special about the Macster, Law and Q-T.

Chi- Chi was just itching to go outside from the moment we arrived. He could be outside 24/7....and it doesn't matter what the weather is like. Just as long as he is outside.

Oma put the Easter Bunny to shame. The boys' birthdays fell right before and after Easter so we had a small celebration while we were there. One of the biggest hits were these little note pads and a pen that has Brupa's name on it. It quickly became one of Chi-Chi's most treasured possessions......he goes crazy over anything that has to do with Brupa.

The other hit was these balloon rockets. They played with those things all afternoon! After each "launch" they would race into the house and give us all a play by play of where and how far the balloon went. (One balloon went a whole 15 cm according to Chi-Chi. It actually went further.....he just has no concept of measurement.) And no play by play would be complete without sound effects. What is it with boys having to reenact absolutely EVERYTHING????? Anyone have the answer to that??? Please fill me in if you do.

Our day ended with singing Happy Birthday to the boys and of course more food. We all had a wonderful time. Especially the boys.

I think if they could, they would move in Oma and Brupa in a heartbeat. Oma and Dew would spend their days creating recipes and making cooking shows, and Chi-Chi would spend his days in his Carharts working side by side with his Brupa and cruising the country side in the pickup.

All my love-

S

My Creative Side

I am not a creative person.....I do not possess one, single ounce of creativity. I envy people who can think of something and effortlessly, or seemingly so, make it come to life. Well, here is my version. These are little Easter buckets I made for my kids and my niece and nephew.

The buckets came from the $1 section at Target....my favorite store! There were girly girl ones with little bows and plain ones for the boys.

I ordered little embellishments from Uppercase Living for about $2 each and everything started to come together.

I am still a far cry from Martha Stewart.....but it's a start! One day, maybe one day, I will be there.

S

Uncle Benny, You so CRAAAZY!

Uncle Benny is just about the greatest guy to walk the Earth. (He, too, just oozes kindness. Must be where Chi-Chi gets it.)
At least in Chi-Chi's eyes. And whenever Uncle Benny is around, Chi-Chi just can't get enough of him. Notice poor Uncle Benny had a broken arm at the time this picture was taken.......he had an unfortunate incident with a 4-wheeler.

While that picture was taken months ago......these were taken just this week. Uncle Benny is still a boy at heart. Look at his 6'5" frame on this little machine.

He and his family are moving out to the country in a few, short weeks. (Please don't go....We don't want you to move away....We will miss you guys tremendously!) They found this little 4-wheeler for their kiddos and soon they will have all the wide open space they could dream of to zip around on this thing.

But for the time being.....this is his toy. There are tons of things wrong with this whole scenario.....first of all....he is just outright too big.....and secondly.....no helmet. I kept waiting for something to go wrong.... ....especially when he did this....

"BE CAREFUL, UNCLE BENNY! BE CAREFUL! THAT'S DANGEROUS!"

Uncle Benny, you so CRAAAZY!

Finally!

While Dew had started his birthday countdown months ago.....in fact, he started it right after Christmas, Chi-Chi has been waiting to turn 5 for years! And today, his dream finally came true. Chi-Chi turned 5!


Look at that face. It gets me every time. Can't you see the kindness just oozing from his eyes? This kid has the biggest heart I know. He is always putting the well being of others before his own. Chi-Chi would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it and he make friends where ever he goes. (We had Kool-aid last night with our supper...if you look carefully you can see traces of a red mustache around the corners of his mouth.)

It has been so hard for him to stand on the side-lines and watch his older brother go off to Kindergarten, then 1st grade, and be involved in activities that he has been too young for. His day is finally coming. Chi-Chi will officially start Kindergarten in August and he can hardly wait.

Today Chi-Chi, "The Law" and I went to the opening day of our children's zoo to do something special for his big day. We called some friends and they met us there which made it even more special.

Posing with the Bald Eagle at the zoo entrance. Trying to look as tough as a 5 year old can.

The train the biggest attraction at the zoo for my kids. They are such train freaks! I think we have purchased enough tickets over the years to have our very own train. We made sure we went for a train ride...."The Law" loved screaming in the tunnel It's a zoo tradition to scream at the top of your lungs as you zip through the tunnel...but because he is a "tough guy", Chi- Chi never screams...never...not even a peep. We finally made it inside the zoo.

