Long Days

Well, my older sister was here for two months and now she's gone, and my hubby is gone. It's made for some really long days, but here are some of the fun things that have kept me going ...

Two nights ago I put pink rollers in Rana's hair. My mom used to do this to me when I was a little girl, and I loved it. Here's the before and after (taken the following morning) pics. I think she is so beautiful. While I'm on the topic of Rana... while talking to my mom on the phone yesterday, I heard her say, "You're not alone. God is with you, Silly." I'm not sure what my mom said. My guess is she was explaining that Papa was playing Bingo in OK, and she was home alone. Rana has so much awareness of God. I could go on and on with stories, but I won't.

This afternoon the neighbors asked if the kids could come out and play in the sprinklers. Owen was asleep, so I put his swim trunks on him, and told him we would be outside playing in the water. About 10 minutes later he came out with his rain boots on. He is such a hilarious little guy. Sometimes he knows he's being funny, and other times I don't think he has a clue. It's hard for me to make the distinction on this one. He does have a sweet side, though. Every day he says to me, "Mommy, I have a song for you," and he sings to me.

Jace has been sleeping until 7am, which is much better than the 5am routine he had while my sister was sharing his room. That has been very helpful.

I'm posting extra pics of the kids for Scott. Rana had all the girls pretending to be on a beach reading books. She dictated to each one where and how they would lay. She even told them they all had to move thier legs back and forth, and had her Barbie radio playing. Of course, I wondered "Where did she learn this?" So, I asked. The answer: Max and Ruby. Amazing!

Where Do They Learn These Things?

As I write, my children are having a "money party." We have a coffee can of change in the mud room where we store "Disney money." It's their savings for Disney World when Jace turns 3. Right now they are chunking handfuls of change in the air and yelling "MONEY PARTY." We haven't really been proactive about teaching them any principles of money. So, I'm sitting here wondering, "Where did they learned this???"

Luke's Farm

Yesterday Rana's class had an end of the year picnic at Luke's farm in Evergreen. It was a great place with friendly animals and fun activities (see-saw, hammock, slide, animals, playhouse, face/arm painting) for the kids. I thought it was a little pricey ($8/person) , but I recommend it as a relaxing place for parents, and a fun place for kids that's different than the park. Jace crawled right up to one of the goats and just hung out. The owner rigged up this train pulled by a lawn mower, and the kids loved it. The little blonde boy with Rana is Ashton. We didn't know it, but that is Rana's boyfriend. His mom has told me of endless stories of Ashton professing and confessing his love for his Rana. What I didn't know was the feelings were reciprocated. The teachers told me for the first time yesterday. Don't ask me how I feel about that.

9 YEARS!

Scott and I celebrated our 9 year anniversary today. This was a special one for me because I feel our childbearing days are behind us, and we get to move forward with childrearing, and possibly re-claim time for our marriage. Today, I pondered the things I love about him. My favorite character, by far, is his ability to trust God. It's second nature to him, and I used to hate it. Scott doesn't live on the edge, he lives in a free-fall off the edge. I think some people call it reckless abandon. It's truly admirable. I used to pray, and talk, and stress, and secure my safety harness before even approaching the edge... and that was just to jump off a rock! I have had more adventure in these last 9 years than I would have ever had alone. What a gift!

There are other great things that I love about Scott. He's a terrfic Daddy, an amazing athlete, and pretty easy on the eyes. However, today I am particularly thankful that he's taking those cliff dives with me. As a single mother with 3 kids, little support and little resources, my Mom taught me to trust God, and He never failed. Scott has taught me that even with tons of support and resources, God still loves and provides. I'm excited about where He's leading us and feel honored to parent, live and love with my husband.

Mc's take San Antonio

Last week our fam vacationed in San Antonio. It's been a while since we've taken a vacation, so we didn't quite know what to do with ourselves. We did manage, however, to enjoy the time away, see lots of family, and have tons of fun. Here's the itinerary and a few photos (click on them to enlarge) ...

Last week was Fiesta week in San Antonio. On Monday Scott's parents came over to meet us and my parents for the river parade on the San Antonio river walk. It was so nice to have both sets of grandparents to ourselves. In case you can't see it on their faces, our kids love spending time with all of them!

On Tuesday my sister came down from Dallas and met us at the IMAX theater. We watched a 3d Deep Sea show. Rana and Owen both tried to reach out and touch the various marine life. Watching them was a highlight. They're such cool kids.
We spent Tuesday night with more of my people (that's for you, Liz!), my Aunti Vera, Uncle Victor, cousin Leo and his son Dillon, and cousin Blanca (due any day!) and her husband Al. I don't get to see them often enough. It was a fun evening.

Wednesday was a GREAT day. My mom and Walter gave Scott and I their Maverick playoff tickets. So, we drove 5 hours to Dallas, saw the game, and drove 5 hours back. Sound crazy? We thought so too, until we considered that we had a full 24 hours to ourselves (they wanted to watch the kids while we went!). On the way there and back I cranked the radio up and sang with all my favorite artists (Prince and Miss Jackson to name a couple) at the top of my lungs, and Scott read. We went to the game (the Mavs WON!), then checked into a hotel and SLEPT IN! Loved it ... a lot!

Thursday night we took the river tour on one of the river boats, then took the kids to the Fiesta carnival with my parents. All of it was great. There is so much history and culture on and around the river. I was proud to expose my kids to all of it.

On Friday we unofficially ended our vacation with a visit to Sea World. The kids LOVED it. The shows were great as were the rides and other attractions. It was well worth the time and money. And, now we're back. San Antonio was great -- the vacation, the time with our family and extended family, and even the weather was incredible. Hopefully we won't have to wait another 3 years to vacation again!