M- I- Crooked letter- Crooked letter- I -Crooked letter- Crooked letter- I- Humped back- Humped back- I

Yeah! Anna just brought me her memory card with photos from her Mississippi trip with their dad. Is it just me or do you see evidence of a budding photographer behind this lens?

Mississippi has very tall trees!


I have to admit our family has always loved anoles.




After some egg dying they had a very long hunt. The Easter Bunny hid them all throughout the forest!


There is nothing like the beauty of a pear blossom


You won't see this kind of love at home, but take them away from all their friends and look what happens. Shhh, I won't tell if you won't!


Collin in the canoe


Who would believe that cattle pics could be so trendy? Thanks once again to The Pioneer Woman!





And that's all folks! Come back real soon, ya' hear!

I forgot

...to show the piece I was working on while we were in Utah... just kidding! The artist is Louisa McElwain and we bought this oil at a gallery in Park City. I want to paint like her when I grow up.

Ski and Sea; Part Two

We arrived in Los Angeles early in the afternoon so we had plenty of time to site see and shop ( did I mention our luggage was hundreds of miles away on our original flight), but your not going to hear me complaining. The pics below are at Manhattan Beach. The water was cold but the sand was warm and Ryan didn't want to leave.

What was he looking at?


Ahhhh, ships on the horizon. Reminds me of one of my all time favorite picture books, All Those Secrets of the World.


Run, Ryan, run before the ocean catches you!


OK, so I had to squeeze one posed photo in. I love this little guy, and his daddy, and the ocean and flowers and the color green and...



After much coursing we hopped in our rental car, and followed Highway 1 along the coast to Malibu. Magnificent. If only we had time to go further, but our schedule was tight so we checked in to our hotel and met my cousin for dinner later in the evening. I think the restaurant was called Ocean, seafood of course. We had oysters on the half shell and impeccably fresh fish. It was delicious. I had no idea there were so many varieties of oysters. One tasted like watermelon, I kid you not! After dinner we climbed into that Heavenly bed because morning was sure to come soon. And it did. Our wake up call was prompt at 4:45AM and in a flash we were on our flight back home, with three time zones to clear and a pocket full of memories.

Below, Sam took this incredible pic out of the window of the plane. You have to enlarge it to really catch a glimpse of what 's visible. Can you see? It's the Hollywood sign on the edge of the cliff through the clouds.

Ski and Sea; Part One

One family and four different destinations was the plan. Gib decided to join his friends in New Mexico for snowboarding, Anna, Maren and Collin moseyed on over to Mississippi with their dad and Brooke, Blake and Brayden cruised to Cozumel with their mom. So, last Thursday Sam, Ryan and I flew to the beautiful, Olympic famed, Park City, Utah. I have to say, every time I stand atop a white powdery mountain, I am in awe, but this place is simply majestic. Utah is known for their snow and we were thrilled to be introduced personally. Ryan geared up for some snowmobiling... or in his words, "let's ride the playmobil"! This was a blast until Little Guy fell asleep... I guess the two hour ride of bumpy hills was too much. Poor Sam had to hold the napper and manage to drive the snowmobile at the same time. It was hilarious! The next day we rode the vintage train through the mountains and tubed with our friends, Joe, Erica and Claudia. The tubing hill was smaller than others so Ryan was able to go down all by himself! I delight in independence.











We played in the snow everyday, but not once did we actually ski this trip. Crazy, but I really believe everything happens for a reason. We ate too much, rested almost enough and shopped a little too. It was fabulous. After six days of coldness, our time was up, so off to the airport we went to catch our flight, only to find it was overbooked, but, to our advantage, the airline offered to route us through another city on a later flight. In a matter of minutes our itinerary changed from ski to sea and we were on board a west bound jet to visit my cousin Ryan (little Ryan's namesake) in sunny California. WooHoo!

To be continued...

March 8th

Today is the birthday of Janet Carolyn. People know her as daughter, wife, sister, cousin, aunt and friend, but to Lara and me, she is Mom. She has always been a constant source of love, whether or not I would admit it, and even then, she still loved. My mom is the kind of person that will welcome you... in the middle of the day or in the middle of the night. There is always room for one more at her inn. She is a true giver in life, and as I have watched her over the years I have learned many things, but most importantly I learned how to be friend, to laugh, to cry and to love. I can't even begin to count the number of times people have told me how blessed I am to have a mom like her, and I always say with a smile, " I couldn't agree more. "

Happy Happy Birthday, Mom! I love you!

