Tuesday, January 19, 2010

What Are Little Boys Made Of?

“Snips and snails and puppy dog tails, that’s what little boys are made of…”

If you’ve ever wondered what it means to be classified as “All Boy”  here are a few of my requirements.

#1:  Magnet to mud. 

IMG_3290

IMG_3291

(Like Jaiden doesn’t like it just as much as him)

IMG_0773

#2.  We do things like this:

IMG_3269

…and this:

z03

…and this:

IMG_2500_3_1

and my mom knows it’s not an accident, because we wear a look like this:

IMG_2501_4_1

#3.  We ride hard and we ride fast.  We tip our rocking horses over forward sometimes because it terrifies our mothers.  We also like to bulldog anything that happens by…like dogs. Or sisters.

 IMG_3273 IMG_3272IMG_3275  IMG_3278

#4.  We act innocent and look like this:

z04

But my mama knows better. She knows that before she got this cute picture, I probably had my puppy in a full nelson or did a belly flop on her.

Still, she wouldn’t have it any other way.

 z05

I’m her little helper and I’m good at making her laugh.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Extreme Makeover

This shelf was in our house growing up.  It belonged to my mom, and she had it as far back as I can remember.

DSCF7006

One day when I was home, they had been cleaning out the shop and she was going to get rid of it.  I wanted it.  So she gave it to me.  And I assumed that gave me permission to what I wanted with it???

DSCF7007

So I painted it…added a crackle coat…and put new knobs on it…

DSCF7008

And I guess Jaiden took this picture of her brother with my camera while I was painting off the deck.  If your wondering, those are trampoline parts that need to be moved in the background.

DSCF7014_1_1

And here is the finished product, hanging in my laundry room with my scrapbook ribbon and some other stuff in it.

IMG_2913

IMG_2915

I never get to scrapbook but I like to go look at “my spot”  that has all my stuff in the event I ever got around to it.  I made this table for Mario one anniversary.  The desk was a freebie and I just took photos of us and Jaiden (Jeryn wasn’t born yet) at the barn and various other places that had stuff to do with horses, etc. along with some articles about some tie-down ropers that Mario liked and glued them to the table with some stuff from Hobby Lobby and then poured several clear coats of something else from Hobby Lobby to make it sort of like glass on top.   And that might have been the longest run on sentence known to man.

IMG_2920 

IMG_2928

Below:  I love the four photographs on this part of the desk, beginning with top photo going clockwise…Mario and I on horseback at a family farm of some very special friends while we were dating, Mario, Joe and Breylin with Tahos INSIDE a building next to the pool table, the three of us at a local rodeo one night, and Trigger sniffing a flower in Jaiden’s hand when she was probably about 10 months old.

IMG_2930 

IMG_2931

The picture of the little cute boy standing on the side of the stock trailer in the next picture wearing cowboy boots and a hat is Mario :)  He was probably about Jeryn’s age in this photo I’m guessing…the other photo of Jaiden on my lap was made on one VERY HOT day when Mario talked us into staying out and opening chutes for him.IMG_2933

P.S.   For the life of me I cannot figure out WHY everything on the sidebar has suddenly jumped to the bottom of the page…it’s driving me crazy! Any suggestions on how to fix it?? When I go into edit it, it shows that it’s in the proper place.  Weird.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Weekend Get Away…

Just a few pictures form a quick weekend getaway over New Year’s last weekend….

        DSCF7504_3_1 DSCF7524_6_1

Something unusual happened…he fell asleep in the restaurant!  That has only happened one other time since he was in an infant carrier.  He was SO tired and he was crawling under the table…over the table…around the table…I knew if I could just get him still, he would go…IT WORKED! He slept the entire meal.  Look at those little sweet boots while he was sleeping :)

DSCF7525_7_1 DSCF7533_8_1

When he woke up, it was back to reality…here he is RIDING on his suitcase through the lobby.

DSCF7539_1_1 DSCF7549_4_1

There was a Build-a-Bear close by so we made had to make time before leaving.  Jaiden wanted the dog and I sort of think Jeryn wanted one too…but every time I would ask him, Mario would interject with “He just wants the pony…”

DSCF7551_6_1 DSCF7559_11_1

I don’t think he cared either way… he was having so much fun!

DSCF7564_13_1 DSCF7566_14_1 DSCF7568_15_1 DSCF7569_16_1 DSCF7574_19_1DSCF7575_20_1

We made it back in to town and dropped our bags off at home and headed to meet some of Mario’s family for pizza and a chance to get our kiddos together.  Here they are: Jamal, Christian, Jeryn, Jaiden, and Zoey (underneath) Marlee.

