photos!

Even if it DID take ten forevers, and even if I DID have to upload them one at a time, I finally got some pictures to load to Blogger.  Ha!  (Maybe I'm a little too excited about this...)

Anyway, here is the picture of Miss Trixie Mae.  She is a doll.Here is the photo of all the athletes who completed the CapTex Triathlon.  Amazing!  Way to go, guys!

Today was the last day of school.  The girls were elated.  My parents arrived right on time, and the girls were even MORE elated (if that is possible). :-)

And, to top off a truly amazing day, Lefty, our sweet little girly kitten, was returned home today to our family, safe and sound.  A little hungry and quite scared, but otherwise intact.  She had FINALLY made her way to our only neighbor within miles.  We had called and asked them to be on the lookout for her, so when she showed up, they drove her home.  It was a miracle, and we are so grateful!

Tomorrow Luke and I are off to White Rock Lake to do our adventure race.  Pray that I survive!!

update...

It's been 5 whole days since my last update, and I just don't KNOW how my readers could have gotten by without me! (HA!  HA!  The three of you who read this can laugh aloud now!!) Any-hoo, so much has happened and we have been so busy that my head is about to spin, so the "random-ness" of this post will be staggering.  Hang with me, and I'll try to update in list format.

**** Stupid blogger won't let me upload photos!!!  So, this post will be boring.  I HATE to blog without pictures!!!*****

1.  We went this past weekend out-of-town for Luke and his brother and a lot of friends from Hamilton to do their first Triathlon.  It was amazing!  I didn't race THIS TIME, but I think I want to try one later.  Luke did very well, and everyone who went finished and was happy with their results.  The kids went, as well, and had a good time.  

2.  We have the new puppy.  It's a girl, so you can check out her photo with Kate in one of my previous posts.  We've named her Trixie, and she is darling.

3.  Lefty, our sweet girly kitten, has run away.  We are all just heartbroken.  Pancho, her brother, is crushed.  He paces around and howls for her.  It is the saddest thing ever.

4.  Tomorrow is (GASP) the last day of school!  I don't know whether to scream from joy or horror.  I guess I'll get back with you on that one.

5.  Today is our 14 th wedding anniversary.  Happy 14th, Luke!  I love you so much!

6.  To celebrate our anniversary, Luke and I are going to run in an adventure race this weekend.  Again, I don't know whether to scream from joy or horror.  I'll get back to you on that one, too.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to upload the photos that go along with this post!  Happy day!

Spring Ball Comes to an End...

Both T-ball and Softball finished up for the girls this week.  Abby had a great year and learned A LOT.  She even got to play "pitcher" one game!!  Also, on her very last "at bat", she hit her first pitch in a game.  She was so proud of herself, and says she can't wait until next year to play again.  Here she is with her trophy.Kate's team finished their season with a dramatic 12-11 win, which took them to 7-3 for the season.  The won first place in their division!  They were so proud.  Here is the Lady Rebel Team after the trophy presentation.
What a great season!!  Congratulations, girls!

Thursday Update...

Abby's Kindergarten End-Of-The-Year Author Presentation was yesterday.  It was really cute.  All year they have been writing a book about what they learned in Kindergarten, and yesterday they were able to go on stage and read a page from their book.  Here is Abby with one of her teachers reading her book.Their book had a cover, title page, and author page.  The teacher read the author's page aloud for each child.  It had all sorts of information about each little author.  We learned that Abby would like to be a veterinarian when she grows up!

Yesterday was also Kate's end-of-the-year field trip.  Third grade went to dinosaur world in Glen Rose.  It was pretty cute.  They walked a dinosaur path where they had life-size models of lots of different dinos.  Then they got to go to a fossil dig with real fossils in the sand.  They even got to keep their favorite three fossils!  Kate found a NICE shark tooth fossil. (Imagine that I had photos here, but I don't.  Luke had the camera in his truck!)

After school we went swimming for the first time!!  Summer is almost here!  Can't wait!

Gracie

I had to make the weekly trip to Wal Mart today, because my family actually wanted me to stock some food in this house. (Oh, how demanding they can be! :-)    So, I thought I might kill two birds with one stone (but only in a figurative sense... no birds actually died in the telling of this story! ha!)   I decided to drop off my Jeep to have the oil changed while I shopped.  Apparently I was not the only one who thought this was a good plan today... there were a few cars in line in front of me.  