Pilates 101

I have recognized my need for increased physical activity for some time now. At one point, I had a personal trainer. Ok, I did loose weight, inches and gain strength, BUT, it wasn't fun and that was also before I discovered The Pioneer Woman. So, I thought surely I could get toned and maintain my goal weight in a more enjoyable way. Then one day, my friend told me about a neighborhood pilates class. Hmmm....



And then there was this mental picture of what I would look like...



I signed up anyway and now with eight weeks of classes behind me I'm feelin' good. So today, we all arrived at class knowing that we were going to do some ball work... you know, like this:



Minus the lush backdrop and sand and well, ok the smile might have been missing too. ( I was working out for goodness sake!)

But, apparently my equilibrium was somewhat off this morning, so as we were rolling all the way back and then up again, I felt strange, a feeling I have felt before, but usually paired with pregnancy or small boats in big oceans. It was getting worse, but I continued because even though my birthday is just around the corner, the number of candles on a cake aren't always an indicator of strength or stamina, right? I am certainly capable of an elementary ball exercise. An then, enough was enough. Finally, I sat up just as my instructor noticed my yo-yo eyed look. She quickly recommended that I continue the rest of the exercises on the floor. She said when you begin incorporating a ball into your workout, some people take some time to get acclimated to the motion and apparently I am one of those people. Wimp was all I heard, but we finished the class, I drove home and yes I do feel much better. All in all, I would say that even though I had some non age-related reaction to rolling on a ball, I do think that this workout adventure is good and I would recommend it. Maybe next time though, I will bring one extra piece of equipment...



Roll on pilates!!!

Love

Fishy Fishy

Before we moved to this area, five years ago, we sat the kids down and asked what was most important in a new neighborhood. Unanimously they squealed, " water, trees and places to run". And you know, after much searching, we found just that... trails, creeks, parks and fishing, all wrapped up in a close knit community of desperate housewives and retired folks. So, today, like many others, the fish were calling Gib's name and lucky for us he wanted to make it a family gathering.

Heddy, of course, had to join us too! She is such a loyal girl.


Gib decided that leaning over the bridge was the best way to "get the fish ready" while keeping little brother and best dog at bay.


Wow, Ryan caught a fish, hobo style! ( When the line is attached to a bottle or can, instead of a pole) I feel like I need to write exclusively in italic when I look at this pic... with the Tower of Pisa stance and all.


And here is a close up of the beautiful Blue Gill!


Now, all was going great until Gib cast one more time and oops, the hook got caught in his shorts. Fortunately, his handy dandy, hand-me-down knife from Pop saved the day.


We left after that because it's always good to stop when your ahead, and obviously the little catch wasn't enough for dinner. Until next time, fishy!

Gib, my first born:

(noun) adventurous, smart, fun.  A wonderfully charming child. 

This past week was Open House at the High School. As we visited with his teachers, they all spoke of his exceptional qualities (because he does, of course, take after his mom). So you can understand our puzzled looks as we read the progress reports with few passing grades. Test scores were great and he seemed to have a good understanding of all subjects... so what could be the problem? And then, one evening, after much contemplation, Gib clears the confusion...  

"Mom,  I've decided that I'm going to start doing homework."

Like I was saying, he is nothing like his mom.  

This was one of our not-so-crazy weekends at our house. Six of the kids were with their other parent. Not such a bad thing this particular weekend because yesterday Sam and I celebrated our 5th anniversary, and I must say, quiet was nice.  We loved the sweet calls from family and friends. In lieu of a romantic getaway, we decided to do some landscaping in the front yard. This project is still in the works, but the process is half the fun! Nothing like a little curb appeal. Last night we went to a neighborhood couples dinner. Some sushi, tenderloin and delicious appetizers...yum! Gib and Ryan stayed home and played Guitar Hero, speaking of, if you haven't had a chance to play this Wii game, try to sometime, somewhere... it's amazing.  I think it has saved us some serious dinero on guitar lessons!

Today was even slower paced as Sunday's usually are. Church, a nap, some shopping and a visit with our friends Leigh and Andy, who I might mention are going to be proud parents in October of this year! We love them and are so happy that they are going to have such a tiny thing ROCK their world!  :)

Life is Good.  God is Great.  Happy Sunday!

Isn't this beautiful? I love poppies, they are such a happy flower.  Texas has tempted us with some California weather lately, even though the groundhog claims we have 6 more weeks of Winter.  Despite the forecast, I do feel spring fever coming on.  

Enjoy your day wherever you are!

Naughty or Nice?

Wow, life has been busy or rather... full. So, although '08 is here, this is a small sample of 2007. 

