one more birthday celebrated, recap ahead

Happy Holidays! We are out of school and I am planning fun all week.  Today, we are making gingerbread houses (the pre-made, pre-packaged kind) and maybe some cookies.  I am also making them do 2 chores for me today.  Guess who didn't like that?

Before I get to Noah's birthday recap, I have to show you the chocolate pie for Rhett's birthday:

It was delicious.  It makes me wonder why I slave over homemade ones....

The day before Noah's birthday, a big package came in the mail.  It was from Uncle Scott and Aunt Melissa.  While on the phone with Noah's uncle, we let him open it:

Noah was so surprised and so excited.  He named the shark "Jawson", but calls him "Jaws."  But he doesn't eat human meat.  Just so you know.

The next morning, bright and early, Noah opened the rest of his presents.  I love these following pictures:

"Oh, wow.  This book is about sharks!"

"Awesome! Megaladons!"  Thanks Grandmom!

Now, this face. Aww. I wish, just wish, Noah would smile like this all the time:



Or look at at all with this much adoration:

He loved his penguin pillow pet.  Just loves it.

Later, we went to the church of Noah's choice and he chose one he loves and the rest of us, well, don't.  But that is okay.  Then we ate McDonald's for lunch, played all afternoon, went to Barnes and Nobles to spend the gift cards Nana and Pop bought both boys for their birthdays (Gift cards do not last long in our house.  I begged them to hold off on the Target gift cards both of their aunts (Thanks Jana and Krista!) sent them until after Christmas), and then ate Cheddar's take-out while watching Disney's The Christmas Carol.  This is the one with Jim Carrey as the voice of Scrooge.  In Rhett's words, "This is a lot scarier than Mickey's Christmas Carol!"  Ha ha!

Oh and yes, Noah's cookie pops with sparkler candles.  We skyped Nana and Pop (Skype is awesome by the way.  Does anyone else in my family have a webcam?  Cause if so, we need to start Skype-ing!) and they helped us sing Happy Birthday (They did this for Rhett as well). 

Birthdays are over.  Christmas is almost here.  I really didn't stress much about their birthdays this year (hello, bought pie and cookie pops!) and it was actually great.  It shows me that they don't really care about a big production (although they do want a sleepover.  Tips, Krista?).  So yay. 

Have a great day!

we'll be enjoying pie tonight-yum!

Last night, we went to Target and bought a chocolate pie for Rhett and Happy Tracks ice cream. Also, he picked out candles whose flames are the color of the candle itself. Rhett said I sure was trying to make him happy.

Around 2:55 am Rhett came into our room, wide awake. He had turned on most of the hall lights. He said, "I just can't go to sleep!" We said, "Try and turn off the lights!"

Around 6:25 am, we heard him upstairs. He even woke up before the pup. We all trudged out of bed after Rhett turned on our light (aahh! bright light! bright light!) and it was present opening time!

I don't know when the "let's open presents the minute we get out of bed" tradition started around our house. Maybe because their birthdays are so close to Christmas and they associate opening gifts in the morning. I think it is because one year, Rhett wanted to open them, just couldn't wait! and we said okay. Who likes waiting? Anyway, let the festivities begin!

 Happy Birthday to Rhett!!!  Our 10 year old thinks he is the funniest guy ever, save his best friend.  He is the nicest boy on the planet and a people pleaser to the core.  He never wants to hurt anyone's feelings and if you break a rule, watch out. He is also always thinking, always curious.  Rhett wants to be a lizard specialist when he grows up. 

His first gift was something he really wanted, obviously.  Mario vs Donkey Kong DS game.  Awesome!

How about a remote-controlled helicopter?  I'll take that as a yes.

The legos were a hit!  Thanks Aunt Melissa!!

Noah, who begged to open a gift of his own, to which I said, "no way," talked Rhett into opening his cards for him.  Here he is doing his job so well. 

While Noah was opening the card from Nana, Rhett was trying to open the box from Grandmom.  I asked Rhett if he wanted scissors.  Noah replied, "No, I think I almost got the card opened."  haha

I did get the scissors to help Rhett and he opened two of the coolest lizards ever!  He was impressed Grandmom!  About that time, Noah did finally open the card from Nana and Pop and read each and every word.  Even the words on the gift card.  "Rhett, not only can you go to Barnes and Noble, you can also use this on bn.com." 

Then Noah set about opening the card from Grandmom.  He read, "Star, star, star," where there were stars.  He takes his job seriously folks. 

Presents opened, they chowed down on breakfast and played the ds until time to go to school.  They really didn't want to go.  I don't blame them. 

In other news...

My new tile floor is coming along!  He has it almost all laid and then he has to grout.  But doesn't it look so much better than the other?  (For those who saw the other).  I love it.

Just another view.  This picture is more true of the color than the first picture.  Different lighting, I guess.

And, I didn't get up to Noah's room to get a picture today but I did upload some pictures of Boo.  We have some work to do to get her to stop biting and to go into her crate without barking.  But other than that, we are having a ball with her.



tomorrow's post will be much better

Hello.  10 days until Christmas but something more pressing is on me now.  Seriously, I have a dog who refuses to sleep anywhere but on my arm.  Spoiled much?  A little. 

