Memorable Moments Monday

It seems as if we are cursed with the never-ending yuckness around my house. About the time one of us gets well, another one falls victim to yet another illness. We’ve been through a month of non-stop antibiotics between us all. We’ve shuffled pharmacists and doctors, all in hopes that we will get back on track soon. The latest is our short trip to Houston that has turned into another extended stay for Little One and I. My doctor appointment on Friday was mysteriously changed to this Wednesday, not sure how all that took place. But since the doctor wasn’t even in on Friday I had no choice but to wait around for my appointment…I’m ready for my ears to get on that right track as well!

In my absence from my blogging we’ve celebrated many Memorable Moments, one of which was a certain child’s 9th birthday. How exactly did my first-born get to be nine in a blink of an eye? I watched her from across the room the other day as she visited with family. Her smiling face reminding me of the baby she once was and her sparkling eyes giving me glimpses of the young lady she is becoming. Click…another snapshot to file away for my memory book. I have a head full of these images that can be viewed at a moment’s notice. Usually triggered by a long forgotten look, or a giggle, or even a touch.

Em celebrated first with WB’s parents when they came for a visit a week before her birthday. My mother-in-law Pat posted some pictures on her blog if you want to take a peek since all my pictures are back at home. Then we came to Houston and celebrated again here. This year she decided to forgo the big bash with friends and just do a family celebration. So she got to choose a nice restaurant to go to and she chose one of our favorites, Chimichurros that sits on Lake Houston. We had wonderful food and fun. She gets to come back Spring Break for the Rodeo to see her favorite singer Taylor Swift in concert, yee haw!!

The Birthday Girl

Gram and Aunt Kim

Soph and Gramp

WB can't believe Em is 9!!

Me, Little One and Soph

It was so much fun and I’m glad we made it down, even if the stomach flu detained our leaving for one day!! That was my Memorable Moment for this weekJ

And I’ll be back tomorrow to tell you about my sister’s and WB’s memorable moment of the week, stay tuned.

Strange Happenings

On any given day I am bound to walk outside and find some strange occurrences. The two large pots (the one's we spray painted) by my door have bulbs planted in them. Every morning the bulbs are scattered around the sidewalk, not eaten on, just scattered. I peer outside a least a dozen times a night and I've never caught the bulb digger in the act.

Sometimes I find what we called UCP (unknown critter poop) on one of our pathways. This always leads to a very imaginative discussion on what may have left it. Sometimes we can identify tracks left behind, sometimes not. The huge paw prints must belong to the wolf or mountain lion that lives over the canyon or maybe to the labs across the way!

But sometimes I follow a trail of unusual relics...

Bamboo sprouting paint brushes...

Dried goards and pliers...

Yucca stems out to dry, more bamboo, rocks...

Spears....which always seems to lead me to this....

And the winner to Wednesday's Give Away is...Doreen at Treasured Giveaways. Thanks everyone for entering, I'll have another soon:)

Girl Scout Camp

My memories of Girl Scout camp, if I'm really honest aren't so great. I only got to go for part of the week because I had to leave early for yet another ear surgery, someone kicked dirt on my English muffin pizza I had spent thirty minutes cooking on the campfire, and a trip to the nurses office ended with me being shuffled out as another camper was brought in with a vegetable peeler cut to the finger and the nurse asking her, "Have you ever had stitches?". ..

But none of this I shared with my eight year old daughter, because overall Girl Scouts is a wonderful organization. I loved every minute I was involved with them, minus the above experiences. I learned all sorts of neat things, I met kids with the same interests , and most of all it was fun. My Mom was always our troop leader which helped because she gives 110% to whatever project is in front of her and she made sure we were always busy and doing something awesome.

But today as I watched my eldest in the rear view mirror of the car as she leaped up the steps of her little stone cabin and away from me for five whole nights I prayed she'd love Girl Scout Camp. I think she will. She's my outgoing, adventure seeking child. She thrives in social environments and she never blinked twice about going off to a camp where she might not know another living soul. Turns out she will know two of the other campers, but she found that out today as we were checking her in.

Here's Em standing on the front porch of her little cabin. Her t-shirt says The Alamo and she kinda looks like she'd be willing to hole up in that cabin and not come out no matter how much I pleaded and begged and got down on my knees and asked her to just come home with me...ahem, excuse me I just had a moment.

We were the first ones to arrive at her cabin so she had first pick of the beds. I believe she got the newest looking mattress and only one bed away from the floor fan!


WB and I watched with raised eyebrows as she methodically rolled out her sleeping bag and neatly tucked her blanket under her mattress on all sides. Then she tried it out.

So tonight I'm wondering how she is doing. We've already bought little e-mail notes to send to her each day. She will receive these like mail, as they will print them up and pass them out. But she's not allowed to communicate with us, unless there is an emergency of course.

Yes, here I sit looking out my window staring off into the canyons.

Do you see that dark area way over there? It's actually the shadow of a cloud, but right down there in that canyon lies the Girl Scout camp. Did I mention it was literally just over the hills from us? Well, it is. But now I just find myself randomly gazing in that direction knowing my first born child is over there and that I'm right here. Really, did anyone ever tell you how difficult it was going to be to watch your child grow up? It's pretty scary stuff I tell you!

Look at Our New Do's

Okay, I know I have a story to tell about our long trip home the other day, but I had to post this picture of my girls and their new haircuts. Em went first and something amazing happened, Soph decided to cut her hair short and get some bangs. I almost fell over, in fact I had to sit down for a moment. I anxiously watched as her hair was cut and was so happy that halfway through she didn't change her mind and start crying. Mrs. Brenda, who has been cutting their hair since their first ever haircut did a wonderful job! I am so happy that I can now see Soph's face and the brushing will be so much easier, yipee!!

