Living the Life

The boys in my life

2009-09-15T17:35:00.005-05:00

Caden has decided that he needs a "big truck with a hooker on the back". I am hoping and praying that he's just mispronouncing 'hook'.

I am married to a 10-year-old. We're driving along the other day (Stan at the wheel)in the rain, when I feel a nearly imperceptible shift to the right of the road. Where there was a puddle. I didn't think too much of it...until he did it again. I asked him about it & he nonchalantly told me he likes puddles. All day long, if it didn't impede other motorists, we swerved to hit the puddles.

And you know what? It WAS fun!

My prayer for the year

2009-08-23T19:15:00.003-05:00

Lord,

Please help me to be the teacher that each of my kids needs. Please help me to see that they are in my room for Your purpose, that for a reason maybe unknown to anyone but You, they need me for that 50 minutes per day. Please help me to show love and patience to each of the babies placed in my care. Please make them feel welcome and safe. Please help me to show Your love and kindness and be with me because I can't make it on my own. Guide me as I try to make them better students and people, all the while being a mama, counselor, friend, confidante, referee, etc. And more than anything, let them see You & not me.

In Jesus' name,

Amen

What Matters

2009-08-15T08:16:00.004-05:00

I've had a lot of opportunity the last few weeks to reflect on what's important & what's not. This has been one of the best summers I've ever had for many reasons, one of which that may surprise some people.

I am so thankful we lost our Mountaineer. Seriously. We have found out that God is taking care of us & we are going to be just fine. We never would've sold it, but God knew we could live without it & He was right. We received more money from the insurance settlement than we ever would've gotten for trading it in down the line & paying off bills feels great! Having one car isn't going to be the hardship we thought & we're glad God forced it on us.

I am developing some great friendships in my Sunday School class. The ladies have been having a lot of social time this summer and getting to know different people has been a huge blessing for me. Between the ladies nights, slumber party(parties hopefully!), & the book club (that will meet for the first time in September), I am getting to know & love a lot of awesome gals!

I am so excited to get back to school! Knowing my colleagues & getting hugs Friday (our first day back) was awesome!! I get to teach 3 senior classes this year also, & I am so ready to go & tackle this new mountain (I LOOOVE British Lit in an almost obsessive way)! Teacher Field Day was great & even recovering from surgery, I got to participate.

I had a great teacher's conference in Dallas. There are some "What happens in Dallas, stays in Dallas" moments, but what I can say is this - getting to hang out with these people for a week (& ride in a convertible!) & teach with them during the year is a huge blessing. They make me want to be better for my kids.

I celebrated 13 years of wedded bliss with Stan. I canNOT believe it has been thirteen years!!! He, of course, looks more handsome and incredible as the years go by while I need a bit more...enhancement, shall we say, than I did at 22.

The product of that wedded bliss turned 4 this summer. He will be an only child. I had the 'no more kids' surgery last week...more on that next post.

Most of all, I am so thankful that God has surrounded me with people who don't judge my worth by my hip size. For the most part, I get to be with people on a daily basis who love me and accept me and 'get' me. I am terribly excited about the upcoming school year and all the chaos and activities that a new year always brings: football games, new kids to love, old kids to hug, books to read, family to see, & friends to hang out with.

Have a great year!!

Thank you God Part II

2009-08-02T18:37:00.009-05:00

Stan left this afternoon to get money from the ATM for me, laundry detergent (for me as well) & something to eat. Caden decided to stay home with me (Thank you GOD!!).

I get a call about 15 minutes later from Stan. "I need you to come get me at Longmire & Brothers. I got hit. I'm okay. And you need to know that the truck is upside down right now."
I'm so glad he told me. Even knowing that, it was very difficult driving up to the scene, seeing the ambulance (with lights on), the firetruck, and all the cop cars. I threw the car into a parking place & I grabbed Caden's hand and probably dragged him across the street. Stan assured me that the blood I saw on his head and arm were from the window when he climbed out. He said a nice man cut his seatbelt for him so he didn't have to hang in the air. And no, I canNOT believe I just wrote that sentence.

One of the firemen immediately came over and asked Caden if he wanted to see the firetruck. Caden grabbed my hand and held onto the fireman with the other. He was interested in the truck, but didn't want to get into it - he's not a fan of the noise.

Later when I told him we needed to thank God for keeping Daddy safe, he asked me, "Are the firemen God, Mama?" I teared up a little and said, "No. But God is with them all of the time and He helps them help other people."
After we took some more pictures with Stan's phone (the camera died), he said he was still hungry and with a bleeding head and arm, he said he wanted a Freebird's burrito.

We're down to one car & we're not sure about a lot of things right now. But - Stan is safe and at home with us - he didn't even need to go to the hospital.

Thank you nice man who cut his seatbelt.

Thank you policeman for telling us what was going to happen step by step.

Thank you firemen for being there to help and being sweet to my little boy.

...Thank you God.

Thank You God

2009-07-26T20:43:00.003-05:00

Caden's prayer tonight:

Thank you God. Mama, you're not saying it. Say it
(He repeats) Thank you God. (I solemnly echoed)
Indivisible with liberty and justice for all. (I repeated, albeit a little less solemnly)
Thank you for turning the TV on. (me lauging uncontrollably, barely able to get the words out)
And for not wasting any power. Amen

I'm going to be away this week at a teacher conference. Oh the things I will miss:
1) Caden helping me walk down my dark school hallway because he "has big eyes and he will use them to help Mama."
2) Caden asking me to read him a book and then tell him a story. Now, Caden gives me the basic plotline, characters, & setting so all I need to do is draw them together.
3) Stan giving me a blow-by-blow account of the Tour de France.
4) Reading on my bed while Caden watches TV in our bedroom.
5) Hearing Caden sing the theme song from the Geico commercial, "Let me be myself"
6) Taking Caden to Lowe's & hearing him tell another little boy (who is playing on the riding lawnmowers like Caden) that he will share his (imaginary) tools with him. Caden likes to fix the lawnmowers by lifting the hood, tinkering with the engine, & then the most crucial step - blowing leaves in the engine.

I will miss both of my boys so much!

A boy, a party, & a dog

2009-07-12T14:12:00.011-05:00

There's not a trace of my genetic code in that kid!

We had Caden's party yesterday. I was pretty nervous about it because, well, that's just what I do. It was his first party & my first as a birthday boy's mama, so it was a little nerve-racking.

I shouldn't have been nervous. The kids started piling in around 10 & within a few minutes were all outside playing on the moonwalk/bouncy thing we rented for the day. I had to do the girl thing & cut the cake & give it to all the kids. I know it sounds silly, but doing typical girl/mama things doesn't come easily to me.

