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!

do you see what is coming?

Yes, my birthday.  And before I get a little depressed (because, frankly, turning 33 is as exciting as turning 32, which wasn't very exciting because it is one step closer to 35.  Which means one step closer to, well, you know.) I am going to tell you what the boy in photo has done for me.

Friday:  I looked in his school agenda and saw this in the note section of Week of September 20:  "Get Mom best birthday gift ever!!!"

Monday:  Rhett draws me a picture.  It is of me, sitting on the couch, reading To Kill a Mockingbird.  I asked him how he knew that was my favorite book.  He said he remembered me saying that this past summer. 

Tuesday:  Seth wakes me up and says that Rhett made me breakfast so get up before it gets soggy.  I went in and had Chocolate Frosted Mini Wheats (which aren't as delicious as you would think) and enjoyed every bite. 

And its not even my birthday yet!!  What a sweetie.  I tell you, there is something special about a 9 year old. 

There is definitely something special about Rhett.

In case you needed this today

And the best part?  It is all true!

Inhale. Hold. Slowly Exhale. And repeat.

Even though it was 95 today, I can feel it in the air.  The season is changing.  The wind is cooler.  The sun is setting earlier.  It is getting harder and harder to get out of bed in the morning because you feel the nip in the air. 

I've started going to yoga classes.  I love it.  Love, love it.  My favorite part is focusing on each breath I take.  I mean, when do we take the time to do that?

We've joined the Y.  Hopefully, the boys will start Tai Kwon Do there soon.  Did I spell that right? Seth is on the ball and is calling people left and right to fix our leaky roof (over the patio), to see about leveling our yard, to get an estimate on tile (to go over the stained concrete that we are not enjoying).  I am going to finish painting the halls and hopefully, the game room this month.  I'm so tired of painting but its gotta get done.  Can't keep the tape on the baseboards forever can I? 

But this weekend?  I hope we just enjoy it.  Spend time together, having fun and cherishing each other.  I hope, especially tomorrow on 9/11, that we take a moment and thank God we've got each other and pray for those who don't have their 'each others' anymore.  I hope we focus on slowing down and just be.

Love all around.  Namaste.

something strange is happening around here

Noah loves school. 

Yesterday,  he got off the bus, gave me a hug and said, "I had a really good day today, Mom."

Last night, he had a 'best thing' about his day, but no 'worst thing'.

Ok, will the real Noah please come forward?

On the other hand,

Rhett comes home tired.

Last night, he had a 'worst thing' but NOT a 'best thing'.

I'm gonna call this one a fluke.  I mean, everyone has their bad days.  And really, the older you get, the less fun school gets, am I right?  And he did have homework, which can ruin anyone's mood.  I hope his day is better today.

And this morning, Noah woke up, grumpy, like normal.

I breathed a sigh of relief.  He's still my Noah. 

wishing we were still on vacation

Friday, we drove to St. Louis to visit our friends that used to live across the street from us in Edmond.  I love these people.  They have two kids that my sons adore and we just have such a great time when we are with them.  These are the friends that we hung out with every weekend for the last year that we lived there. I miss them everyday. They live in a beautiful neighborhood and while we were walking, I took a photo of my view. 

The boys all went to a Cardinals baseball game and the girls (myself, my friend and her daughter) went to get mani/pedis and ate lunch at a cute cafe.  We also ate out (just the grown-ups) one night where I tasted veal for the first time.  I felt guilty eating it, then felt even more guilty when I thought it was the best thing ever.  Luckily, I had only a bite for an appetizer.  Whew.  (I'm normally have no problem eating meat, seriously, my dad owned a feed yard! But eating baby cows?  That's just sad.  And delicious, but still.)

Today it is back to it.  I don't think any of us wanted to get up and face the day, but we all did, even if the boys did miss the bus.  Oh well.  I had to drive to pick up the dogs anyway.  Now, I need to face the big pile of laundry but if you noticed, I did manage to distract myself from that for awhile.  This is my new blog template!  Not as good as the first, but better than the one from the other day. 

Have a great day!

never thought I'd be doing this*

Good September to everyone!  I love September.  Even if half the month is hot, it means Fall is only 22 days away.  And speaking of 22 days away....

hee hee.

Anyway, here is something I've been working on this morning (until it started raining, but thank God for rain...it means it is a little cooler)

These little things are GoGos.  No, not the music group or the boot.  The toy that now has captured Rhett and Noah's short attention span.  My kids love them.  Rhett lost one by catapulting one underneath our kitchen cabinets and was so sad.  They come with names and personalities and even have online games (but that must be a pre-requisite with toys nowadays. (Hey, I have spell-checker again! Yay!) These little things are my photography subject this week.  My assignment is Depth of Field.  So I am shooting these little critters in different apertures or f-stops to show depth of field changes.

Notice how the background changes?  One is softer, the other sharper?  That is depth of field.  And that is how aperture works.  Cool or what?

Here is my sky:

And our moon:

And the clouds that began raining on me...

Hope your Wednesday treats you well.  We have two more days of school and then we are off for a 4-day weekend!! 