Oh and there is a little thing going on tomorrow.  Rhett turns 10.  Ok, that is a big thing.  10! I'll come back tomorrow to show you a picture of my pre-teen.  He gets to have lunch with his dad tomorrow and we all get to eat out tomorrow night.  He even gets to pick out his own cake tonight at the store!  Not my choice, but we also have an off-limits kitchen because of some tile work.  (Which we love by the way!) It will be the first time in 10 years I haven't made his cake.  Well, maybe the second time. He wasn't too disappointed though.  Actually not at all... hmmm...

Then Sunday, Noah's birthday.  Noah is so excited about his upcoming birthday that he is bound to be bitterly disappointed.  Poor guy.  :)

So tomorrow, I'll have pictures.  Of Rhett, of Noah's room (newly painted), of our tile floor and probably some more of Boo because she is so darn cute.

Stay tuned....and stay warm.  It's cold out there!

this is what we were thinking

This is Boo.  She is only 7 weeks old.  We found her online and picked her up Saturday.  Right now she is asleep in my lap. And all the "What were we thinking about when we said, 'OK! Let's get a puppy!'" goes away.  The 2 sleepless nights Seth and I have spent listening to Boo whine and moan and carry on because she is away from us and all alone in her kennel are worth it.  Because, because...Rhett and Noah adore her.  And she adores them.  She reminds us of Scout and it makes us smile.  Brinkley is even excited.  Oh and a sure sign that Boo is meant for us:  She was born exactly one week after Scout left us.  It is kismet.  Merry Christmas to us. 

on the first day of December

We baked Spritz cookies, a holiday tradition that for many years had not been a tradition.  To explain, my mom used to make these cookies with her kids every year.  It was a pain but those yummy buttery cookies were so worth it.  But we grew up, moved away, got married and had kids and honestly, I never thought about trying to find a Spritz cookie maker myself.  Lo and behold, last year my friend, Cathy, moved away and one of the things she gifted me was her Spritz cookie maker because she "never would make those!"  I secretly rejoiced inside. 

Here is a sampling of cookies the boys and I made:

 Rhett thought of mixing the two colors together.  How come I never thought of that? 

In other news:

Rhett now knows the big truth. He was feeling so guilty because he was starting not to believe, but he wanted to believe but it is so hard, but how can he not believe, will he not get presents now, is he a terrible person and you get why I had to tell him.  The biggest thing that came out of that conversation was this:  "So, who eats the cookies?"  Seriously, he can't believe we would eat a whole plate of cookies.  Lucky us.

 He also lost two teeth today at the dentist and was a good sport and pretended to believe in the Tooth Fairy too.  What a guy.

no matter, we are thankful anyway

Today, Noah had a Thanksgiving Play.  He did wonderful on all of his lines, but I don't really think he was listening to the message.  When we were eating our sack lunches together afterward, he looked at one of his classmate's acrostic* for the word "Pilgrams" and saw on the letter 'g' she wrote the word, God.  He looked at me and said, "God?  What does God have to do with Thanksgiving?"

Umm...

I asked if he really listened to the play about why the pilgrims came to America. 

"They wanted to worship God their way, I know."

Well?

"But what does that have to do with Thanksgiving?"

Noah, why do we have Thanksgiving?

Blank look.

Don't we give...

"Thanks?"

to...

"We pray to God.  Yeah, yeah."

Okay.  Good to know he knows.  I guess.  Does this mean, if Noah lived all those years ago, he would not have been a Pilgrim? 

Here is Noah's Pilgrim acrostic:

P lymout
I ndian
L akes
G rowing crops
R owing canoes
I ll
M ayflower
S ail

Have a great Thanksgiving my friends and family. 

An acrostic (Greek: ákros "top"; stíchos "verse") is a poem or other form of writing in which the first letter, syllable or word of each line, paragraph or other recurring feature in the text spells out a word or a message.

how long until HP part 2?

It was wonderful.  It  was the best movie so far.  I would see it again tomorrow if I could. 

Just in case you all were wondering...

:)

PS- It is funny that probably half the people who regularly read my blog haven't gotten into Harry Potter.  So to you, I ask why?!!?  No, no, just kidding.  Really I just wanted to say, sorry if you get tired of me talking about it.  I just really, really love the books.  When I think of the world that J.K. Rowling created, I am amazed at her imagination and her ability to tell a story that has connections to all sorts of themes:  good vs. evil, growing up, friendship, love...and those are the easy ones.  These books make it hard to read anything else.  And that is a mark of a good book.  In my opinion.  But I hope you know I'm not trying to shove it down your throats.  Mostly, I'm just trying to share with the two people who regularly read my blog who love hp as much as me:  my mom and my sister. 

nothing gold can stay -Robert Frost

 The colors of the trees here are beautiful!  I have really been enjoying Fall this year.  This is my tree in the front yard.  I think it is an acorn tree and yes, there are Christmas lights on it!  I put those on today because it is only going to get colder. 

Also in the front, I planted some pansies and paperwhite bulbs, which are already coming up.  It will be nice this winter to look out and see spots of color in the otherwise dreary landscape.