I hope everyone wasn't expecting a great big show, because at the Aalbers house, we're pretty laidback. The kids were running back & forth, inside & outside playing. Our living room was a wreck with toys! A friend of Caden's gave him a bag filled with all sorts of outdoor games, so a few dads put them together & the kids played with that. Everyone was sweaty and happy when they left.

After the party we went to lunch with Oma & Opa (Stan's parents) and then came back home and recuperated from the party. The moonwalk guy told us we would have the bouncy thing much longer than we had paid for because he had to travel out of town to break down a rental for a VBS going on in Milano. Caden was able to get a few more hours of playtime out of it.

About 6, he shows up at our house & Stan sees a black blur go across our backyard window. The guy brought his dog, Bella! We all sat on the back porch and played fetch with the dog while her daddy broke down the moonwalk. I always think it's hilarious, because the bigger the dog is, the more Caden loves it. He cannot stand little dogs; he's terrified of them. But a great big lab or Weimeraner (sp?) makes him shriek with glee.

I hate to say it & if any of the kiddoes' parents at our party are reading this,I am sorry, but this was the highlight of his day. He laughed and had so much fun with her. Maybe in a year or 2 we'll get him one of his own.

Big Boy

2009-07-09T18:43:00.007-05:00

Caden turned 4 on June 20th. We made the deal with him that on his birthday, he would throw away his little boy potty.

He was more than OK with it.

He hasn't missed it at all!

And just because there are never any pictures of the 2 of us (you can tell I'm the photog of the family), here's a few pictures of us playing at a park on his big day.

It's been how long????

2009-07-04T14:06:00.002-05:00

I'm not really sure where to start blogging since it's been sooo long, but here goes.

I apologized to Caden awhile ago for yelling at him. He rubbed my back & kissed me & said it was OK. I wanted to say, 'Are we friends again?' but I don't believe in parents & kids being friends so I asked, "Are we Mommy & Caden again?" I know, pretty lame.

He said yes & then asked me, "What happens if you're not my mama?"

I said I would always be his mama.

He asked, "But what if you're not?"

I replied, "Do you want a new mama?"

He started to say yes but then stated, "Actually, no."

I laughed and thinking we were done, I started to walk away.

But he couldn't let it go. "I always want the old mama...and you're old."

I looked back at him and he grinned like he knew exactly what he had said.

Can you stand the cuteness?

2008-12-21T16:00:00.003-06:00

We apparently are NOT paying enough for daycare if this is the kind of stuff they are teaching him. Stan & I heard it the first time when Caden was walking down the hallway. We just heard the part about the naughty girls and making them cry.

I looked at Stan & asked, "Did you teach him that?"

He said, "No!"

We were parking the truck at Kroger today when we got him to sing the whole thing and we cracked up. It's the funniest thing I've ever heard!

Workshop Day

2008-11-13T17:57:00.001-06:00

What's the best part about going to a workshop? An hour and a half long lunch and getting to pee whenever I want to!

What's a girl to do?

2008-11-08T09:29:00.010-06:00

The relationship between a girl and her mailman is a very tenuous and important one.

I've just realized how much so.

There's something going on between me and mine.

He leaves the box open when it rains so my mail gets wet.

He wads up magazines and newspaper ads so they are crumpled and torn when I retrieve them.

The other day, he stuffed a package in there and I almost couldn't get it out.

I question myself - did I do something? Did I antagonize him in any way? Whenever I've seen him, I THINK I've been politely friendly. I mean, I've never baked him cookies, but to tell you the truth - my cookies aren't that great, so maybe that's a good thing...right?

Should I leave a note in the box? Stickers? A McDonald's gift card? Lotion? Those polyester uniforms must certainly chafe the skin.

Have any of you gone through this turmoil? It's killing me inside to think that someone I don't know very well could have this animosity towards me. If it was someone who knew me, I could understand - I'm cute & funny & have cool glasses.

But that's a whole other post.

Injury time-out

2008-11-03T09:59:00.004-06:00

The other night Stan, Stumpy, & Caden went to the A&M Consolidated football game. Nana & I stayed home. When they got home, Caden put his football helmet on and began running around the room, tackling Nana & throwing his football.

He then laid down on his back, hiked his pants leg up and yelled, "I hurt my knee! Someone needs to come look at it!"

Obviously the kid watches too much football. He even re-enacts the injuries.

It's never dull!

2008-10-28T14:14:00.003-06:00

Last night the whole family went to Macy's to get some fancy britches for Stan. We're walking around the men's department upstairs and they have tons of mannequins that are only from the waist down, showcasing their collection of slacks.

We were shopping and Caden was running and playing, but then Stan & I got distracted. Caden had been quiet for a minute (& that's never good) and when we looked up, he was standing on the little platform gripping the mannequin tightly just below the waist.

I said, "Caden, get off of that."

And he said - or yelled - "NO, THAT'S MY DADDY!!!!"

I informed him that it most certainly was NOT his daddy & he needed to let go RIGHT NOW.

I cannot make this stuff up.

Feeling a little sad

2008-10-12T00:44:00.002-05:00

Last night I went to my first Varsity Consolidated football game. Those of you who know me may think it's weird that it took me this long to go, but I really had no desire to. I don't know ANY of the kids playing. I have one Bengal Belle & 2 sophomore cheerleaders, but that's it.

And as the band played, I teared up because I remember the last few years being eager to be at the games so I could take pictures of my kids, hurriedly get them developed at Walgreens and then take them to school Monday morning so I could have them up on the wall before the kids came in.

I remember Adolfo, my incredibly mature, sweet-natured kid who led the drum line in band but played football too so he would get out there and march during halftime in his uniform. But he did it barefoot because he said it was easier to march that way.

I missed Dino, one of my alltime favorite students (I know as a teacher I'm not supposed to say that, but it's true!). I watched him mature from a little sophomore all the way to a self confident senior. It was so much fun watching him grow and I loved snapping pictures because he has 'that face' and it's so expressive.

I missed watching Danny get so frustrated on the sidelines when things weren't going their way. He'd stand with his hands on his hips and then shake his head in disgust when a play didn't go as planned.

I missed watching James, Cordrick, and Jared laugh and goof off when the team was on and the game was good. As a teacher, getting to see them in their element was exciting and I tried to bring football into the classroom more because of them.

I missed watching Coach Tuck get so irate that his bald head would turn red as a beet and he would have those big macho players quaking in their cleats. Whenever I had trouble with football players in class, all I had to do was email Tuck. Problem solved.

I missed seeing all of my sweet babies in the stands. I love seeing students outside the classroom. It reminds both of us that we're people and we're not just 'student' and 'teacher'.