*This meaning laying on the wet grass taking photos of my sons' colorful toys.  But I had more fun doing it! I can't wait to see where I'll take these guys next!

hello, good-bye last Monday of August

This is a picture I took for my first assignment in photography class.  Assignment 1: Put your camera in M mode, or Manual, adjust some settings and make sure your exposure is correct (or at 0).  And snap away. Seriously, I never thought taking pictures of things could be so much fun, but I am having a blast.  My dogs probably think I am nutso, going around my backyard and taking lots of pictures of a hole in the fence but I did and this is the best one. 

Also, my dogs like music.  I keep it on for them during the day and Scout barks much less now.  But she hasn't stopped completely.  I hear her right now, barking at our neighbors.  I am sure they are SO glad we moved into their neighborhood. 

Speaking of dogs, I think we have 2 or 3 mastiffs living in our neighborhood.  Those dogs are huge but everytime I see one, I want to cry, thinking of Turner and Hooch. 

I have been reading a lot since getting my nook.  Krista lent me the first two books of the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins and I loved them and now I don't know if I want to read the last book because what if it doesn't end in the way that I want.  I know it won't because those kind of stories never end "and they lived happily ever after" and the author's endings make more sense than mine ever would but still...

I also have been reading the Sookie Stackhouse novels (True Blood is based on these books) and I find them hilarious and so much fun to read.  I tend to blow through this quite fast though. 

And I am also trying to get through the stack of Civil War books my dad let me borrow.

Rhett and Noah are loving school.  Noah comes home...happy.  Which is unusual but a welcome change.  I am overwhelmed by their school but as long as they like it and are happy, then I am happy. 

Bye for now!

it's good dogs never say no

Tomorrow is the start of my photography class (notes will be emailed to you Krista!!) and I have a new camera and a notebook and new pens and even nerves to go along with me.  I've been practicing with my camera for the past two days and because everyone else doesn't seem to want to be my test subjects, I have picked my dogs to be.  What do you think?  Is that a good looking dog or what?

snapshots from my house- part 1

I have been busy this week.  Painting, hanging pictures, more painting.  Here are some photos of what I've been doing:

First, this photo does not do my framed picture justice. But here it is anyway.  It is a Ford Smith (and no, I never had heard of him either until I went to art.com looking for pictures that would look great above the fireplace.  But it sounds cool to say, "I have a Ford Smith.")  and I just love it.  Like I said, my photo is a terrible representation of it, so if you want to really see it, you must come visit me!

Just some new decorative balls in my glass vase.  Adding color to my life...

Who needs Pottery Barn?  Well, actually I do. I was inspired to do this because I saw something similar in their catalog.  But, I bought nothing new for this and now it is a collection of my favorite things.  (Oh by the way, Sandy and Melissa, I told Seth the next time we all got together we had to get pictures made of all of us. That way I have some to hang on the wall!) (And Mom and Krista, don't you think we need to have our pictures made again?  It has been almost 4 years!)

It is right by the front door, so when you walk in or if you sit in the office, you see it.  It truly makes me happy, it does.

One more picture.  The hallway to the garage is now our "art gallery."  Easy to be changed, but all created by Rhett and Noah.  Sorry about the mess on the floor.  Seems I am always painting or in between painting these days.  I am making my way upstairs...

This week I also drove to Clinton and met Casey on Tuesday.  Cam stayed with us for almost 2 weeks but he has to get back to school, so we were off as soon as the boys left on the bus.  We already miss him!

Last night we went to a Popscicles on the Playground for new families at the boys' school.  We actually met a few people and had a lovely time talking to adults.  (Ok, can you tell I haven't been talking to grown ups a lot lately?)

We have also gone somewhere after school almost every day because we had to get new shirts, we had to fix Rhett's glasses and today we have to get frozen yogurt.  (Maybe that is a want to.)

Tomorrow, we head back to Edmond for some birthday parties and some time with friends.  Even though it will be hectic and I doubt we see everyone we want to see, I am looking forward to this.

And then, Sunday is Seth's and my 12th anniversary.  We have actually been together 17 years (which coincidentally is how old we both were when we got together).  That means that next year, we will have been together longer than we have been without one another.  Wow.

And next week is going to be exciting as well.  I am starting a photography class at Tulsa Community College!  Judging by these photos, I really am looking forward to learning how to take pictures properly.  Seriously, this is something I have wanted to do for so long and I really want the pictures I see in my head to actually be the pictures that come out on the camera.  You know what I mean?  I hope to share my photos with you so be on the lookout!

One more thing:
It was Pop's birthday yesterday!! Happy Birthday Sammy!!

i love it, love it not

I have lots of photos to share (mostly of my house) but I am too lazy to do all that needs to go into a photo post today.  So, rather, you get to enjoy this post of good and bad.  We have been in Tulsa for about three months and there are some things I love, love, love and a couple of things that I, well, don't. 