 Do you see the bird in the lower left corner?  I didn't even realize I had gotten that!  Anyway, I have put  up some bird feeders and wow, the birds love to hang out in our backyard now.  They go through feed fast too, as you can see by the the empty feeder.  Actually, a lot of it ends up on the ground but they don't seem to mind that. 

Here is another picture of some birds, flying and just hanging out.  

Maple trees are really pretty right now too.  Ours in the backyard is just turning colors.  I wish fall would last longer but I know as soon as a big wind comes, the trees will be empty of their leaves.  Maybe it is doesn't last long because that way we won't ever take it for granted.

I hope everyone is enjoying their Fall too.  Only one more week until Thanksgiving and then December comes and goes so quickly.  It will be busy as usual so I'm thankful that I stopped and enjoyed the colors and nature for a few minutes. 

I'm also thankful that I got to spend some time talking to my mom today (its her birthday!).  Love you Mom!

a big dose of Harry Potter

In anticipation of the new Harry Potter movie, we've been watching the Harry Potter movie marathon on ABC family.  It seems silly to watch it on tv because I have all the dvds but I've been sick, so laziness is pardoned.  Oh and we is mostly me but sometimes Rhett comes in and watches the second half and Noah comes in once or twice as well.  Seth usually comes in at the very end. 

Rhett is a question man.  He comes by it honestly but it drives me crazy during Harry Potter. Number 1, I've been trying to get him to read the books forever, even offering to read them with him but he is never interested.  Number 2, as I said before, he comes in during the second half of the movie.  Which means there are many questions.  And in Harry Potter, if you ask one question, it leads to another and then you seem to be trying to explain the entire series to a boy who takes everything literally.  It is exhausting.

Last night, we watched the third and fourth movie (Prisoner of Azkaban and The Goblet of Fire).  Here is a sampling of questions from my son:

Who is the prisoner?
What are those flying things?
I thought they were called the Death Eaters?
So what are the Death Eaters?
Werewolves don't really look like that, do they?
Why did the big dog bite Ron?
Is the big dog a werewolf?
So the prisoner is good?
Who is Peter Pettigrew?
Why did he kill Harry's parents?  Wait! Voldemort killed his parents, so why did Sirius go to prison for it?
The time travel would make a black hole in the universe, right?  At least it did in Penguins of Madagascar.  Does it here?
What is that bird thing?
Why is it going to be killed?
It eats ferrets?  Birds eat ferrets? Oh its half horse, ok.
So, the death eaters are sucking out his soul?
I thought they were death eaters! What are the death eaters?
Do they eat death?
But why are they called the death eaters?
Does Voldemort worship anything or just himself?
Why does Voldemort have a nose like a snake?

Hey, isn't that Edward?!? (from Twilight)
Is this their summer vacation?
Is this the one when the dementors come? Death Eaters!
Oh! I get those mixed up!
What is that skull in the sky?
Who is the guy that made it?
Who is that guy with the fake eye?
Why does he have a fake eye?
Why is Moody drinking that stuff all the time?
Why is Neville crying when the bug is being tortured?
Who tortured his parents?
Why?
Why does everyone have a "Harry Potter stinks" button?
How can Harry get his broomstick if he isn't allowed?
What does gillyweed do?
Are they going to die?
Is her name Harmony?
Why are Krum's eyes like that?
Does Dumbledore die?
Why won't you tell me?

I finally asked him if he wanted to finally read the books with me and he said, "Maybe."  But I'm sure he is thinking, "Why read them? I know all I want to know."

Seth has watched all the movies with me but the problem is, he doesn't remember what happens.  He needs to review before we go watch the movie, because I told him no questions during the presentation.  ;)

waiting for the glue to dry

Because I can't seem to talk myself into buying the aforementioned (I love this word) shark quite yet (hoping it goes on sale or something because seriously, $119 for a wire shark seems like a lot), I decided to make Noah a paper mache shark.  I told him what I was doing, because this was the first he's heard about decorating his room this way, and he was excited.  In case you were wondering, the shark is added to the photograph this and share it on blog list.

Also on the list:  a picture of me.  With my new glasses.  The eye doctor said I didn't have to wear them all the time, but I was amazed when I put them on and could see clearly again. 

What else?  Rhett went back to school today after being home sick for two days.  So he missed the Veteren's Day assembly at school and couldn't share his interview with my dad. Bummer.

I did talk myself into buying a dining table and chairs for the empty dining room in our house.  So excited.  Also on the list...when it comes AND I repaint that room AND hang new curtains. 

I just realized I still have a lot to do.

Going to paint the shark now.  Have a good weekend!

thought I would drop a line

I really want this for Noah's room.  Isn't it so cool? 

on my list: watch The Fly

I have had every intention of posting more last week, but didn't.  So here are some things:

We went to our old neighborhood for a birthday party for one of the sweetest one-year old girls ever.  She cried though when we sang to her and didn't want anything to do with cake.  Very funny.

Yesterday Rhett started baseball pitching practice (for Spring baseball) and then we went to see Megamind, which was pretty funny. 