Gib, 15, finished his first semester of 9th grade. A time for firsts; grades that count, homecoming, defense MVP, and now drivers ed...  HELP! He is so amusing, always teaching his brothers and sisters such appropriate things. Love his heart! If I could use just one word to describe him it would definitely be Adventurous.

Anna, 13, is in her last Junior High year.  She is always smiling and LOVES to share her joy in hugs and song! She is in the Concert Choir, on the Honor Roll and in the Peer Mentor program at school helping kiddos with special needs. Anna is my helpful one in so many ways. One word to describe her, Eager.

Maren, 11, is in her last year of Elementary. She is such a mathematician, always calculating, something. Mare has enjoyed being in Safety Patrol, Sign Choir and Band (she's a flutist) this year. Her social status seems to be most important these days... but what would 6th grade be without friends? One word, Organized.

Brooke, 10, just finished her first semester of Middle School. Great grades, overnight class trips and best friends. Brooke, is quite a social butterfly and we have loved watching her spread those wings. She also has become very proficient in her computer skills, which I'm sure has nothing to do with MySpace. One word, Diligent.

Collin, 9, is now in the 3rd grade, and adores reading. Often, I have to remind him to turn off his light at night because his hour of free reading is up. He also enjoys playing Wii and takes advanced gymnastics. He truly loves anything involving sports and people. Collin, I don't think has ever met a stranger, and if he has, he didn't know it. Friendly.

Blake, 7, is in the 2nd grade this year. He's our straight A student and baseball player. Blake loves all sports and usually excels at whatever he tries.  He is very attentive, which might explain some of his success. For years, we have called, Blake, "our little reporter" as he always seems to know the skinny on things. Observant.

Brayden, 6, is in the first grade. He can't decide if school is completely necessary at this time in his life. Some have all the answers but, Brayden, has all the questions. He is a fan of anything Star Wars and a master at most video games.  His passive personality is different from the rest of the band but what a welcome beat!  Interesting.

Ryan, our caboose at 3, is in preschool three days week. He loves life and is generally pretty easy going.  It's been so much fun to have one significantly younger that the rest. He might be little but his thoughts are very BIG.  Oh yes, and this boy certainly loves his siblings! He has always shown such affection. One word, Sincere.  

Sam has enjoyed getting his car business off the ground this past year. He has a fabulous group of people working with him, which is half the battle. His hours are long and we miss him terribly, but what a sacrifice he makes everyday for our table for ten. Somehow, though, he is always able to work in grocery runs, carpools and wonderful vacations. Our hero. Devoted.

I am invested in all of these sweet lives wearing different hats daily. I am so grateful to be at home with the kids... truly what I have always wanted to do! My volunteer responsibilities keep me fairly organized, which I believe keeps me somewhat sane. Recently, I have been working toward a photography business. I hope to have it in full swing in a couple of years when Ryan begins all day kindergarten. Life is fast, though, so I try to stop to smell the flowers... and I do find others following. Yes, we are busy, we are many, we are family... and I am, Thankful.

A few days ago, the kids found this baby
sparrow. They named him, made a little birdhouse and caught some worms for his dinner. Charlie was a good sport and great entertainment for the afternoon and then, to their surprise, he flew back to his family.

Happy endings are always present, even when the critics disagree!

La Cantera, San Antonio

Spring is my favorite season, by far. Since I was born in April, maybe cake was my initial joy. Now, at 36, I can honestly say it is the newness and beauty of life in Spring that inspires me.

Sam and I have birthdays just 10 days apart, so this year to celebrate we took a much needed 4 day getaway to San Antonio's La Cantera. We laughed, ate, rested, visited with friends and family but mostly commented on how beautiful it was. The weather was stormy one night and windy for golf, yet each morning we sat by the enormous glass window for breakfast and basked in the beauty of nature, forgetting any imperfection from the day before.

Tonight we are back living in the real world of responsibilities but thankfully Spring followed us home so tomorrow morning I will find my biggest window and take in the beauty.

HAPPY EASTER!!!

What a sweet day, in so many ways.

From The Love of God
By Fred­er­ick M. Leh­man, 1917:

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

All eight were present, but by the look on their faces this pic looks like it was taken in the 19th Century. Rest assured the ice cream brought big smiles after!


Gib(14), Anna(12), Brooke(9), Maren(10),
Collin(8), Blake(6), Brayden(5) and Ryan(2)

September 2006

Fancy Fairies, Maren and her friend Anna.
October 31

Collin loving life on the merry-go-round! October

Anna at the State Fair, October

Sam and me, Fall 2006

Ryan and his pinecones, Caddo Lake