Things I Love About Tulsa

• My House.  I love that the laundry room is right next to my bedroom.  I love my kitchen and living room.  I love that the boys have their own space upstairs. 
• The close proximity of Target and my lovely house.  Oh how I love this.  The fact that I can get to my favorite store in about 3 minutes is so awesome!  Yesterday, the boys and I went at 4:45 and got back at 5:20.  In Edmond, this would have been impossible.  No way would I have ventured out a little before peak traffic time to go to a store that is one of the busiest in Edmond.  Love it!
• There are other things close, close to us.  The movie theater.  Pizza.  Gas stations. Post Office.  Boys' pediatrician.  I don't want to go on and on about this or seem like I am bragging, but I've never had this before. 
• Cherry Street Farmers Market. I have only been there once so far but it was beautiful.  I can't wait to go back.  My family enjoyed a farmers market breakfast the day after my mom, Jana and I went and I don't know if it was just thinking that this was fresh sausage, eggs and cheese or what, but it tasted delicious. And this isn't the only Farmers Market around. So we'll be checking those out as well...
• The boys' school.  Sure it is big.  Sure it probably is overwhelming.  But Rhett gets to take Spanish.  And they have Art class. Art class!  Woo-hoo!  Noah's teacher is so organized, she sends home an email everyday about what they did that day.  I find that amazing. 

Things I Don't

• The Drivers.  Oh they are awful.  They are rude and don't pay attention.  They honk at you for the slightest thing and are impatient. Blah.
• The weather.  But I really can't say this is specific to Tulsa.  It was super hot in OKC too this summer.  And everywhere. But I haven't enjoyed it.
• Some things are far away.  Like the baseball fields.  And Cherry Street.  Which isn't a big deal, really, because it is only about 20 minutes away. :) (That one is for you Dad!)

Ok, short list.  But I think I needed to get it off my chest.  Especially about the drivers.

the difference between day and night

or The First Day of School or The Very First Day at a New School or Finally! School Starts!...I mean, um, oh never mind.

6:45- Rhett's alarm goes off (I'm just guessing here because I didn't hear it.  I was still sleeping.)

Between 6:45 and 7:20-Rhett gets dressed, brushes his teeth, combs his hair, makes sure his backpack is ready and starts to fix his own breakfast (Don't you wish you had a Rhett?)  He also asks Cameron (who is staying with us for another week) what he wants for breakfast.  Cam chooses Fruity Pebbles because they are so much healthier than Cocoa Pebbles.  Ha!

7:30- 7:50- I go up to wake up Noah.  First Noah pops right up.  Then he frowns.  Uh-oh, I think.  I tell him again to get up.  He says he is way too tired.  I try again.  He reiterates that he is too tired.  And cold.  I hand him his robe.  He starts to cry.  And he cries for the next 8 minutes.  I finally give him a choice:  Get dressed now or eat breakfast first, then get dressed.  I drag him down stairs.  He eats a little breakfast. 

7:50- Rhett is completely ready and restless.  Cameron is ready and wants to know why he can't wear his new school shoes.  I tell him because he is not going to school today.  Oh.

8:00- Noah is finally ready and in a better mood.  He did want to wear jeans but I told him it was going to be over 100 degress today, so no.  Sigh. 

8:05- We go outside and get the first day of pictures over with.  At least that is what it looks like from the pictures.  And good news! The bus stops right next door so we don't have to walk far! 

8:11- Bus comes.  I give them a hug, remind them to drink their water and they are off.  To a brand new school.  To brand new kids.  They are so brave. I hope they have a good day. I  hope they find good friends. I hope they like their teachers and I hope they don't feel lost.  While we are at it, I hope they have a great year, full of fun, surprises and a little learning.

Rhett, a fourth grader.  Noah, in second.  They may be night and day, but I'm so proud that they are mine.

Meanwhile, Cam and I have already been on a walk.  We are going to have a good day, just me and him.  I hope he doesn't miss his cousins too much during the day. 

Have a great day!

Look back on summer, in song

Move to Tulsa, Say good-bye to good friends, Try not to cry
Pack it up, Move it Out, Thank God its not too far to go
Get the keys, change the locks, now its time to unpack boxes
Parents tired, Kids are wired, Up and down the stairs they go

New routine, what routine?, sleep late then watch tv
Rhett wants to play baseball, oh look! a summer league
Its so hot, I cry, help I'm melting, I'm a wimp
Soccer camp, no go, Noah's sad, plays the wii.

Unpack boxes, unpack boxes, are we even getting close?

Friends comes, Mom comes, then we hit the road

Road trip! Krista's house! lots of trees and kudzu

Family time, then good-bye, back on the road we go

Home in time to say so long, much needed girl's trip
Just in time...microwave and television on the fritz!
Lots of fun, Kansas City, Eclipse, love my friends
Get back home to find out I was really missed.

More family time, in-laws come, let's go watch baseball
Still hot, extreme heat, will summer ever end?

Rhett's a pitcher and first baseman, sometimes plays left field

He enjoys it, even loves it, and even  makes new friends.

Uncle Scott comes with his kids, more fun at aquarium

July's over, August starts, only 12 days till school begins

Time for one more visit from the cousins and my mom and dad

Nic and Isa, Cam and boys don't want their fun to end!

Painting Pottery just us girls, boys go to baseball game

Then Surprise! Jana's here! for a mini-vacay

Farmer's Market, Cherry Street, lots of veggies, eggs and cheese

Fun girl-time, bought some stuff, great start to a good day

Saturday night, Balloon Festival, 15th Year in Claremore

Balloons went high, Temp just right, Spirits then went really low

Parking Lot! Bad Business! Stuck in place for an hour

Kids gripey, Grown-ups grumpy, wished we had mojitos.