I missed seeing Bethany & Jill in their cheerleader outfits, catching my eye so I could take their picture.

I missed working the gate and seeing former students come back to the game, or have them sneak up behind me to give me a bearhug and tell me they missed me.

I will forever miss bringing Caden to school one day and having the star quarterback come by my room on his 'aide' period, hold out his arms to Caden and Caden jumping to him, and then both of them walking around the school for half an hour. I didn't worry about Caden at all because I knew he was with Brian and he was safe.

All of this is running through my mind - as the band is playing and the game is getting started - like a slideshow. I didn't have my camera with me. I hadn't even thought about bringing it.

I know this is part of being somewhere new - and especially someplace so incredibly huge as Consolidated, but I'm still struggling because I miss my kids. I miss my kids. What makes me love teaching is what made the decision to leave Cameron so heartwrenching.

So please pardon the melancholy nature of this post. I promise not to wallow. But for one night at one football game, the memories were just too much.

The gas factor

2008-09-28T19:12:00.002-05:00

I got gas today.

Now, normally that wouldn't be blog worthy. I used to fill up my car every 3 days.

Today was the first day I got gas since AUGUST 20!

That's right - I made it from August 20 until September 28 on one tank!!!!!

So, last year at this time, I would've already paid $420 purchasing gas (or more with all of the fluctuations) for my car & right now...since the beginning of the school year (really a week before), I've paid a total of $42!

Not quite so separated

2008-09-25T07:48:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I showed up at school, stepped out of my car, and inexplicably heard the sounds of drums and guitars. I looked over at the front of the school and there was a band, all set up, singing their hearts out - about Jesus!

Wow! What a way to start my day. It was awfully early, but the kids were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed - and they sounded good!

Way cool.

Oxford Street

2008-09-18T10:21:00.001-05:00

I am sooo sad that Oxford Street has closed down! Stan & I went there on our 1st date, well, our first official date. We also ate there the night of our wedding. My family had a celebratory lunch there when I graduated from A&M. Stan & I celebrated our 11th anniversary there.

I get so sentimental about dumb stuff, but this was a really special place to me. If Stan & I had to pick our restaurant, this would've been it - not the place we went to all of the time, but the place we reserved for the special occasions. We always had good food, good service, and I loved the atmosphere.

In the grand scheme of things, this is not a tragedy - far from it. But it's one of the little things that meant a great deal to me and I'm sad it's gone.

Mama & Caden's Day. of. Fun!!*

2008-09-12T12:53:00.006-05:00

So school is out today to house evacuees from Hurricane Ike and Caden's school is closed b/c CSISD is so we have had a super fun day!

I (stupidly) stayed up late reading b/c I didn't have to go to school today. Oh wait - I have a 3-year-old who has decided to get up at 6:30 every morning now!!! Oh, the joy. But he was super sweet and let me bribe him with Spongebob Squarepants and Dora while I slept. I told him I would get up after Dora and when I did, he said, "No - I want to watch another one" so I got to sleep until 8:30! He watched TV and played with his new trash truck in our bed. So sweet.

When I woke up, he told me that it was not raining and we could go to the park this morning. (He remembered me saying that last night.) So we got up, got ready, and went to McDonald's for breakfast. We sat on the same side in the booth - so fun. Then we went and got my car inspected. Not so fun, but one of those life necessities. But it was cute listening to Caden try to say 'inspected'.

I was going to take him to Tanglewood Park (so he could put rocks in his new trash truck) but when we drove by the park at South Knoll Elementary, he decided he wanted to go there. There were plenty of rocks and also plenty of sun so I cajoled him in to going to the mall and playing at that playground.

We had fun. Caden was very shy and withdrawn at first. I really hope I don't project my social phobias on to him. After a bit, he started running around with the best of them. I think he's too passive at times. There was this little girl who made the most inhuman noises as she ran every kid off of whatever they were playing with. Her and her little friends then picked up the little frogs & bees and repositioned them so they could play with them exclusively. I just figured this out (I'm not the typical playground mama) - if you're wondering who the 'playground bully' belongs to, 98% of the time it's going to be the parent who is paying absolutely NO attention to her child. Seriously, I wanted to spank the girl. And her mother.

We then traipsed back to Macy's where Caden wanted to ride the escalators. He did fine on the way up. As we're walking to the down side, he stuck his tongue out and grinned at the cleaning lady. We stepped on. Caden stepped off. I kept going. And Caden begins screaming and crying. The sweet cleaning lady ran around the corner and picked him up and carried him down for me. I felt horrible. One more reason to get in shape - to run UP the down escalator!

I asked him if he was OK & he looked at me with big ol eyes and crocodile tears running down his face and said, "I cried for you!" Gah! Knife to the heart right there.

So we came home and in a guilt-induced fit I gave him candy. Yeah, I know - lesson learned. He was bouncing off the walls (literally one time!) for hours. I'm just hoping he stays in bed tonight.

*You have to read this as Janice from Friends. If you're not familiar with this, then it's really not that funny & I'm sorry.

Funny Caden

2008-09-08T20:50:00.003-05:00

We drove by my school this afternoon and saw the football players. Caden asked what they were doing & I said they were practicing. He asked why and I told him so they could get better.

A little later we drove by a park and there was a trainer there with several people he was working out. Caden looked at me and said, "They're practicing so they can get better."

Yes, Caden. Yes they are.

That hasn't happened before!

2008-09-08T20:47:00.001-05:00

I just ran to Kroger & I saw one of my students there! I guess now that I'm teaching in town, that's going to happen more often!

Poo on the library

2008-09-02T16:03:00.002-05:00

I tried to renew some items last night & the system wouldn't let me do it for 2 books b/c I'd already done it once already. OK, I'll just go up to the library, turn them in, & then recheck them out. Right?

Wrong.

I have to leave them there for 24 hours to give someone else a chance. Pardon me for being a selfish cranky pants, but if someone wanted them, they could've requested them online like I did.

So I came home & immediately put the request in - that the desk guy told me I couldn't do - and they'll probably be ready for pickup this evening.

If everyone would just play by the rules of Aalbersland, life would be sooo much sweeter!

And now you know why I'm an English teacher

2008-08-30T22:04:00.003-05:00

I am totally addicted to the online library program. I taped my barcode number to my computer so I wouldn't have to jump up and get my card out of my purse every time I wanted to look at my account. As if that isn't a scary enough thought - that I like to look at my account that much - I have the entire fourteen digit number MEMORIZED now! I don't even need to look at it anymore!

And the really bad thing - I have 31 books checked out right now. And 8 more that are ready for pickup.