Noah disguised his paper turkey as Benjamin Franklin and it is adorable.  I forgot to take a picture of it!  Rhett thought of that disguise but Noah knew why.  "Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be the national bird! Not the eagle."

I am going to talk to a college advisor today.  About some things.  The extra push I needed:  Last night, Rhett says to me, "Mom, do you get bored during the day without your two sons and husband?"  Noah says, "No! She probably watches tv all day!"  Rhett says, "Do you watch tv all day?"  Noah:  "I bet she watches grown up shows like The Fly."   I laughed but this conversation hit home on what I've been thinking for awhile.  It is time. 

I'll let you know more when I know more.  Til then, have a great day.

parents are for remembering the good

Happy Halloween from two tough kids!

Iron Man:  Noah did not like his mask.  It smushed his nose.  He asked if I could put a nose piece on the mask.  I told him I don't think it would work.  His response, "Okay.  But I bet Tony Stark's mask doesn't smush his nose."  (Yes, he uses "smush".  So cute!)

Clone Trooper: Rhett didn't have a Clone Trooper gun which bothered him a lot, so in his bag, he carried his Nerf Gun.  He also told us after every house he went to that he couldn't see very well.  Then he said his foot hurt.  He was also hot. 

The boys went around our block, then decided to hand out candy.  I think they had fun but Rhett was bothered when some kids took more than just one.  Mr. Fair, that is my Rhett.  At bedtime, they said that this Halloween wasn't as much fun as last year.  I told them last year, Halloween wasn't on a school night.  This morning, Noah hoped that Christmas was more fun than Halloween was. 

Don't you hate when you reach that age when something you look forward to, like Halloween, ends up being just...so-so?  Well, I think the boys just hit that age.

Although, I wish when they think back to this Halloween, they would think about:

*Going to a Pumpkin Patch and getting to ride camels. 
*Going through a Cane Maze.
*Feeding goats and llamas and trying to feed a cow. (As Seth and I remarked how sad it is that our kids have to go to a petting zoo to see a cow.)
*Painting 2 huge pumpkins.
*Baking a Chocolate Cake on Halloween for Noah's homework assignment.
*Watching their scary movie of choice:  Mall Cop.  Yeah, they really weren't into scary movies this year.  So they chose Mall Cop.  Honestly, it was pretty frighteningly awful.

But I am sure they won't. And that's okay.  That is why they have us. 

'so ready for the weekend' shorts

*Rhett wants to go to New York for his birthday.  I am planning the trip in my mind already...

*We did make Apple Strudel.  It was good.  I like apple pie and apple cobbler better, but it was worth the effort. 

*Yesterday, I watched Oprah.  I don't usually because I don't like her interview style (shh..don't read that too loud...lots of Oprah fans out there) but, BUT, she had the cast of The Sound of Music on her show and it was wonderful! Did you know that 'Louisa' was Robert Urich's wife?  Did you know 'Liesel' was 21 when she filmed? She was only 7 years younger than Julie Andrews!  And she had a big crush on Christopher Plummer, but honestly, who wouldn't?  Did you know that 'Frederich' grew 6 inches in the 6 months it took to film the movie?  'Liesel' had to wear heels, then stand on apple boxes just for consisitency. 

*I am ready for Halloween to be over.

*I turned the heater on this morning. 

*This weekend, I need to make a pie with Noah for a school assignment.  He also needs to start on a book report about Comanche Indians.  He is so excited to do his very first book report.  He even wants to dress up like Quanah Parker.  Full headdress and all.  I guess I have my work cut out for me.

*I have been taking the kids to school in my pajama pants and slippers.  What does this say about me, I wonder?  Dad, don't answer.  ;)

*I've been missing my friends and family a lot this week. 

*In the course of a week, I have broken a new bottle of pure maple syrup all over the floor, spilled a glass of wine, dumped dog food all over the floor, spilled flour all over my clean counter, knocked over 2 bottles of water on the carpet, not at the same time, dropped a box of crackers and guess what, they spilled out all over the floor, and dropped my breakfast, say it with my, all over the floor.  I am seriously thinking that I should quit eating, drinking and doing things until my clumsy bad luck ends.

*I hope everyone has a good weekend!

love, aimee

no deed goes unpunished; however small

The other day, I walked into the laundry room to put something away and when I turned around, my eye caught this on the wall by my built-in desk:

Someone has been busy. And it sure isn't Rhett.

Immediately, I think about when I did this as a child. I wrote "Casey" on the wall of our bathroom and in a corner by my bedroom door but compared to Noah, I actually got away with it a couple of times before my parents really looked and knew it wasn't my brother's doing. Apparently, he wrote his "s" backwards back then. Small detail I missed.

Anyway, I couldn't help but laugh and then groan. How am I going to punish him for doing the same thing I did?

When confronted, Noah broke down and cried. He then told me, "What am I supposed to do when I'm mad at Rhett? You won't let me hit him!" Then he said, "I tried to erase it!"

Later that day, we went to Wal-mart. Before we went inside, he asked if he could buy a toy with his own money. I told him no. He didn't understand why I was punishing him that way. It was his own money. After 15 minutes of listening to him in Wal-mart go on and on, I wondered why I was punishing myself.