End of summer now is near, only a day til school starts

Boys excited, like their teachers, both their classrooms on second floor

Song now over, did you recognize it? ode to Billy Joel

Are you thinking this is bad : I can't take it anymore!!

phase one of Repaint/Redo complete

Before:

After:

If you look through the doorway, you will see the entryway into the house. The office is by through the glass doors and the dining room is right where the ladder is. I am painting the entryway and hallways next.

The print I was going to have over the fireplace is being framed right now. I have to wait 2 weeks for it. This is the first time I have ever had something framed professionally. I have learned many things from it and will be better prepared if ever I do it again. (Let's just say sticker shock. I am used to buying frames at Hobby Lobby at half off and if it needs a mat, buy a cheap mat. This wasn't going to work for this print but I am so excited for it.)




I repainted the kitchen the same color (Flax if you want to know) and will post pictures of that as well but I seriously need to clean my kitchen first.  And the rest of the house too.  But that is my life.

My favorite part of repainting is afterward.  You know, when you can sit in your newly painted room and say, "Ahh.  Finally, it feels like home."  And it does now.  No more nail holes that you didn't make yourself.  No more dirty smudges or scrapes that weren't made by your kids.  I know I've got a long way to go to make the rest of the house feel like it is ours, but the one room that we spend most of our time in is finished. We are happy.

before the great living room redo

Behold! House pictures, finally.  So in the following images, you will see our living room.  I will love this room when it is finished.  Very much so.  I like it now.  But paint and more curtains are needed. (I haven't told Seth about the curtains yet).

Oh and eventually, a new coffee table will be there as well.  But that may be a while.  Anyway, what you see on the walls are paint samples of two colors. Two stones, one rolling, one hot.  (Hot stone is the lighter, gray color; Rolling Stone is the darker).  More than you would like to know? Perhaps.  But if you have any opinions on paint colors, let me know.  So far, I am leaning away from Hot stone.  Too gray. 

This wall so far is empty.  I think it will be a good wall for family pictures.  We may also put a table of some sort.  I don't know.

I am most excited for what is going above the mantel.  You'll just have to wait and see....

where in the world am I?*

*Actually, I haven't been much anywhere but my mom sure has.  She is still in Germany, enjoying her world travels with my grandmother.  I have just been a lazy blogger...sorry.

(image from Dvice)

I walked into Barnes & Noble the other day and bought a Nook.  When the whole e-reader thing came out, I didn't want to have anything to do with them.  I can't really tell you why.  But then the Apple iPad came out and I really wanted it.  But because it is $500, I decided that I don't really have to have it.  I decided what I wanted from the iPad, I could also get from the Nook and now I have the Nook.  This really is a long, boring story but I haven't blogged in such a long time, I thought I should blog something. 

Anyway, love the Nook.  Love my cover. 

What else is going on?  Let's see, a lot and not much all at the same time.  We have about 2 1/2 weeks left before school starts and I need to get those kids enrolled! They are getting nervous about school, I can tell, but I am sure they will be fine.  I keep telling myself they will be fine.

I am about to begin painting.  We are going to start in the living area and kitchen.  I promise I will take a picture of the before and post it on here in a couple of days.  Then of course, the after picture when we're done. 

But before I begin, I have to go get paint.  And that means a trip to Lowe's.  With the boys.  Not fun. 

Talk to you soon...

Road Trip! Krista's House! Back Home!

Hello all.  So...last week, my mom, the boys and I had a little jaunt (ha!) across half the country to North Carolina to visit my sis and her family.  We drove two days to get there, stayed about 3 and then drove two more days to get back.

I am tired.

When we were driving home, Noah almost had a breakdown and said, "Please, next time can we fly there?"

I nodded my head in agreement.

Actually, the driving wasn't too bad.  It was just long.  And now I know that if we ever drive that way again, we need to take a day or two more to drive.  Each driving day we were in the car at least 10 hours and most of the time it was 11 1/2.  Then, we need to stay longer.  But, I digress.

High points of our trip:

The boys were great in the car.  They watched movies, read, played ds and occasionally talked to each other and us.

The drive through Tennessee was my favorite.  We went over so many rivers and the trees were beautiful as was the gentle curves.  Memphis and Nashville are two places I really want to visit again for longer than a bathroom break and a night's sleep.  Rhett wants to go whitewater rafting.  Noah wants to visit all the children's museums.  Mom wanted to go to Graceland, but settled for seeing a gianormas statue of Elvis that if touched would sound an alarm.

On the way back, we ate at a Subway in Nashville and mom and I both had a pulled pork sub.  That was the closest we got to having Southern barbeque but let me tell you, it was delicious!

The boys and their cousins got along so well.  The girls watched the boys play the Wii (The Simpsons game is their new favorite), they all played on a water slide for hours it seems both Saturday and Sunday, and we watched two movies together.  We first went to a Drive Through and watched Toy Story 3 for the second time, then we watched Descipicable Me, which was hilarious and sweet. 