You see, I browse this discussion board about books and I see some that I think I might like. I look them up on Amazon.com to be sure I'll like them, and I reserve them online at our library. A day or two later, they call and tell me they're ready for pickup. But honestly? Most of the time I already KNOW they're ready b/c I've looked at my account online!

I asked one time what the limit was and the lady said, "Oh a hundred." A HUNDRED???

I probably shouldn't have access to that information...

Day 4 & counting...

2008-08-28T07:43:00.003-05:00

The first week of school is almost over! I am one of those teachers who wishes that we started on a Wednesday every year b/c the 1st week is soooo long! I go home every day & put my PJs on and chill out.

It's still nerve racking. I like to have a routine and I'm comfortable with what I know. EVERYTHING is different here and I'm anxious for the time when I'm used to everything.

Shout out to my homy

2008-08-23T22:22:00.003-05:00

The stress only escalated from the time of the previous post. I was frantically trying to fix my room and I was at the point where I didn't know what to do because so much needed to be done - you know what I'm saying? And there was interruption after interruption and I was hustling from faculty meeting to department meeting to 'level meeting' and then I had to go to a deaf-ed meeting b/c I have 2 hearing-impaired kids and then I was called downstairs to take my picture for my temporary id because the picture I had to go downstairs for earlier in the week was for my PERMANENT id and it won't be here before Monday. And this was all on Friday!!!

So I am finally back upstairs after there was an equipment malfunction with the id machine and they said, "We'll call y'all back down in a minute." I am ready to scream. 5 minutes after I get back upstairs my cellphone rings and it's Stan. Bless his heart. He asked me how things were going and I know him well enough to snap at him. Don't know those Consol people that well yet. So after I said I was trying to get stuff done but people kept INTERRUPTING me, he said that he had gotten Caden dressed (they stayed home together on Friday b/c Caden was sick with a fever) and they were going to come help me in my room.

Blessed peace. Right as I was getting off the phone with him, I heard the announcement to go back downstairs for pictures. When I got to the front of the line, Stan still wasn't there so I traded places with a friend at the back of the line, thinking I would be through it before Stan got there. Well I was, but I didn't know we had to sit around and wait for them, but another friend said she would pick mine up for me and put it in my mailbox.

So we go upstairs and Stan asks what I need him to do for me. The man got to work. He put my stackable trays together ( a harder feat than it sounds like), he then put my rails together for my file cabinet (turns out I don't need them, but a sweet first year teacher wants them so that's my good deed for the day!). He then helped hang all of my posters. And the best part? Caden was a DREAM the whole time - all 2 hours! He played and he helped pick stuff up. He was so sweet!

When we realized we couldn't push our luck with Caden too much longer, we went to eat and Stan suggested I go back and get all of my work done (stuff he couldn't help me with) that night so I could enjoy my last weekend.

I thought that was a good idea so I went back and worked. And worked. And worked some more. I looked at the clock and it was 11pm. Scary time to be in a big school all by myself. I gathered up my stuff...saw the scissors sitting on my desk...and I grabbed them. I took off down the hall in full stealth mode - nobody was sneaking up on me. I saw the doors to the cut-through stairs and as I went through, the doors closed back and it got pitch black dark in the stairwell. No thank you, I've seen enough scary movies to know THAT'S a bad idea. I took the long way, all the while holding my scissors in full attack mode.

Safe inside my car, I relaxed and enjoyed my EIGHT MINUTE commute back to my house.

A girl can never be too careful...

Living on the edge

2008-08-21T23:54:00.002-05:00

This is the time of year I really dislike being a teacher. I am so utterly psyched out!! (Do people say that anymore?) New school, new kids, new coworkers, new boss(es!) - my insides are all a flutter. Bring on the medication.

My nerves are seriously shot & anything and everything is getting under my skin. I can usually laugh off an apostrophe misappropriation, but I almost got into a throwdown the other day. And bad drivers usually just make me sigh and shake my head (quiet Stan) but lately I've felt really heated when the umpteenth driver goes straight at the Rock Prairie exit from the 'right turn only lane'...while talking on their cell phone. And this whole chinese underage gymnast thing has boiled me over so much, I stopped watching!

Once Monday is over with, a lot of this will go away.

Just bring it already!

Are you kidding me?

2008-08-15T17:54:00.002-05:00

Stan & I are driving to Caden's school to pick him up when I see a cop pulling over to the shoulder coming at us. I ask Stan if he's coming for us, Stan looks down at the speedometer & says "Maybe". He then looks into the rearview mirror, sees the cop do a U-turn & turn on his lights, and says, "Oh yeah."

I'm smirking because Stan's always getting on to me about my driving. I know that's not very wifely, but I'm human. Still got some issues to work out.

Stan pulled over on a side street and had his driver's license & insurance out and ready to hand the cop when he walked up.

Cop - Do you know why I pulled you over?

Stan - (handing his stuff to the cop) Yeah, my wife asked if you were coming for me and when I looked down, I noticed I was speeding. I just wasn't paying attention.

Cop - (handing Stan's stuff back to him) I'm not going to give you a ticket. I just...

Me - (leaning over increduously & interrupting) SERIOUSLY?!?!?!

Cop - Do you want me to give him a ticket?

Me - (looking away) No.

Cop - (to Stan) Oh, you've got one of those!

He then thanked Stan for pulling over on a side street so he didn't get hit.

We drive off & Stan's laughing. Because he ALWAYS gets a warning!!!! I NEVER get a warning! And I'm nice too! I apologize. I have my stuff out.

You have GOT to be kidding me!

Why?

2008-08-09T07:17:00.003-05:00

We're at the 'Why?' stage now.

Example:
Me - Caden, you need to put your shorts & underwear in your hamper.
Caden - Why?
I glare at Caden for the 2 seconds it takes him to pick them up & leave the room.

Let the games begin...

On a funnier note (from my perspective anyway. Some of you may think the why? questions are VERY funny), he just informed me that "the light is on" (the sun is out) and we can go to The Bounce now.

Half a life ago

2008-08-03T20:14:00.002-05:00

I had a sobering thought yesterday...I was thinking of something that happened when I was 17 & I realized that was HALF MY LIFETIME AGO!!

How does this happen???

Before I die I want to...

2008-07-30T13:42:00.002-05:00

Travel to all 50 states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connnecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, District of Columbia

Skydive

Learn to scuba dive

Take a tropical cruise

Take an Alaskan cruise

Swim with dolphins

Live 100% debt-free except mortgage

Visit Disneyworld

Go on an African Safari

See a concentration camp

Visit Pearl Harbor

Run a ½ marathon

Walk across the Great Wall of China

Cross-country road trip: West coast, East coast

Travel to: Ireland, England, France, Italy, Holland, Mexico, Germany, Greece, Costa Rica

Travel to 6 continents: Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Australia, Africa

Go to a taping of the Rachel Ray show

Present at an English conference

Go to a Nora Roberts’ book signing

Go to Le Tour de France

Ride in a helicopter (but you know, not in a ‘life flight’ kind of way)

Attend a Beth Moore bible study in person

Celebrate my 60th anniversary with Stan

Go on a mission trip

Yeah!!!!