DSCF7596_23_1

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Christmas& New Year’s Recap

Just a few photos from the holidays…

IMG_2912

Above: Artwork from my five year old.  She was working away one night and asked me if a donkey had a “big tail or a little tail?”  I went over to see what she was doing and was completely blessed to find this!  I especially love the baby Jesus in the manger. And the donkey.  Oh, and the wise men.  And Joseph and Mary.  And the stable and manger.  And the star.  And I’m thinking those two guys on the right side might be shepherds.  Did I mention that I’m really proud of this piece?

We celebrated an early Christmas with my parents and sister’s family this year. 

fam

You can go here to peek at a few photos from that weekend on my sister’s blog.

Christmas Eve:  My dad came to visit us and see Mario’s office.  He treated us to lunch and then came back to the house to play with the kids.  NeNe had given the kids their gifts before Christmas since we wouldn’t see them on Christmas and so they had some new stuff to play with.  They played with Jaiden’s new Play-doh set and Jeryn’s new pistols/holster set.  Yes, I know that people say you shouldn’t let your kids play with toy guns, and maybe you shouldn’t.  But my baby loves Gene Autry and he also watches some other old black and white westerns where they just shoot toward rocks and stuff and he and Grandad had a lot of fun shooting at mountain lions that get after the cattle.  And “buffawo” (buffalo).

IMG_2941 IMG_2942

Dad made a cowboy hat for himself and a mustache for Jeryn…

IMG_2943

IMG_2948

The kids and I made some cookies…

IMG_2951 IMG_2956

I couldn’t really tell if Jeryn liked the icing or not…what do you think??

That night we loaded up and went to our annual Christmas Eve service at our church.  We sing some songs and the kids wear their pajamas and get to go on stage and listen to a story.  But the kids were so tired they fell asleep on the way…

IMG_2961 IMG_2962

But the power nap helped, and they got to hear a cute story.  I didn’t get any good pictures of them during the story because they were sitting in front of two poinsettias the size of them. 

IMG_2967 IMG_2976    IMG_2979

We sing several songs every year, but my favorite part is one song in particular.  I love love LOVE hearing Mary Did You Know.  Mark Lowery, a Christian comedian that I got to see several times growing up penned the words, and they are certainly inspired!  I have heard lots of people sing it over the years and it’s always touching, but when the guy at our church sings it each year there is just an anointing and I hang on to every single word.

IMG_2631_15_1 IMG_2639_17_1 

These pictures were taken before we had any presents under the tree, but I wanted to have a photo to remember what our tree looked like this year.

Christmas Morning:

IMG_3002

Mario wanted to get both kids a new hat, and they loved them!

 IMG_3007 IMG_3013 IMG_3018

Jaiden had asked for a sweater or shirt for Esther.  Target had some for a $1 at the front of the store so I wrapped one up for J and here we are putting it on her.  Esther didn’t know what to think.

IMG_3030

Jaiden had asked for a Snuggie last year, so she was excited to get it one year later…haha!

IMG_3036 IMG_3040

After opening gifts, I made breakfast: bacon, eggs, cinnamon apples, and waffles with caramel pecan syrup.  After that we loaded up and went to Mario’s parents:

IMG_3048 IMG_3065

A cowboy can never have too many ropes…he didn’t get a new one for Christmas, but Breylin did.  Bubby brought two of his own and found Brey’s new one, so he was set!

IMG_3071 IMG_3077 

IMG_3080 IMG_3085

These boys just wanted to play ball…

IMG_3086  IMG_3105 IMG_3078 IMG_3120 IMG_3136

Meanwile, I think my reverse psychology is working.  J…on her own…went over to shoot a few hoops and I heard her say under her breath, “I can’t stop until I get ten.”  A sat and watched her from a distance and she got on a roll and made it up in the fifties and I had to make her stop to go with me to do something else! Now, THAT’S MY GIRL! :)

IMG_3137

This was the first Christmas ever (that I can recall?) not being at my parents on Christmas day/night.  So after Christmas, the kids and I went back to Mo & Grandad’s where we spent a few days.  We spent New Year’s Eve with friends from our community group and let our kiddos play together.  The next day, Mario and I headed out for a quick little weekend trip with the kids.  Made it back just in time to meet with some of his family in town, and then yesterday my friend and I took our girls to see the Princess and the Frog that just came out in theatres.   We had a nice (and busy) vacation but now it’s back to school, work, and the usual!