I loved that we could sit and catch up with Krista and Chris and just hang out, which we couldn't do at Great Wolf Lodge at Christmas. 

Rhett caught the drawing bug and started drawing action figures.  He even imagined his own and Uncle Chris helped bring him to comic book form life.  Pretty awesome.  Rhett went from drawing simple figures to action heroes that had abs, so that is great improvement! 

Oh and this is how Noah looked for half of the trip:

It is not that Noah didn't have a good time, because he did.  He told me.  It is just that he, well, is Noah.  Last night, I asked him if he had a good vacation.  He said, "Yeah.  Well, I had my ups and downs....Probably a few more downs than ups."

And that pretty much sums him up.

As for me, I had more ups than downs.

how our house became our home

Hello there!  I am so excited.  There are no more boxes on the first floor of my house.  Everything is unpacked! Yay. I will post pictures but right now I am being lazy.  Although, if I load pictures, I will have time to read the book I have been reading for the past month.  The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson started out slow but is picking up speed now and I am really into it now.  Anyway...

Back to the house.  Because I have not blogged in a while, I want to tell the story of how our house became our house.  It really isn't a long story but it shows how things just work out in Seth's and my life.  Even if we fight it.  You'll see what I mean in a second.

So the first or second house hunting trip, we were looking at the neighborhood we currently reside in.  It was one of my favorites because it had trees (a plus) and it wasn't flat (I am all about interesting landscape). Our realtor took us to a house that is down the street from our house.  We got out of the car and I looked around.  I wasn't too thrilled with that house's location because it was right at the T in the road.  But I looked down the street and fell in love with another house.  Why? It was different than the others.  It had red bricks that had chunky cement in between (I know that doesn't sound appealing but it really looks neat).  It also had red window frames and black shutters.  Red window frames.  If you know me, you know I am all about the unique touches of a home (hello? Turquoise bathroom anyone?).  I told Seth, "Look at that house.  Too bad it is not on the market.  I love the outside!

A couple of weeks later, Seth called me and told me he looked at some houses with his realtor and nothing really was great except one.  He said, "Remember that red and black windows house?"

It was meant to be.

Except, I balked. 

Seth really liked the house.  He said it was a custom build so it had a lot of special touches throughout the home.  He said it had a good-sized backyard.  It was two-story, which the boys really wanted. Ect. Ect.

That weekend we went house hunting again.  And we looked at the house.  And I did like it.  Then we went to another house in another neighborhood.  This neighborhood had big, huge trees and lots of hills.  It had beautiful houses that were older and I loved them.  I started thinking of all we could do with these houses. 

Seth kept coming back to the red and black windows house.  This house had a neighborhood pool he said.  This way we could be near kids for Rhett and Noah. 

We looked at red and black windows house three times.  Each time I secretly loved it more.  Secretly because I was afraid we wouldn't get it so I didn't even want to try.  Isn't that silly? 

All those other houses were great.  But red and black windows house fit us.  And now that we are in it, I love it as much as you are supposed to love your home.  I can see ourselves here for many, many years.  Down the street are a whole mess of boys and a few girls that Rhett and Noah have already started playing with. I am so glad Seth didn't give up trying to talk me into it.

It really was meant to be.

Like I said, this has happened before.  When we moved to Edmond, I said, "I really want a magnolia tree in our yard."  Just a simple request.  They were everywhere in Edmond so I thought that would be an easy request.  Only one house we looked at had a magnolia tree in the yard.  And that house is the one we ended up buying.  (that probably isn't as good as the story above but I just wanted to drive home my point).

I hope everyone has a great 4th of July weekend.  We are having guests, so I need to finish cleaning.  Talk to you later!

what is the meaning of this?

Rhett and Noah found an old baby name book in the many piles of things I have been dragging out of boxes.  Noah wants to look up his name and so we find it. 

Noah:  What does Heb brew mean?
me: It is Hebrew.  It is where the name was derived from.
Noah: ?
me: Well, your name came from the bible.  That is a very old language.
Noah: Oh.
me: It says here your name means peaceful and restful.
Noah: What?
me: Peaceful and restful.
Noah: Aww! I am not peaceful or restful!
me: No, you really aren't.
Noah: I guess I might need a new name....Wait, what does Lee mean?
me: Meadow. My middle name is Leigh too so I know.
Noah: Meadow?

Then I look it up.

me: It also means plum.  So you are a peaceful meadow or a restful plum!

Noah then gives me the look which means I took it too far, even if I didn't.  Fun is over, I go back to my dishes.

A few minutes later...

Noah: Hey! My new name can be Gib!  It means powerful. 

Because being powerful beats being peaceful anyday, at least according to Gib.

its the best of both worlds

I am still surrounded by boxes, but half of them are filled with just paper and some are broken down so that is good.  I tackled the laundry room today and boy, I didn't like doing that.  Actually, none of this has been fun except when I discover that I have more room in this house so I don't have to stuff things into a tiny space.  So yay for that.  And boo for unpacking.  And boo for the humidity because my sons do not want to do anything but watch tv.  They are learning all the songs from Hannah Montana and I actually have always enjoyed the Disney Channel (way back when there was The New Mickey Mouse Club and someone on it looked a little like me-to myself anyway) so I don't mind the shows. 