Not remembering what my parents' punishment was for me when they finally caught me as the culprit, I figure I am now square with the universe for my act against my brother.

Vielleicht werden wir backen Apfelstrudel heute**

Fall Break has come and gone.  We worked on the house, had friends over, went to Oktoberfest  (Dieses Bier ist zu teuer)*, watched How to Train Your Dragon and then went to Barnes and Noble and found out that How to Train Your Dragon is actually a book series!  Imagine that!

Rhett bought a Wizardry book (which I fully supported because I really want him to get into Harry Potter) and so far, he has tried to make a wand (it broke), tell the future with cards (his question: What does brute mean?), summon Merlin's owl (in the morning) and he wanted to see if he could make something fly but you have to hold your wand over it for 6 hours, so he hasn't done that yet.

He also has decided he does not like school (Too much math and maybe the writing isn't much fun either).  I promised him we'd do something fun like bake cookies today.  Because he does like to bake.  He has made muffins (from the box) all by himself and is ready to tackle more difficult things.  Too bad I haven't been in the mood to bake.  :(  Today, though, today we will bake.

Noah, well, I'll have to tell you about Noah's doings tomorrow in another post.  He's been busy.

That's all I have for today.  Have a good Monday!

*This is German for "This beer is too expensive!"  My friend taught us that saying and yes, it was fitting.  Oktoberfest was fun for the men (they sat, watching sports and drinking German beer).  The kids, thankfully, had a good time too because of the carnival rides.  Rhett rode his first roller coaster and loved it. They all had their faces painted (there was 6 kids in our group) and ate pizza and lemonade.  Noah had funnel cake and ate most of it himself.  No one tried any German food but the strudel did smell delicious.  I know, we went to a German festival and didn't try German food? In our defense, half the kids were picky eaters, it was raining cats and dogs and the men weren't around to help us search for the right food tent.  We saw pizza and went for it.  :)  Then we left when all the young, college kids were arriving.  I am sure they had a great time dancing to The Chicken Dance.

**Ok, I feel guilty for not having the kids at least try German food.  "Maybe we will bake Apple strudel today"

:)

beware: lots of "s and 's

The "Beatles" concert was so much fun! All of us had a great time and Rhett and Noah survived their first concert.  Here are the highlights:

*We sat next to one of Seth's co-workers who is orginally from England and when asked what she thought she said the "John Lennon" was pretty spot on.  I thought he was pretty good myself.  Through the course of the concert, he transformed from a member of the Beatles to the John Lennon who was married to Yoko Ono and stayed in bed for days to prove a peaceful point. 

*They changed costumes that matched the Beatles album covers from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart Club and my favorite, Abbey Road.  "Paul" even had barefeet! And I got to tell Seth all about the "Paul is Dead" controversy.  Fun stuff!

*Seth had no idea that he liked the Beatles.  Throughout the concert, he kept looking at me and saying, "Hey, I know that song! I didn't know they sang it!"  His biggest surprise was that Guns N Roses did not sing 'Live and Let Die' orginally. 

*Rhett's favorite song was 'I am the Walrus,' a song that makes absolutely no sense but is so much fun to try and sing on Beatles Rock Band.  I think he likes that song best because he knows he doesn't have to understand it.  Every other song, he kept asking questions.  During 'Imagine' he asked, "Why is there no heaven?  What would happen if there was no heaven?"  During 'Eleanor Rigby' he asked, "Who were they talking about being lonely?  Why were they lonely?"  You get my drift.

*All Noah wanted to hear was 'Yellow Submarine'.  And they played it.  He was happy.  Of course, after that, he got tired so Seth had to go walk around with him, missing my two favorite parts of the whole night:

*During 'Live and Let Die', Rhett looked at me and said, "Who's Little Ned?"  I had no idea what he was talking about and said as much.  Rhett said, "You know, Little Ned?  And why did he die?"  Rhett thought they were singing "Little Ned died" instead of "Live and let die."  I laughed and laughed. 

*During the first encore, the band came out and sang 'Hey Jude', truly a favorite of mine.  Cell phones shot up in the air, as people waved them back and forth (someone old-schooled it and waved a lighter). Rhett asked me for my phone and he waved it back and forth throughout the song.  It was great.

*I think the greatest part was that I never thought, "When are they going to sing this song?"  At the end of the concert (before the encore), I never realized they didn't sing 'Hey, Jude'.  Only til they came back on stage, did I think, "Oh yeah, they hadn't sung that yet!"  A great night.  Mom, I wish I would have known so I could have told you to come here and go with us.  I'll keep a look out for them to come back.

roll up for the mystery tour

I made these last week and hung them up in my kitchen/breakfast area.  I certainly didn't come up with the idea myself but I love the touch of red in my kitchen (if you remember, my kitchen in Edmond was completely red).  I also like the reminder and the fact that it is from a Beatles song is just an added bonus. 

(And now look as I move seamlessly into this:)

Saturday night, Seth and I are taking the boys to this:

I'm more than a little excited.  And I think the boys will enjoy it too.  Seth may or may not be looking forward to it but he gave me a choice of this or a University of Tulsa football game and well, we all know why that was a silly question! Ha.ha.  Anyway, I'll let you know how it goes.