2008-07-28T15:18:00.001-05:00

Guess whose favorite doctor now accepts Scott & White insurance???

MINE!! MINE!! MINE!!

I already have an appointment.

Yippee!!!

(Should I really be this excited about going to the doctor?)

Like mother, like son

2008-07-25T21:41:00.004-05:00

So Caden falls in the pool today. 6 feet of water. Just like me.

They had gone to the deep end with lifejackets & Caden climbed out and was sitting on the side. His teacher had just taken his lifejacket off and was helping another kid up the ladder when he just slid in. She grabbed him within 2 seconds & he popped up grinning.

It was right at the end of lessons, so he ran over to us shouting, "That was fun!"

Seriously? Probably the best thing that could've happened. He's been so scared of going under water & now he isn't.

But it sure did take a few minutes for my heart to start beating right again!

Swim lessons!

2008-07-24T19:48:00.008-05:00

Swim lessons started this past Monday. Caden's the youngest one in the 'frog' group, but he's got a great teacher who's letting him go at his own pace. He's doing everything the other kids are, but he really doesn't want to put his face underwater. The first day, they lined up all of the kids on the side & then let their teachers come get them. Stan was wondering why I was so nervous, and I told him that when I was 4 (Nana - is that right?) I was sitting on the side of the pool for lessons, when all of a sudden, "Poof!" I slid right in - (the deep end. Weren't people just really intelligent back in the 70s?) A nice woman grabbed hold of my hair and pulled me back up. I looked at Stan and said, "Caden doesn't have any hair to grab" Luckily it's only 2 feet where they're sitting.

It took a bit of coaxing to get him in...

but once he was in, he wouldn't stop grinning!

The other kids would jump in on their own, but Caden gets a little help from 'teacher'

He is so proud of himself, walking around on his own. Calm down Nana, it's only 2 feet deep.

Once more, I'm reminded that he's no longer a baby or even a toddler, but a little boy now.

Christian the Lion

2008-07-22T20:33:00.002-05:00

This video was on the Today show. Apparently these 2 guys bought a lion and then realized they couldn't take care of it so they released him into the African wild. This is their visit with him a year later...

H, I, ... K?

2008-07-19T23:32:00.005-05:00

We discovered tonight that Caden has a problem with the letter 'J'.

He has this wooden alphabet book & this evening, he picked up the letter 'J', walked over to my living room chair, and put it under the cushion.

"I don't like the letter 'J'", he says to Stan.

I immediately crack up. I mean, what the heck is he thinking?

Stan gets a little irritated because it doesn't make sense. Stan likes things to make sense.

He tells Caden to get the letter out from under the cushion and put it back where it belongs.

"But I don't like it!"

By this point, I'm holding a towel in front of my face because I'm laughing so hard.

Stan tells him, "I don't care if you like it or not - put it in the book where it goes."

Caden walks over to the book (holding the offending letter as carefully as possible) and throws it down on the plastic cover.

He looks at me and says, "I don't like it and that's where I'm putting it."

What in the world did the letter 'J' ever do to him???

Working it for 12 years

2008-07-14T23:16:00.009-05:00

I love this picture because even though it was the most stressful time of my life, and I look horrible, and feel worse, Stan is still looking at me with the most adoring expression. I love this man.

A few weeks ago I posted about the realities of marriage, at least my marriage - it's not always pretty, but it's real - for us, anyway. A few days later I was reading a Hollywood gossip magazine (I know, I know) and this one young starlet stated (about her boyfriend), "If it's real love, you shouldn't have to work at it". Shouldn't have to work at it? Sister, if that's how you feel, you are in for a world of hurt. And sorrow. Because "working at it" rocks.

This past weekend, we celebrated 12 years of marriage. A little history. I met my man on Christmas Day 1993, 2 weeks after breaking off a serious relationship. (We were working at McDonalds and if you were a manager, you had to work either Thanksgiving or Christmas.) One of my friends had (unbeknownst to me) told Stan that he could take it easy since he had been there all day already. I, not knowing this & being in a bad mood anyway, just saw some guy taking it easy while I worked my tookie off. I didn't like him & I honestly can't remember saying even 2 words to him. I vaguely remember standing close to him in the office counting money, but again, I'm not sure we talked. I told someone a few days after we worked together that he was lazy and obnoxious. Their response? "He's not lazy!"

Fast forward a couple of years. There are four of us who are planning on going to McDonalds management class* in January of 1996 & we are meeting together 3-4 times beforehand to study up. My friend Kristin is heading up our training and after one of these sessions, she invites Stan to go eat with us. She told me later, she thought we'd make a cute couple. I barely looked up at him when he told her he couldn't. I still didn't like him and wasn't crazy about going to Houston with him to the class. Around this time, I was having dinner with my friend Kristin and we actually saw him out on a date!

Then an odd thing happened. I was late to one of the prep sessions and I walked in after the other 3 people were there. Now the chairs are in a horseshoe shape in a room designed to hold approximately 20 people and the other 3 people are spaced out with many chairs between them. Where do I sit? Right next to Stan the man. I have no idea why.

January 25(ish) comes and we are off to Houston. The first night we go out to eat and sparks begin flying. The next day, we can't stop staring at each other. That night we drive all over Houston, getting lost, and then finally seeing a movie. We are inseparable.

At the end of the weeklong class, Stan drove me and another coworker back home. I believe it was a Thursday. He told me I wouldn't see him Friday, but he would call me and we could get together on Saturday. True to his word, he had flowers delivered to me at work on Saturday & we went to Oxford Street for dinner that night.

On Valentine's Day (2 weeks later) he picked me up from work (really Feb. 13, but after midnight 2/14) and drove me out to Peach Creek Rd. where he proposed to me in the bed of his pickup.

We were married 5 months later on July 13, 1996!

A lot of people are shocked by how fast we got engaged and married. At first we had people telling us, well it's your first marriage & you're so young you'll be OK if it doesn't work out. People told us that we didn't know how to work at marriage because both of our parents were still married. Excuse me? Doesn't that mean we've seen 2 marriages become successful because they worked at it?

We've gone through money troubles, job issues, health issues - both Stan & my dad, family dynamic issues, me going back to school, having a child of our own, and having our house break in half. (Some of these things were good, but still stressful)

If we hadn't learned to "work at it", we'd've been divorced long ago.