He was so excited to see the reindeer. They are the first exhibit you come to in the zoo.....and let me tell you...while they are beautiful animals, these guys STINK! UGH!

Chi-Chi's most favorite part of the zoo is this area. I call it "Billy Goats Gruff". This is where the goats live. Last year, the zoo built these little bridges so the goats can get from one pen to another without mauling the pedestrians. TRIP! TRAP! TRIP! TRAP!

Then there were these cute little guys. Their feed dish is almost bigger than they are.

Take a look at this. Aren't these three of the cutest eagles you have ever seen? Just in case you can't tell...they are standing in an eagle's nest.
I am thinking that this would make an excellent new mascot for the Baylor Bears. What do you think? Just don't tell Ro what I am thinking. I know he wouldn't care for the relaxed nature of this bear to represent "his team".

After our trip to the zoo, we went home for a special birthday supper. Chi-Chi chose the menu which consisted of salad, pizza, and root-beer. Here he is serenading us as we ate. His song of choice......"We Will Rock You" by Queen. (Yes, my kids know several Queen songs by heart. Chi-Chi's all time fave is "Fat-Bottom Girls".)

He really gets into his singing.

This is our everyday Chi-Chi.

He is constantly in motion and some sort of sound effect can always be heard as he flies around the house, around the yard, or down the sidewalk. This kid is just plain noisy.....and for that I am thankful. I am thankful that he his healthy and can be so active, all of which we take for granted 99% of the time. He tries to be tough, but deep inside he's a softie. He loves to be outside and "work" especially with his Brupa. I love that he tells me 3 things he's grateful for every night and his family is always one of them. I love his laughter and his mischievous ways. He's just plain lovable!

Chi-Chi, I love you with all of my heart and thank God that he chose me to be your mom! I hope you had a wonderful birthday and hope you have the best year a 5 year old could ever have!

Love you buddy!

Mom

Wild Olive Tees

If you haven't taken the opportunity to check out the Wild Olive Tees button.....you need to check them out. These t-shirts are amazing and am sure you can find one to suit you . Just go to http://wildolivetees.com/

Let them (and me) know what you think!

Enjoy!

S

Lucky Number 7

Dew has looked forward to this day for months. Today he turned 7.
Seven years ago, Ro and I couldn't wait until this little bundle of joy would arrive. The night before he was born, we were up the entire night too excited to sleep and filled with a million emotions. We arrived at the hospital at 6:00 am ready to be induced.....both of us thinking that by noon we would have a baby in our arms. Well, noon came....and noon went. Induction is such a long process....of which I am extremely thankful for epidurals....made the process a breeze. By 6:00 pm there was still no baby, no contractions....nothing....but I was starving!!!!!! Finally, about 10 pm things started happening and this bundle of joy arrived at exactly 1:00 am. I couldn't take my eyes or my hands off of him....he was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. For the second night in a row, I stayed up all night and just took him all in. So thankful that he was healthy and absolutely perfect!

Now seven years later, I look at him wondering where the time has gone, wondering why he is in such a hurry to grow up, and completely and totally amazed that something so perfect came from me.

We had a small party to celebrate his big day. He wanted to wear his shirt with the ruby buttons...and if you look close...you may be able to see those little gems.We broke protocol and let him open presents first.

Then we had a special appearance from the Spy Kids. You didn't know we had those kind of connections, did you? But be careful in who you tell. These two were on a top secret mission......oo7 kind of stuff.

And this little one saw a spider in our house. This is her "I saw a spider" face. Don't worry....we called the exterminator and we are now pest free. I am so grateful she discovered that little critter.......as I HATE spiders myself.

Dew, I hope you had a wonderful birthday and wish you have a year full of many blessings.

Love you-

Mom

P.S. Thank you to all who came to help Dew celebrate.....and thanks for humoring my feeble attempt at throwing together a party......at none other than the last minute. (You know I wouldn't be me if I didn't wait until the last minute.....it's my biggest flaw!)