Oh and Dad-hope you have a great birthday tomorrow!! love ya!

our scout

Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really. ~Agnes Sligh Turnbull

Scout
Born February 1999.  Died October 11, 2010.

Became a Houston during Spring Break of 1999.  Seth and I were only going to look at boxer puppies because someday we would have liked one.  We took one look at this beautiful puppy and tried to leave her.  We drove away knowing in 10 minutes we would be back.  And we were.

Named after the character in my favorite book, To Kill a Mockingbird. 

Thankful for Seth's parents that took her for about 2 months until we could find an apartment that allowed dogs.

Her favorite thing was to be rubbed on her belly while she stood in front of you.  Sometimes she would stand there, in front of our feet, just waiting.  She also loved laying in the sun.  She would stretch out and you know that she was saying, "Ahhhh. This feels so good."  Chasing Brinkley's tail was also a favorite pasttime.  I think that is why Brinkley can't be still to save his life because he always had Scout behind him, biting his tail.  I bet he'll miss it though. He'll miss her. 

She loved to lay on my lap when I was pregnant with  Rhett.  I knew it got harder for her the bigger I got, but she still managed to fit.  Then when Rhett was born, she knew that she had to protect him. She sat right in front of his bassanet and growled at anyone who tried to get close.  She was so good with the boys and only barked at their loud and obnoxious friends.

Speaking of barking, she barked.  A lot.  All the time.  These past few months, I would catch her just sitting in the middle of the yard and just bark.  Maybe she was saying, "Hey, I may be old and can't get up but I still hear you so get away."  Or maybe she just barked to bark.  It will be quiet at our house now.

She layed on my bed after my miscarriage and knew to just lay there while I cried.  I think all dogs are so good at being your friend.  They just know what to do.

You ask of my companions. Hills, sir, and the sundown, and a dog as large as myself that my father bought me. They are better than human beings, because they know but do not tell. ~Emily Dickinson

Scout was a really, really good dog.

(If you are still here, thank you for reading.  Using my blog to write about Scout has been good therapy.)

Tech game AND the fair? Lucky!

 This past weekend, we traveled to Dallas for the Texas Tech-Baylor game that was at the Cotton Bowl.  We picked Sammy up at the airport on Friday night and then Saturday morning, we tried out Dallas' public transportation.  First, we had to drive to Point A: The Park and Ride.  That took us about 20 minutes and after driving through a maze we finally reached it. The photo above is the Houston boys trying to console Seth after learning that the train that was taking us to Point B would arrive 15 minutes before Kickoff at Point C.  He wasn't happy.  In his defense, Dallas doesn't have the greatest public transportation system.  And we've been to cities that have great public transportation systems.  If Dallas wants to even come close to competing, they need to do a lot of work.  It was ridiculous.  It was however, much better than driving to the Cotton Bowl.  After reaching Point B and being herded like cattle onto buses (seriously, I heard many jokes about that and heard many "moos"), I saw the traffic.  Eeek. The buses took us through some sketchy neighborhoods and then finally, finally, Point C: The Cotton Bowl, which, incidentally, was surrounded by The Great State Fair of Texas!!  Oh boy.

 My mood lifted immediately when I saw that our seats were shaded.  It was rather warm and I was wearing long sleeves and jeans.  So I was comfortable the whole game.  We had a great view of the field and after seeing some tortillas fly, I was reminiscent about my ole college days when we would go watch the game.  We saw The Goin' Band from Raider land and we even won which made one little boy so happy.  The other little boy was just ready to go to the fair.  Can you guess which one? 

 The fair!  This is my view from sitting at a picnic table and being sprayed on by water spritzers (you can see the spray in the picture).  Being novice fair goers, we had no idea that to buy anything you needed coupons.  So Sammy got in line to buy coupons.  Well, he bought a fair amount of them.  Turns out, though, the only thing Noah wanted to do was play the games and guess what?  You can't use coupons for the games, you had to buy credits!  Those fair people have got this figured out.  They know people will buy a whole lot of coupons at one time because who wants to stand in a long line more than once? And they know that no one will question the people that swipe the game credit card you just spent $5 on when they say, "Empty!" and you have to quickly buy another one so your child can try their hardest to win a crappy toy.  They know when people get tired they will go home and they don't care because they have their money already from the coupons that weren't used.  Maybe I am not meant for the fair.

 But, BUT, we had a good time anyway.  Noah won a Texas Tech basketball for Rhett and a Scooby Doo doll, er, I mean, stuffed animal, that he gave to Rhett too.  Rhett won a stuffed parrot and Seth won Noah a stuffed parrot.  Everyone was happy!  They saw giant reptiles with their Pop and rode on the carousel and tried not to smile.  Sammy and I wanted to ride the Ferris wheel and then when Uncle Scott and Sara joined us, they wanted to as well, but the line was long and we were tired, so no Ferris wheel. 

 Big Tex is telling us goodbye because that is what we were trying to leave when we saw him.  Thank God for cellphones because we lost Sammy and Scott once and so we stayed by the statue until they came and found us. 