Mind you, I normally avoid taking the Grace to Wal Mart, or any other large store that has a toy department.  She enjoys looking at toys, but does NOT enjoy leaving them on the shelves and walking away from them.  But, Miss Ju-Ju (our wonderful baby sitter) insisted on taking some vacation time (something about needing to go to her nephew's wedding... sounded like a weak excuse! ha ha)  

So, Grace and I finish our shopping and then go and check to see if our vehicle is oiled and lubed (or whatever it is they do).  It was still high up in the air on one of the racks.  Grace was amazed by this!  She kept asking how they could do that.  

After waiting a few minutes, they lowered the car, and I told Grace to sit still in the cart because we had to go and pay.  She looked at me with a shocked look on her face and said, "You have to pay for ME?!?!?"  I told her (with hardly a chuckle) that, no, I did NOT have to pay for her, because she was already mine.  She then looked confused and said, "They aren't going to put me in a bag, are they?"

Tee-hee.  I just LOVE that kid!

Rainbow Pics

Just look at the sight that was outside my window a few days ago.

These photos don't do the rainbow justice at all.  It was a complete arc all the way across the sky, and was so vivid and bright!  The girls loved it.  What a beautiful reminder of God.

My New Wheels

I promised you a photo of my new "ride".  Here she is!  Isn't she PRETTY?!?!?  And, she is really fast.  She's black and pink, and I love, love, love her.  Shelley and I rode 10 more miles today... I actually even woke up early to go and ride (and if you know me, you know how I love to sleep! ha ha!)

Happy Monday, y'all!

Decisions, decisions...

We are considering getting a puppy.  Crazy, I know, because that is JUST what I need... something else to take care of! :-)  But, we want the girls to experience a puppy, and we think Grace might be old enough to understand and not hurt the dog.  She has really done quite well with the kittens.  One of Luke's co-workers had a litter of Australian Shepherd puppies (which is what we want), so we went over to her house to look at the puppies.  OH...MY...GOODNESS... they are the cutest little fur-balls you have ever seen.  We have narrowed it down to two puppies, both of which are blue merle Aussies.  Here is the first one with Kate.  She's a little female pup who has quite the feisty personality.  (I'm talking about the puppy... not Kate, though I guess she's a little feisty, too! ha ha)Here is our other choice, being held by Abby.  This one is a little male pup, with a sweet little lover-boy personality to match.  Look at those baby blue eyes!

Here is a photo of the Mama Dog, Miss Flash.  She is quite beautiful, and wonderfully well-behaved.  This family has four children, so the pups (and Mom, too) are all very comfortable around children (this is a BIG plus for us!)
Decisions, decisions!!  Which pup to adopt into our family?  We'll let you know as soon as we know, I guess.  The first dog that Luke and I owned together was an Aussie, so we hold a special place in our hearts for this breed.  Can't wait, though I DO dread the whole "potty training" thing... seems like we just did that with Grace! ha ha!

A new dress for Gracie

Look at this dress on Miss Grace... Isn't it just the cutest thing you have ever seen?Now... here is the thing.  I MADE this dress with my mom!!!  Can you believe it?!?!?!  I found this fabric at Wal-Mart and I thought to myself, "This is so pretty.  I'll bet I could do that."  And I DID!!!  The only part I was unsure of was the zipper, so I waited until Mom was here last week so she could show me that part.  I think it just turned out so cute!  Thanks, Mom.  Gracie and I both think it's awesome!!  Now I'm going to have to get another project just to see if I can do it!  I love me a good challenge!!

Field Day!

Today was FIELD DAY at the girls' school, so Miss Grace and I have spent the day volunteering to run one of the games.  We are both TIRED!!!!!  This post would be a lot more interesting if I had remembered my camera, but, you know me, I forgot it!!  So imagine a lovely picture here of Abby shooting a water gun.  Now imagine a photo here of Kate playing with a parachute.  Next imagine a pic of Grace whining (because that's what she did for most of the day!!)ha ha!!  I'll give you a few moments to use your imagination....

Wasn't that fun??

Also, Shelley, Alicia, Misty and myself rode our bikes yesterday.  We rode 20 miles!!!  That's right... I said TWENTY!!  I was so proud of myself!!  And, believe it or not, I'm not even sore today (although I will confess, my rear end is sore from the bicycle seat!)  It was actually fun.  Luke got me a "big girl" road bike for Mother's Day, and I love it.  It is black and pink.  Awesome.   I'll post a pic of it soon.