But I think within a few days all the boxes will be unpacked and we can start living in our house like we should. Then maybe the boys and I can go explore all that Tulsa has to offer.  The aquarium, the zoo (maybe really early in the morning?), the space center, ect.  I hope so.  Summer is flying by...

Well, back to it! 

almost too tired to type this

Hi.  I just wanted to pop in and say, well, hi.  We are here in our new home surrounded by many, many boxes.  It is a little overwhelming and I just don't know where to begin.  I start cleaning the kitchen and then don't know where to put things yet so I move on to the boys' bedrooms only to be reminded that I have to paint before putting their things away.  I love our new house so much but I have to admit that it is the messiest home I have ever moved into.  Dirty everywhere.  All the walls need a new coat of paint but if you know me, then you know I am excited about that. Since Rhett said he would have the "pink" room, I told him he will have the first redo.  I really thought I would get it painted right away (I mean right away) but didn't think about how exhausted I would be. So worn out.  Then Rhett got a sinus infection and we had to spend time finding a doctor and going to the doctor, ect.  The good news is that I think I could live here the rest of my life and not ever have to go furthur than 10 minutes away from home for anything we need.  It takes 2 minutes to get to Target.  It took 3 to get to the doctor.  The mall is just up the road a bit and if I ever want a new car, their are dealers right by Target. We live in the neighborhood right behind the movie theater.  It really is awesome. 

Well, I am done eating lunch so I guess I better go do something.  I guess we can't live much longer surrounded by boxes except I have to say that it certaintly makes you wonder why we need so much stuff. 

Have a great weekend.  We are unpacking.  What about you?

random post while waiting to move

The movers were supposed to come today, but changed it to tomorrow.  So here I am, fighting a cold (of course), eating pretzel M&Ms (so yummy!) and taking a break from everything else to bring you my last blog before the big move.  I don't have anything profound to say because I am too tired to get emotional about leaving a place that we have lived longer than any other place since we got married.  And really, it was only 4 years, so it wasn't even that long!  Ha! Ha! 

Instead I will say that my dad was appalled (appalled I tell you) that I could write such a lengthy and intellectual post about a tv show and still not have read the many books he lent me about The Civil War.  (And Brother, he was just as appalled at you for watching this show too, so you aren't off the hook!)  I told him, jokingly, that  if The Civil War was as interesting as an island with mysteries, then I would be reading those books.  Seriously, though, I was overwhelmed.  So what did my dad do?  He gave me another book about the Civil War.  And I have started reading it.  And I love it!  Yay.

You see, I asked Dad a question about why people in the South call the Civil War, The War Between States. The book he let me borrow is all about the South's attitude toward the war they lost.  Confederates in the Attic follows the author, Tony Horwitz's adventure for places and people who still speak as "though [their] kinsmen died yesterday, not 130 years ago."  It is hilarious and interesting and disturbing all at the same time.  What is most disturbing is that children in the Children of the Confederacy, are being taught to hate Yankees.  Or maybe it is that some parents register their babies at birth to become the youngest child registered in their division of the C. of C. 

I still am not even half-way through the book but I am glad I have it during this stressful week. 

Well, I better get back to it.  I will update when we are moved into our new home and have internet access.  Till then, adios and have a great June!

my thoughts on the final "Lost"

This week is going to be stressful, sad and already started off on a bad note, but I want to take a moment to reflect on something that took up a lot of my time for the past 6 years:  LOST.

The very last episode was last night and I will be honest:  At first, I was too wrapped up in "how's this going to end?" to appreciate the actually ending.  Now that I've had a chance to think, look at other people's reflections and watch the ending again, I can say that is was very appropriate, moving and that I am happy about it.

If you haven't watched it yet, please don't read furthur.  And if you have never watched it, then you probably don't want to read anymore, so see you in another post, brotha! (hee hee, I love Desmond!)

What I loved:

That it really was all about love:
Juliet and Sawyer, Jin and Sun, Charlie and Claire, Jack and Kate and Desmond and Penny all ended happy together.  I wished there had been another Desmond and Penny scene because my favorite episode is "Constant" where Desmond calls Penny on the phone and they declare their love to each other and promise to find one another.  That episode made me realize what they show meant for me (love) and carried me through all the low times.  Oh and I didn't forget about Hurley.  Someone in the blog world put it exactly right when they said that Hurley represented Love itself.  Didn't he, though?

It was also about Redemption:
So the island was real and the Sideways World was their "purgatory" or waiting place?  Ok, I'll go with that.  Sideways world seemed a little off anyway.  But how great was it that most of the Losties had a chance to redeem themselves?
When Sideways Locke told Jack, "You don't have a son!", I was mildly confused.  What is going on?  But now I know, with the little help from others, that Jack needed a son in his limbo world to help him resolve any daddy issues he had.  And Locke had to be at fault for his father ending up a vegetative state so he could have a relationship with him.  Also, in Sideways world, he accepted his fate in his wheelchair.  Sayid's love, Nadia, was still alive and even if he couldn't be with her, she had a chance of happiness.  (It was reaching that he ended up with Shannon but I'll go with it because it brought Boone back and I love him). Sawyer was actually the good guy and respected the law.  Kate was still a fugitive, yes, but she said she was innocent and I believed her.  Hurley didn't have the bad luck that plagued him in his real life. Desmond had his father-in-law's respect. Jin and Sun ended up together, happy and pregnant. All of these things happened so they all could break free of their earthly baggage and "let go". 