The end of the fair, but not the end of our day.  No, we had to make it back to the Park and Ride.  Another 1 1/2 journey (more waiting, always waiting), then we stopped, got Steak n' Shake, ate at the hotel and I was thankful we weren't at home in our beds because none of us took showers to wash off that night.  We just dropped into bed and lights out.

This weekend was a tiring one, but I think we all had a great time.  It was good to see family and it was good to get away.  I think it was fun to see all the people wearing red and black at the game and at the fair.  Living in Oklahoma, well, we just don't see that here.  I kind of liked seeing the absence of OU colors. It was fun being part of the crowd in that sense. 

Have a wonderful Monday!

lest you think i was exagerrating

 My spider story would have been a lot better with pictures.  Yesterday, I went back out there to see if the spider was still there.  You see that it was.  (It is the black spot in the picture above).

 It is also the giant blob in the picture above.  However, in this photo, I focused on the tree branches, not the spider.  Look at what she is doing to the tree!  There are webs all over the tree like this.

 And here is her masterpiece, the one she was on when I was directly below her, looking for a football.  I made these pictures black and white because the detail of the web really stands out better.  Beautiful.  The web, not the spider.

I zoomed out a little.  This web really is high up from the ground.  the thing is, I am not sure what it is attached to.  Yes, the tree but then what?  Our tree is by our fence and then for 5-10 feet there is nothing until the neighbor's trampoline.  I don't know but it looks like it is just floating. 

Scout update:  I think she is doing better!  She feels better but still doesn't really have an appetite and is so smart she knows when I'm trying to sneak a pill into food.  I think she doesn't trust food or trust me with food anymore.  But she is acting like her old self and that is a big relief. 

Update on me:  There are times when I feel guilty staying home, thinking I should do more or that both boys are in school so I need to get out there and go back to work.  But honestly, these past two weeks, I haven't felt that once.  Rhett has so much homework once he gets home (something I am not sure should happen and I definitely am going to inquire to the teacher about come parent/teacher conference-yes, I am going to be that mother, sorry teacher friends and family) and for about an hour and a half, I have to be there with them, helping them with Math and Spelling, and keeping them, especially Rhett on task (another think I need to inquire to the teacher about.  This first, then the homework).  Then there is Scout,  who is takes half an hour to feed and take pills and so on and honestly, I am grateful right now.  I'm not saying I am never going back to work or that I still don't feel guilty (honestly, what mom doesn't feel guilty about something, whether you work or stay-at-home?)  but I do know that I still feel needed and that has restored my faith in being a stay-at-home mom.  Anyway, enough about me.

Have a great weekend and make sure  you look up when you go outside.  You never know when spiders are lurking above. :)

halloween cometh early at our house

Yesterday evening, the boys are playing in the backyard, enjoying the weather.

Rhett comes in and asks me to help him get his football out from behind the bush because he just can't reach it.

So out I go.

I am looking for this football and after a few minutes, see it so I pull the bushes back with a stick and say to Rhett, "Ok, I'm holding the bushes back so why don't you get in there and get your ball?"

Rhett hesitates.

I tell him, "It's okay. There is nothing behind the bushes.  Go fast!"

Rhett says, "I'm just hoping that spider up there doesn't drop down on me when I go by."

I look up.

Right above me is this huge spider (dime-sized is huge in my book) hanging out on his web. 

Of course I scream and jump a mile away from the bushes.

When questioned about whether or not Rhett knew the spider was there the whole time, the answer was definitely on the yes side.  When told to get his own dumb ball, the answer was "but I'm afraid of spiders."

We were at a standstill.  Both of us, afraid of things of the 8-legged variety, were not going in the bushes.

Noah sighs, gets on the fence, inches his way to the football, grabs it and gets out of there calmly.

His face was priceless. 

what we are learning in school

I am distracting myself from thinking of my dog, Scout, who is in the hospital due to heart problems. Apparently, it is a common problem with boxers. Now Brinkley acts lost without his friend and I'm on the verge of tears almost all the time. But I am trying to stay positive and these kids of mine are great distractions. 

Here is a snippet of what Rhett has been learning and writing about in school:

"I wonder why the Nazis just decided to hate the Jews. It just doesn't make any sense. You don't just decide to hate somebody.  It's very very cruel what they did."
-Rhett, August 24, 2010

He is also learning to play 'Hot Cross Buns' on the recorder and every time he plays, I say a silent pray asking for blessings upon the music teacher who has to listen to hundreds of kids play the recorder.

Rhett is also learning about Oklahoma history.  I've said this before, but it makes my heart a little sad that my kids aren't learning about Texas history.  Seth and I throw it in every once in awhile.  Oklahoma has an interesting history too, I guess.  Boomers and Sooners and "Kentucky" Daisy throwing herself off the train to stake a piece of land (now Edmond, OK).  Do you want to know what Boomers and Sooners are?  Yeah, I didn't think so.

Noah is learning how to write.  Coincidentally, he wrote about something he is learning from home:  Texas History! 

The Alomo by Noah Houston

The Alomo was a war Texas vs. Mexico

it all started when Texas was part of Mexico but Texas didn't want to be a part of Mexco so a war began

Sam Houston was the geral. (I'm related to him.)