I'm just so happy, I think I'll just sit here and take in their glowing faces:)

Posting Minus The Rant

Well, I just wrote a very therapeutic post in which I expressed something that has really been upsetting me, unfortunately I can not post it now. WB has asked me to hold off until things get more settled...we're in the middle of a an issue and we're setting up meetings with the involved parties and once that is done I can rant, aren't you excited? WB, the dear man, believes hundreds of people read my blog on a daily basis (not you loyal twelve!) and doesn't want to rock the apple cart just yet, it's a strategic move on his part. He really would have made a good lawyer or chess player for that matter. So I will have to share later...

Em played Little Late Riding Hood in her class play. It was a hoot and those kids are budding actresses and actors. Her teacher works with them so hard on these things and she is such a great teacher. We have been blessed on the teacher front!

That was supposed to be a picture of Em in her play, but that picture is on my laptop downstairs and well I'm upstairs now! So imagine this face and a red hood, that's what it was like.

And here's Soph. She has been busy with end of the year activities. And she found a turtle yesterday, so life is good.

Em's First Communion

Em had her First Communion this weekend and it was beautiful. She looked so grown up in her pretty white dress and braided hair with flowers. We went with flowers instead of a veil. My mom had a crown of fresh flowers made for my hair and I wanted to carry on the tradition. In fact on picture day at the church we didn't have any flowers and Em felt a little self-conscious so I found myself outside searching the flowerbeds for little white flowers. I found some and I knew God was smiling down on me as I quickly picked a couple for her hair and said a prayer of thanks. Well, if anyone had caught me picking the flowers that was what I was going to tell them, that God had put them there just for me! The other children who received First Communion at Saturday's mass.

After mass we all blew back to our house for a cookout. Really, we blew. When we left church the winds were gusting at about 60 mph and that is the truth. It was a cookout we all enjoyed indoors. Here's Em opening some gifts.

Our sweet friend Elizabeth made Em's cake and she also made these sinful chocolate cupcakes. It was all so yummy!


Em and Soph with their Dad at the church.

Em with Kaitlynn and Cameron, her godbrother and godsister.
Sweet Em at the church.

It was so nice with her Godparents and family coming in, grandparents, an uncle, and sweet friends who share our Catholic faith. I'll share more of our adventures that weekend and more pictures but I wanted to get these up for everyone. And I wanted to document that I was there, because somehow my picture is never taken (no I wasn't hiding from the camera's, well maybe).

Target Practice

Em went with her Dad to the rifle range the other day. WB had to try out his new gun. Em has a little rifle gun, pz340. I made that up I have no idea what type of gun it is, it's just child-sized that a friend gave us. Anyway, just a few months ago the noise of the gun scared her, but not anymore. Here is my little shooter:

Isn't she cute? I normally would not refer to a gun toting child as cute, but darn it she is. Now for all you moms and grandmothers out there. She is well versed on gun safety. She could probably recite rules in her sleep. And yes, it still makes me nervous, but here's the thing if I never let her do anything that I was nervous about the child would never leave the house. Heck, she'd never leave her room! She's got a good head on her shoulders and I trust her. Now, if she ever showed any sort of reckless behavior at the gun range that would be the end of that. Thankfully, this kid is a stickler for the rules. I know she reminds me of them constantly, like if it feels like I may be going over the posted speed limit etc.

Oh, and here is her target:

Not bad!

She's Gone And Done It!

I specifically remember telling my oldest daughter that she could not get any older! But today she's gone and turned 8 on me!! I just can't believe that eight years ago I was laying in a hospital bed (I"d been there since midnight) trying to give birth to this little munchkin. And after 2o hours and a lot of drama she was born. Oh, the drama still continues on a daily basis and she keeps me on my toes. She's my red-headed child....stubborn, dramatic, smart, serious, and such fun.

We've gone from wearing only skirts and dresses all through our kindergarten year to wearing jeans with holes in the knees from where she falls playing football on the playground. Yes, football!! She sings like an angel and has a flair of the artistic sort. She loves to cuddle with her Dad and watch the latest episode of Mythbusters. She has my sweet tooth and adores chocolate. Em looks after her sisters and is a friend to many.

Em's first day of Kindergarten

Em this winter

My husband said it best when he held her for the first time eight years ago, "I can't believe we made something this perfect."

Me either, Happy Birthday my sweet girl!

I am deeply disturbed...

So have I ever told you about my seven year old's amazing ability to catch flies? Yes, it's true, since she was about 2 she has been able to pluck flies out of air. Well, maybe not out of air, but she could catch them like this as they tried to fly off a window etc. Many times she would come to me holding a fly. I thought she was picking up dead flies, but then she'd say "No, mommy look" as she would let it go and the fly would zoom off. That's pretty darn talented if you ask me.

So today she comes into the nursery as Little One and I sit playing and says "Look what I have." She slowly opens up her hand and there is a live fly crawling all over her hand and arm. But not flying away. Hmmm, is she now the fly whisperer? Taming wild flies to do her bidding? And, yes, I am cringing because former science teacher or not I would not like a fly crawling all over me. But this I do not say because I don't want her to think that I think she is a little weird.

"So why isn't it flying away?" I ask leaning closer to stare at the little insect.
Flashing me her gap toothed smile, "Because after I caught it I plucked off it's wings so it wouldn't fly away."
Happily she skipped away with her new pet leaving me to stare open mouthed after her.

And all I can say is I am deeply disturbed!