I don't want to harp on the bad stuff; there's been a lot of good.

~We both love road trips and traveling.
~We laugh at the same things.
~We've had a child together and we get to see each other be a parent.
~We want the same things out of life.
~He loves my parents and I love his.
~He 'gets' me and he's my best cheerleader. If it weren't for him, I may not be teaching now. I don't think I would've made it past that first year.

So...2 weeks of dating, 5 months of fianceing, 12 years of marriage.

There's nothing better than working at being married to your best friend.

*McDonalds management class was a very serious and competitive thing; that's why we met so much beforehand to prepare. And I have to say - in ALL of my jobs, I have never had more competent supervisors than at McDonalds. I've worked in retail, in banking, at a computer business, and at 2 schools. They were the best managers of people & I learned a majority of my skills there in my early 20s.

It's not you, it's me

2008-07-07T13:24:00.005-05:00

To whom it may concern:

Once upon a time at the delicious age of 19, I was innocently walking in the mall when a new store caught my attention. I stopped when the salesperson/demo-goddess asked if she could give me a demonstration of this awesome new product. I, having nowhere to go (ah, to be 19 again!), said that would be fine.

She took my hand and I was forever changed. I had to have the product - Juniper Breeze liquid soap. I bought it and the lotion and went back to my apartment and giddily put them in my bathroom. It took me about 4 1/2 minutes to convince myself that the shower I had taken a mere 2 hours before had surely worn off and it was time to cleanse again.

My love affair began that day. The freshness...the beauty...it was fantastic.

And now, 15 years later, Juniper Breeze is breaking up with me.

We've both grown, changed, and evolved over the years, but our connection has always remained tight. I thought we were at that dreamed of 'home free' place where nothing could go wrong. I was horribly mistaken.

Last week, I found out Juniper Breeze was moving on. It's being discontinued - so there's room for the NEW fragrances. Oh, the salesgirl tried to fix me up with a couple of scents, but I wasn't in the mood. How could I want someone new so soon? I was inconsolable, sick with regret. Remember, this is a relationship I've had longer than my marriage!

And now I cry the lament of the brokenhearted girl - Why, Juniper Breeze? Why can't we go back to the way we were before? I'll change! I'll come in more often and purchase more of your products. I said I was sorry about Green Clover & Aloe! It didn't mean anything & it was just that one bottle!

Please, please come back. Don't go.

I love you.

Where's the kleenex when you need it?

2008-07-05T20:01:00.004-05:00

We took Caden to visit Oma & Opa Thursday night and the plan was for him to stay until Sunday afternoon. He cried a bit when we were getting in the truck, but we were assured with a phone call Friday morning that he did just fine after we left.

Friday night we got the call that Caden was not doing so well; he missed his mommy & daddy. And the only way they could get him to stop crying was to tell him that he would see us the next day.

Stan went to get him this morning and he was VERY happy to see his dad. When they got home, I asked him if he missed us and his eyes got real big and he said, "Mommy & Daddy got in the truck. And Caden wasn't in it!"

We felt horrible! I teared up and Stan said it just about broke him down.

Needless to say, Caden got lots and lots of hugs and attention today.

Attack of the Insomnia

2008-07-04T05:39:00.002-05:00

I have no idea what is wrong with me, but I am still up. Haven't slept a wink all night. I read a bit, watched TV, played on the computer - nothing.

So all you friends of mine who just had babies, give me a call. I'll be glad to talk or come by and let you catch a catnap while I watch your little one.

Ahhhh, I hope this is temporary!

Ewww

2008-07-02T20:58:00.003-05:00

Caden is very proud of himself when he goes poo poo on the potty - or as he says, 'poo poot'.

Tonight he called me in there when he was done so I could wipe his booty & he turned around and said, "Wow! That's a big snake one! No - that's a hippopotamus one!!"

So gross.

But I gave him a sticker anyway.

Some random conversations...

2008-06-29T17:50:00.003-05:00

#1
Mama - Caden, I need you to be real good this morning because Mama has a really bad headache.

Caden - (with a look of concern) Did you run into a wall?

Caden's learned the art of bargaining recently; we're not sure where.

Daddy - Caden, you have two minutes until bedtime.

Caden - No Daddy, three.

Daddy - Caden, TWO minutes.

Caden - THREE

Daddy - Do you want to go to bed right now?

Caden - (pause) Two minutes.

#3
Daddy - Can I have a hug?

Caden - I need ice cream.

Daddy & Caden hug.

Caden - (running into the kitchen)Now it's time for ice cream!!!

Seriously, where do they learn to barter like that???

Marriage

2008-06-24T19:31:00.002-05:00

I am happy to say that Stan & I are coming up on 12 years of marriage next month.

Through the grace of God we found each other & recognized each other and we've worked really hard to make our marriage work. Having a child - and especially having one so late in our marriage (9 years in) - changed the dynamics some, but we're a team by every definition of the word.

That's not to say we don't have our little tiffs. When Caden was a few months old, I looked at Stan and told him that I thought we may have a strong-willed child on our hands. His response - you think??? I guess he's right - I shoud've been prepared for Caden's spiritedness given his parents' stubborness and hardheadedness.

There are days, I walk around giddy in love with my man. He can do no wrong. I can't do enough for him. We are basking in the glow of eternal bliss.

There are other days we are puttering right along, perfectly content with each other and life in general. Busy, but happy.

And there are the other days.

The days that nobody talks about. The days that I like to pretend don't exist. These are the days that I actively choose to love him. He hasn't done anything wrong, but I'm not on the high of love. Luckily these days don't last long, but I think they're good for our marriage. It's during those times that we truly work at our marriage, that we realize, 'hey, this person isn't perfect; how are we going to get through this?'

And coming out of those days? Into days of bliss?

Priceless.

Caden's 3rd birthday

2008-06-22T08:21:00.001-05:00

Favorites of a 3-year-old

2008-06-20T19:14:00.006-05:00

foods
*queso
*tomatoes
*sandwiches (he wanted a birthday sandwich for dinner tonight!)

restaurants
*Casa Rodriguez
*Chili's
*Roadhouse (loves all the attention from the pretty waitresses!)

movies
*Incredibles
*Lady & Tramp (calls them 'blue dogs' b/c the DVD is blue as opposed to 'white dogs' which is 101 Dalmations)
*Cars

things to do
*read
*play with trucks
*work with Daddy in the dirt or the yard

outfits
*red shirts
*black sweatpants
*train shoes (Thomas)

toys
*trucks
*John Deere tractor
*blocks

latest habits
*coming to Mama & Daddy's bed sometime in the wee morning hours, climbing over us & snuggling down to go to sleep (we don't wake up, so we don't notice him until the alarm goes off!)
*'checking email'
*making up stories; he's got a very vivid imagination

stuff he's learned/almost learned
*counting from 11-20
*recognizing all letters (upper & lowercase)
*how to feed the cats!