Texas lost but another war stated and Texas won! and became ther on contry.

Yes, we need to work on a few details but I like that he made sure to add that he is related to Sam Houston.  My kids get such a kick out of that possible relation.

He also wrote about sharks:

Sharks by: Noah Houston

Sharks are insestengig creaturs.

Did you know that dog, cat, even pigs kill more people than sharks do.  Whale sharks are the Biggest fish in the world!

I need to go get the car's oil changed and then go to the vet for an update on Scout now.  I hope you have a good Monday.

the point is, well...never mind

My children do not love Mexican food. They like some of it, they tolerate most of it, but if they had their choice, they would rather eat something, anything else.  This obviously upsets Seth and me because we grew up on Tex-mex food.  Where did we go when we ate out anywhere nice?  Mexican food restaurant.  

(Note:  I was not always happy to be eating at a Mexican food restaurant when I was child either.  I remember throwing quite a fit, at least according to my grandmother, when we all ate at The Plaza for some reason or another.  Then Jana told me to get the quesadilla.  I asked what that was.  Cheese and tortillas?  Grilled in butter?  Sold! And I have been in love ever since.) 

Ok, so now I see that maybe I was not always a lover of Mexican food either (after re-reading my note).  But now I love it and my children don't so they don't want to go.  We went to Senor Tequila the other night and Noah had a cheeseburger.  Rhett did order the taco but decided he should have ordered a cheeseburger too.  (To be fair, I think people go to Senor Tequila for the drinks.  Strong and tasty margarita but the food was so-so). 

I am not really making the point I started out trying to make because of all my (asides).  So I am going to stop trying.  Stop trying to make my point but not stop trying to get my kids to fall in love with Mexican food.  Am I making any sense at all at this point?

unpack boxes: check! Paint gameroom: check!

On Friday, I unpacked our last box.  I was so tired from unpacking boxes that I did not outwardly show any excitement, but let me tell you, inside I was jumping for joy.

In our garage, we have 5 bikes.  One is going to Goodwill (we currently have a big pile for Goodwill in our garage to replace the big pile of unpacked boxes.  Maybe that is why my excitement did not last for long.  Two bikes are broken.  That will change.  Hopefully, soon.  I really want to go bike riding by the river and enjoy the fall colors and weather.  So that means sometime before Fall is over, I need to get bikes fixed.

In our house, the gameroom is painted and pictures are hung and yay for that.  Seth helped me finish and he also taped the hallway for me.  Sweet guy he is.  That is my least favorite part.

That was my weekend.  How was yours?

if all days were like birthdays

I'm 33!  And a day.  I woke up this morning really, really tired.  Maybe I just had too much fun yesterday. Because it was a really, really great day.

Here are my birthday highs and lows:

• My father-in-law thought I had only turned 30.  Yay!
• My sons were hilarious.  Around 6 last night, we head to Target to get a few things (mainly, supper!) and Noah brought his money to buy me something.  So I told him he could buy my cake.  He was excited and picked out the biggest cake he could (out of the choices he had from me).  He was thrilled to do this.  Well, Rhett has been inquiring about what to get me for a week now.  At first, he told Seth he would like to contribute $50 towards a new laptop for me.  When we were at Target, he honed in on a chocolate pie.  I, very nicely, told him we didn't need a pie AND a cake.  He asked what then could he buy me?  I pointed out the lip gloss area and said I really needed new lip gloss.  He happily picked one out and was in the middle of handing it to me when Noah yelled, "The lip gloss is $8?!? Who would pay that for lip gloss!?!"  Rhett froze and very nicely, told me, "Let's see if we can get you something else."  He then picked out two Twix bars and estimated that he owed me $1.40.  Happy Birthday!  I am still laughing at that one.  He is more like Seth than I knew!  Noah then added another dollar to his stash and bought a Hershey's candy bar for him.  He gave me a wad of ones and called it good.  Love it!  Here are some fun pictures from last night.  The first one is funny because we had already blown out the candles and Seth said to pretend. 


• My sweet husband took the entire day off of work to spend with me.  It was so nice to spend a whole day with him that didn't include a "have to" list.  Although, some things managed to work their way in our day, it was really a wonderful day.  One of the stores we went to was Saks Fifth Avenue and if you have never been in one, you really should.  It is a hoot.  I don't know any person that would buy a $400 Burberry vest or a purse that looks like any minute it could jump up and run away (a furry bundle it was!) but it was fun looking around that is for sure.
• The texts, phone calls and Facebook messages I received were an added bonus.   
• Seth and I watched the season premiere of Modern Family last night.  One of our favorite funny shows, it really delivered on laughs.  It is nice to end your day laughing.  One of the characters wears button down shirts that Seth and I saw at Saks Fifth Avenue and we chuckled at that too.

And really, only one low.  Our Scout is sick.  We are not sure what is going on but hopefully will find out Friday when the blood work results are in.  I know that she is old but no matter how much I prepare for it, it still is heartbreaking.  I talked to the boys about it and it will be a hard, hard thing.

One last picture of my sweet boys and me:

Have a great day!