It could just be the story of Jack and that's okay with me.
Maybe the Sideways world was just Jack's test to see if he could go toward the light...or not.  All the people who showed up at the church all had connections to Jack.  He saved Rose's life. He couldn't save Boone's. These are examples.  All Jack ever wanted to do was save people.  And then he finally realized he couldn't.  And that is when he knew he could.  That the Losties all gathered in the church to help Jack move on was beautiful because even though they all died at different times and in different places and maybe some much later on, Jack is the one who made it possible to move into the light.  He saved the light when he re-corked the evil during his time as Island protector.  

Lost ending=Titanic ending
At the end of Titanic, Jack (huh! same character name) and all the others from the doomed ship gathered in the ship to welcome Rose after she died.  It was the same thing on Lost!  After Jack realized he was dead, he had a reunion with the people that thought the Island was the most important place in their lives or at least the most life-altering. Some people had not resolved all their issues and weren't ready to move on (Ben? Ana Lucia? Daniel?) but connecting to others helped them to move on.

Some last things to ponder:
Juliet, Charile, Boone and Shannon all died on the island.  They didn't have a big part in the Sideways world.  Does that mean that they had already resolved their issues or redeemed themselves before they died or do you think we just didn't see it?

We know Jack died on the island after saving the it and the light.  So I guess it went on: Hurley was protector with Ben as his #2, everyone else went on with their lives...strange to think about how much time passed and how time really had no meaning for the Sideways world.

Do you think anything bad would have happened if the Man In Black would have escaped? Or was that Jacob trying not to be left alone?

Anyway, the creators of this fabulous show have to be happy because guess what? We are still talking about it and probably will for a long time.  Kudos.  I will miss it.

A Tale of Two Wall-E Robots

One day, Big Brother and Little Brother was going to go to a birthday party.  They were very excited about this birthday because it was at a place called Laserquest, where children can run and shoot their friends with lasers.  Awesome.  The brother's less-than-excited Dad was going to take them to the party at 4:30 on a lovely Saturday afternoon. 

At 4:50, the brother's Mom received a phone call from the aforementioned Dad.  What time did the party start was the question.  Mom looked at the invitation and gasped.  The party time was in military time, which means the party started at 1430 hours, which meant 2:30, Dad had to explain to horrified Mom.  Then really-less-than-excited Dad had to explain to crushed brothers that they, gulp, missed the party. 

But heroic Dad came to the rescue.  "We can go to the mall!"  "We can get a treat for you!" As an aside, this is from Dad who doesn't see the Brothers all week because he works in a different city right now.  So keeping the peace and seeing his sons happy is important to him. 

Two hours later, happy-again brothers come home with their treasures.  Big Brother bought baseball cards and proudly showed off his Yankees Mickey Mantle and Derek Jeter.  Little Brother came in with not one, but two Wall-Es. 

Mom looked at frazzled Dad and was about to ask why? but Dad quickly explained that there was a sale.  Two for the price of one and a half or something like that.  Smiling wide, Little Brother explained that he was giving one Wall-E to his soon-to-be-excited Cousin from Canyon.  Mom was touched.  Dad was just glad they were home.

A few days later...

Little Brother decides that he wants to keep both Wall-Es.  They are both cute.  They would miss each other.  They both love Little Brother.  He begins to place them side-by-side whereever he sits: at the breakfast table, on the couch, in the car.  No amount of pleading will convince Little Brother that he doesn't need two robots who look exactly alike. 

And now, Wall-E #1 and Wall-E #2 are apart of the family, evening joining in on family activities:

They even beat us at Sorry. 

Big Brother said, "I can't believe I got beat by a pair of stuffed robots."  Little Brother danced happily away with his Wall-Es in his arms.

The End ?


*If this post seems familar to you, it is. What can I say? My kids love things in multiples. 

OKC Hail Storm on May 16th

Because we have another chance of severe weather today, I thought I would share with you an amazing video of footage from Sunday's hail storm in OKC. There are a lot of youtube videos of the storm, but this one is the best because of the pool.

Luckily, we didn't receive anything but rain where we lived but we barely made it home from the mall in OKC before all "hail" broke loose. Ha.
Living in the OKC area is never boring, weather wise. (I know, Texas is equally as interesting! Don't want to offend any fellow Texans here.) I hope we are lucky today as well and miss all the strong stuff. But if we do have hail or worse, you can bet that I will not be standing by a window, filming it. Seriously.

Just a note: you might want to turn off the volume of this video because all he says is "OMG" over and over and it gets a little annoying after awhile. Also, if you think it is a long video, skip until a minute in.

this post is about my brother

I have mentioned the awesome blog before and I hope you have been reading it because it is just really great.  The other day it mentioned that people who help you parallel park are awesome.  And they are. 