Every day you learn something new Caden, and it's been so much fun watching you. Happy Birthday from Mama & Daddy!! We love you so much!!

3 years ago...

2008-06-19T15:23:00.002-05:00

I sent Stan a text message today saying, "Happy going to the hospital day!"

Blessings on the highway

2008-06-16T19:38:00.002-05:00

1 car

2 ladies

3 miles outside Huntsville

4 tires full of air

...And then there were only 3.

Luckily my carpool partner for the week knows how to change a flat tire.

But!

Before she could really get started, a car pulled up behind us.

The guy got out, helped us take the tire off and helped put the new one on. He made sure I knew I could only drive it temporarily and I shouldn't go over 55.

I pride myself on not judging people based on appearances, but this was a nifty reminder of that, for this guy had a doorag on his head, no shirt on, many tattoos on his person, and was puffing away on a cigarette the whole time. I made some comment about why couldn't this have happened in the winter when it would be much cooler and he said that he had been building houses since 6 that morning. It was now almost 4 o'clock in the afternoon.

All he wanted to do was get home, cool off, and relax, but he stopped to help 2 ladies on the side of the road.

God bless you good Samaritan!!!

Father's Day & Caden's birth week

2008-06-15T16:33:00.002-05:00

My family has a longstanding tradition that one day is not enough to celebrate the birth of someone, so we have birthweeks in my house. My dad thought this up long ago & Stan has jumped on the bandwagon with both feet.

In honor of Caden & the fact that it is Father's Day, I am copying a letter that my husband wrote a friend of his a few days after Caden was born. It's long, but it tells the story of his lively birth from the interesting perspective of Dad.

Here goes...

Caden Alan arrived on Monday 6/20/2005 at 1:14pm. Weight: 8 lbs. 5 oz. Length: 21 in. Both mom and boy are doing great.

We should have known the delivery would include a rather intense moment after the pregnancy ran very smoothly.

Let me begin by saying….Praise God for ignorance. I never fully understood how serious the situation was until late Monday night. Apparently God knew I needed to stay calm, so he didn’t allow me to understand.

This is going to be a bit wordy, but I think it needs to be in order to get you in the moment.

Because of his size (mainly his head) the doctor induced a little over two weeks early. His head measured 42 weeks at 37 weeks. Most of the other measurements were also around 40 weeks.

We went in Sunday night to start the induction. They gave DeAnn a pill twice during the night to help her dilate. The Pitocin began flowing around 6am. They broke her water around 8am. She got her epidural shortly after that so she was in good spirits. She was checked every hour and was progressing nicely. At noon the nurse felt Caden’s head and estimated he would be born around 4 or 5pm. At 1pm the nurse entered the room to do the hourly vital signs check on DeAnn and see how much she had dilated. The doctor entered the room about 10 seconds behind her. She said she had walked past the monitor at the nurses’ station and noticed an irregularity so she wanted to check DeAnn.

When she checked DeAnn she said the cord had come out. Since Caden had an internal heart monitor attached to his head I thought that was what she was talking about since she said it so calmly. I looked at the monitor and saw a heartbeat so I said, “What does that mean?” She said “We are doing a c-section NOW”. I said “OK”. (Not the words of a man that understood what was going on.) We had a prolapsed cord situation. Apparently Caden moved around and something caused the umbilical cord to start coming out first.

I went and caught DeAnn’s parents at the elevator. They had been in the room with us and just left to go get something to eat. DeAnn sent me because she wanted them there. All I said was “Don’t go anywhere. The baby is coming now. Emergency c-section”. I didn’t have time to explain to them but I’m sure you could imagine how this made them feel.

When I got back to DeAnn I saw her doctor (who is about 8 months pregnant) on top of DeAnn’s bed, strattling her legs. She was holding the baby’s head off the umbilical cord. The nurse was moving at a frantic pace to get everything disconnected to get her out of the labor room and into the room for the c-section. DeAnn looked terrified so I grabbed her hand and calmly comforted her until she got into the other room where we were separated. They immediately took DeAnn to the table and asked me to stand in the corner. The doctor told me I would need to put on some scrubs so I was taken out into the hallway. The assisting doctor walked past me and said “Everything’s fine. We will have him out in two minutes”. I didn’t think anything about it.

Then a nurse asked me to move DeAnn’s labor bed back to the labor room to get it out of the way. So I did.

Then a nurse came in and spoke with me. She appeared a little frazzled and was stammering a bit. Since I was still calm (I have no idea why) I simply said “I am fine. Will I be allowed in the room with my wife?” She immediately calmed down and said if they kept DeAnn awake I would be, but not if they had to knock her out. She pointed to the scrubs on the table and told me to put them on.

I just got to the bathroom in the room to change (roughly ten seconds after the previous nurse left) when another nurse stuck her head in the room and said “The baby’s out and he’s screaming. He’s fine”. I was also assured that DeAnn was fine. They had knocked her out and the doctors were closing her. She said a nursery nurse would come get me in a few minutes.

A couple minutes later the nursery nurse came and handed me my son. I got to do all the new father things in the nursery. When we got to the glass where other people could look in, DeAnn’s mother just stared at Caden with a huge smile on her face. Her dad looked at me with a rather scared expression and mouthed “How is DeAnn?” Apparently DeAnn is a daddy’s girl. I told him she was fine. Then he smiled and couldn’t take his eyes off his new grandson.

Later Monday night we went over what had happened. I finally understood the seriousness of the situation when I saw it through DeAnn’s eyes. I had seen doctors and nurses moving quickly to perform the c-section. I simply saw them doing their job. And they were very good. From the time the doctor called for the c-section until Caden was born was less than five minutes. (We’ve debated this a little, but I had looked at the clock above the door when the doctor came in. It was 1:10pm. He was born at 1:14pm.) DeAnn had seen the looks on their faces, heard the concern in their voices, and had overheard all of the conversations going on around her. Even with all the words I’ve used to describe the situation, I cannot begin to express the emotional toll it took on her. Of course it was quickly forgotten when they handed Caden to DeAnn for the first time.

I wouldn’t wish this on anyone, but now I have an interesting story. When people ask what my job was when my son was born I can say, “I was moving a hospital bed into another room”.

All kidding aside, we are just happy Caden is healthy. We were glad to welcome him to our family.

I don't share bread

2008-06-11T19:27:00.001-05:00

Is it wrong that, when I went to get seconds of pasta, I took my garlic bread with me so Caden wouldn't eat it?