Friday has been Fabulous so far!!!  Happy Weekend!!

Works for me Wednesday!!

What is working for me right now is... (drumroll, please!)  Ultra Brite Toothpaste!  Why? For several reasons, actually.  First of all, my Mom gets Consumer Reports, and Ultra Brite was their top ranked toothpaste.  It has really natural ingredients... mostly fluoride and baking soda.  My Mom tried it, and liked it so much that she told me about it.  The second reason I like it is that it tastes really good.  It's not a harsh taste, just minty and fresh.  The third (and maybr MOST important reason I like it is the price.  It is 98 cents at Wal-Mart.  That's right, my friends, you read that correctly!  98 American Cents!!  You can't beat it!  So, give it a try!For other helpful tips about what works for others on this Wednesday, check out "Works For Me Wednesday" over at Rocks in My Dryer!

Happy Wednesday!

Mammogram...

So, yesterday  I went for my first mammogram.  Yes, that's right, I said mammogram.  The new age for the first mammogram is now 35, and since I'm older than that AND have a close relative who has had breast cancer, my little doctor was ALL ABOUT me going in for a baseline scan.

In the interest of good information, I feel it is my duty to let you know that it was.... a really different experience.  It hurt a little, but honestly, not much more than nursing babies.  It was just different to have someone grabbing you and laying it on a table and then squeezing and squeezing and squeezing... Probably too much information, but hey.  If you haven't already been there, you will be before you know it!!!  Ask your doctor about it, and if you are a candidate, GO GET YOUR MAMMOGRAM!!!!!!

Another Bloggy Make-Over Plug...

I just had to brag on my new blog look one more time...

My Katie-girl just saw the new look that Shelley did for the first time, and she said, "That is the prettiest blog I think I've ever seen!"  I agree, Miss Kate.  I agree. 

If you like my blog, check out Shelley's other designs at www.simplyshelleydesigns.blogspot.com.

Happy Monday!

Multicultural Day

Welcome to Multicultural Day!

The girls' school had their annual "Multicultural Day" on Friday.  Cute, cute, cute.  Each grade level took a different culture, and dressed in costume, and then danced.  Katie was a Spanish Flamenco dancer, and Abby did the Mexican Hat dance. The picture above is Katie, and Abby is dancing below with her partner, Cade.

OLE!!  It's Abby!

Kate, the Spanish Flamenco Dancer

The Performers, ready to go to school.

It was a great day!

NEW LOOK!!

Thank you, oh gifted blog designer, for my FABULOUS new bloggy make-over!!  Everyone, if you like what you see, go check out Shelley's blog-design page at www.simplyshelleydesigns.blogspot.com.  She is AWESOME!!!

Works for me Wednesday!!

Today's edition of "Works for Me Wednesday", hosted over at Rocks in my Dryer, is a themed edition... you are supposed to share what DOESN'T work for you!

I've spent a few days thinking on this one, and the main thing that doesn't work for me is being a stress-case about having a perfectly clean house all the time.  I've tried it, and it did nothing but make me angry at my entire family all the time. It made my family frustrated at me for griping at them all the time!  I've come to the realization that my house can be clean and neat ANY TIME, but my child will only learn to walk once, and they will only want to play Candy Land with me for a brief moment in time.  They will soon begin to stay in their rooms all the time and roll their eyes when I try to talk to them.  I've realized that my job right now is to raise my children... if I have a few moments to tidy up, that's just icing on the cake.  Don't get me wrong... I don't want to live like a pig, and we don't, but occasionally it's ok for us to have a mess.  I'm busy growing kids... that mess will be there later!

Daddy and Daughters

When we had family pictures taken, Luke had this idea that he wanted to have a photo with each daughter individually.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these pictures!!!!!  What a keepsake, and what a memory.  Daddys and daughters really have a special bond... look at these pictures, and you can SEE it!!

Family Picture Time (with Gracie)

We had some pictures taken a few weeks ago, and I just love the way that they turned out!  I'm sure I'll be posting them a few at a time over the next week or so, but I just had to show them off!!  The first picture is our little family, and everybody is posing for the camera so nicely.

Then, Grace's true self came out.  Check out the NEXT family picture!
This is SO HER.  We should get a poster size image of this one and hang it over the fire place!!! The darn kid!