When my brother and I were in driver's ed, we had a very strict teacher as our driving instructor.  Now, we were good kids and she liked us (ok, she liked us because we of our great sisters) but it still made me nervous.  Especially the day we were supposed to parallel park,  I was terrified.

And that is when my brother came to the rescue.  He sat right behind the instructor and because of that she couldn't see his sly hand gestures that told me to keep backing up, keep backing up, turn, turn, turn...stop!  I parallel parked perfectly that day.  Thanks to Casey.  He is awesome.  I don't know if I did the same for him but it wasn't for lack of trying. 

Of course, I have not been able to parallel park one time since that day.  But that is okay.  I like parking further away from buildings and walking anyway.

a new story for your enjoyment

A couple of things I need to mention (why did that make me think of Yoda?) before you begin to read Rhett's latest story.  First, these stories must use their spelling words for the week.  That was a big "ahh" moment for me.  Second, we have a neighbor that recently put up a bathouse in her backyard.  You know, for mosquitos.  Uh, yeah.  Anyway, my friend and I were recently talking about how awful of an idea that was and Rhett started listening in.  We ended up discussing bats and vampire bats and everything in between. Noah and Rhett started joking about it how you could become a bat from any little thing. For example: the wind blowing your hair was a sign of batness!  I know, it was totally silly but hilarious to them.  Also, I wasn't planning on putting this on the blog, but Rhett really wanted me to.  Obviously, all your nice comments about his last story went to his head. Anyway, I thought these notes might help. 

Bat People
by Rhett Houston

One day a few famous people named Derek Jeter, Nick Swisher and Alex Rodriguez were in a plane.  They all played for the Yankees.  Above them was a dinosaur. They threw baseballs at it.  But that made it worse.  They were out of the plane when this happened.  The dinosaur sneezed, and they were covered in...well, I probably shouldn't say.
There was a jungle nearby.  They ran into the jungle.  Alex know as A-Rod tripped onto some kind of animal and it bit him. 
Auhhhg! "That hurt!" He said. 
That was a batness bug! It gives you a sickness that has symptoms.  They turn you into a bat!
Huh?
Paper falling from the sky! A sign of batness. 
The next day...
Ahh! A-Rod is a bat!
Open that bottle of coke! I heard that gallons of coke kill them!
"We're talkin' about A-ROD!" said Nick.  We've got to travel back to New York to get a cure.
A-Rod looks afraid. 
There's a circus over there.  "Let's go in," said Derek. 
Hey, we're in New York.  That must have been a portal!
A-Rod found an item and ate it.  Hey! I'm cured!

The End?

a quick look into my week

I think I need glasses.  I am starting to realize that I squint when I look at the tv and computer.  Huh.

The other day the boys and I were driving home from somewhere and they were fighting.

You did not.
Did too.
Did not....
I say, "Wow, look at those beautiful wildflowers."

Rhett said, "Yes. They are pretty."
Noah said, "Mom, are you trying to distract us? Because I guess it worked."

The boys have a talent show in music class at the end of May.  Rhett is going to doing something very funny and talented but I can't really explain it.  But next time you see him, ask him to do his "talent" and he'll crack you up.  Noah can't do it and was sad but I told him that I will teach him to play "Jaws" on the piano.  He was excited.

Seriously, things are really blurry right now.  Has it been like this for awhile?  Or am I just now noticing?

Rhett had his field trip yesterday.  We went to a homestead where there is a house that was built right after the land run of Oklahoma.  The family ordered it from the Sears catalog.  And it was a two-story house!

Speaking of Okies, Dad, your comment really made me laugh hard.  And cringe about the hookworms...

Today I have a Mother's Day Tea with Noah.  I remember two years ago when I had it with Rhett.  It is bittersweet, this last month of school.  I feel so sad that we are leaving that sweet little school.  The teachers are great and I found a lot of friends there.  We are excited to move and look forward to new experiences, but there will be things we will miss.  I had to bring flowers in a vase for the tea.  I picked my own roses and placed them in a square vase.  It looked great.  I would show you a picture, but I upload photos to the laptop and Seth takes that during the week.  So that is why you haven't seen a photo on my blog in awhile!

It is amazing how quickly I reverted back to my old self.  Not having to keep the house clean anymore, I relaxed this week and haven't made the bed in several days.  I thought that if you do something 21 days it would become a habit.  Guess not.

I wish all the wonderful Moms I know a wonderful Mother's Day.  Isn't being a mom great?

things are starting to look up

I really didn't mean to be such a tease yesterday.  I needed to vent but I didn't want to further embarrass my child.  If you really think about it, you'll understand.

Anyway, today is a better day.  Said child is back at school and...

Our house is under contract!!!

Woo-hoo!!

We are so relieved and excited.  Everything is working out.  We'll be out of here by the first of June and in our new home in Tulsa.  I feel so good that it is actually happening now.  May will go by so fast since it is the last of school.  It is so busy during that time.

Have a great day!

And PS- Happy Birthday Melissa!!

this is now my new decree

After staying up until 2 am last night doing something no one should wish on anyone else, I will never take the term "nit-picking" lightly again.  In fact, I think "nit-pickers" are saints.  And so are the "nit-pick-ees."

And that is all I have to say about that.