Hmmm...

Give it to me now & nobody gets hurt

2008-06-11T00:39:00.004-05:00

What Your Taste in Chocolate Says About You

You are sweet, mellow, and easily satisfied.
You don't like anything too intense and dramatic.
Deep down, you're a kid at heart... and you're nostalgic for the past.

You are lively, goofy, and a total blast.
You're incredibly happy, and you always are lifting spirits.

You love the feeling of accomplishment. You enjoy doing what's important.
You feel lost when you have to do frivolous tasks or hang out with shallow people.

The Chocolate Oracle

And speaking of candy - the birthday party we went to last weekend had a pinata, remember? Now this was not the pinata that we grew up with. Nobody had a stick. Nobody was blindfolded. The kids lined up in a sweet orderly line and the pinata had a bunch of strings hanging down from it.

ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS PULL THE STRING!!!

What kind of bad bull is that?

Oh, I get it. It's safer. Blah blah blah.

All I know is - it's not a party unless someone leaves crying with a black eye.

That's all I'm sayin'.

Caden's heart

2008-06-07T16:51:00.002-05:00

Every now and then I'm reminded that Caden is his own person and no matter the expectations that I put on him, he's going to go his own way.

We went to a birthday party this morning at The Bounce, a lovingly rambunctious place filled with those big bouncy things - hence the name.

There were quite a few other kids there, most of them older than Caden, and they were running around having the time of their lives.

Not my little man.

He was a tad bit clingy, not very sociable, and not at all interested in playing on the big bouncy castles himself. He wanted to watch before he dove in to the fray.

After a while, he warmed up and started playing - running around and screaming like the other kids, and then it was time for cake.

After cake, his little friend opened her presents, and her parents brought out the Dora pinata. Candy rained down and all the kids dove in and started snatching up candy.

Not Caden.

He hung back and waited for most of the kids to get their fill before he reached down and got some of his own.

And this is what reminded me of what a sensitive heart my little man has. Sometimes he's got to make sure of his place and his surroundings before he jumps in. Sometimes the noise and chatter is just too much and he'll go off and play by himself for awhile before rejoining the group.

I am blessed beyond measure to get to hang out with such a sweet-natured boy.

First time tagged!

2008-06-05T14:32:00.003-05:00

OK, I've been a little behind in my blogging, so it took me a couple of weeks to realize that I had been tagged by my sweet friend Jenny!

4 Jobs I've Had in My Life:
McDonalds manager - where I met the love of my life
bank teller - Frost and Nations Bank
Office assistant extraordinaire - UCS
High school English teacher - Conroe, Cameron, & now (drum roll) A&M CONSOLIDATED!!!

4 Movies I've Watched More Than Once:
Coyote Ugly - can't turn it off if I run across it on TV
Nine Months
Shawshank Redemption
The Princess Bride

4 Places I've Lived:
College Station, Texas
Bryan, Texas
Houston, Texas
Pasadena, Texas
(good thing it was only 4 b/c that's it!)

4 TV Shows I Watch/Watched:
House
Grey's Anatomy
The Biggest Loser
The Amazing Race

4 Places I've Been:
Colorado
Washington, D.C.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Pensacola, Florida

4 People Who Email Me Regularly:
Stan
Melanie
Stacey
Catrina

4 of My Favorite Foods or Restaurants
Casa Rodriguez
Taste of Texas
Stan's steak & baked potatoes
banana pudding

4 Places I Would Like to Visit:
Ireland
Italy
England
Yellowstone Nat'l Park

4 Things I am Looking Forward to in the Coming Year:
Hanging on for the ride of being the mama to a 3-year-old redheaded boy!
Teaching at A&M Consolidated
Celebrating 12 years of marital bliss with my honey
Coming to some sort of agreement with my hair

4 Websites I Visit Daily:
www.csisd.com
www.realsimple.com
www.msn.com
www.blogger.com

4 Bloggers I'm Tagging:
If your name is listed below feel free to join in the fun and participate!

Amanda
Shannon
Andrea
Leslie

So close...

2008-06-04T11:53:00.001-05:00

Thanks for a wonderful season, ladies. Gibson - you're the greatest.

I will miss you!!!!!

2008-06-01T22:19:00.005-05:00

Cameron - Yoe High School - Class of 2008

Yoe High School English department

City boy goes country

2008-05-08T13:29:00.006-05:00

This past weekend was a big one for the Cade-man. He was my prom date on Saturday

& on Sunday he got to go to the country fair held at our church.

I was more scared than he was, I think. He wouldn't pet the horse, but he was bound and determined to get on and ride. His little face was set in complete determination. All the way home, he kept talking about the horse.

I can't believe he's almost three...

Life lessons on Racheal Ray

2008-04-26T18:51:00.002-05:00

I was watching Racheal Ray the other day (see what I did there?) and she had Leah Remini on from King of Queens on. It was interesting because she wasn't interviewing her so much as sharing her story about her daughter.

See, her daughter is 3 1/2 and is STILL ON THE BOTTLE!!

She made many self-deprecating remarks about how she and her husband are horrible parents and they do everything wrong. For instance, her daughter has THREE rooms, yet where does she sleep? Right between Mommy & Daddy in their bed.

Not only that, but she goes through SIX bottles filled with water every night. Six bottles every hour or two - all night long.

Leah made the comment that she's very consistent; she gives in all the time. She seemed proud of the fact that her daughter ruled the house.

She kept saying that she had to "follow her heart" and having her daughter cry because she wanted the bottle seemed wrong. "After all", she said, "what could it hurt?"

She talked to her pediatrician who only addressed the fact that most children are off of the bottle by 12-18 months. (Remini was aghast at that and didn't seem to believe it.) She even let a 'regular' mom come in and give her some pointers about taking the nipple off of the bottle and giving it to her daughter that way.

It didn't work. Remini couldn't bear to listen to her daughter cry. She was happy at least that they went through 2 less bottles that night. Nobody informed her that the daughter still won.

What struck me through the whole show - and what nobody else was saying - was the real issue wasn't bottles; it was who was in charge. The daughter is indeed ruling the house and her parents seem oblivious that this shouldn't be the case. She has figured out how to get her way and she has become a master manipulator in the process.

Don't get me wrong - I don't blame the child one bit. She's figured out how to get her own way and her parents are reinforcing this message every minute of the day.

I see a burgeoning Paris Hilton in our midst.

My new hobby

2008-04-22T17:37:00.003-05:00

There have been some really good comments on the "Hospitals are our friends" post. If you haven't read the post or the comments, please take some time to check it out.

And I always welcome comments!

Change of pace now.

So I'm at the gym this morning at the unholy hour of 5:15am. I know, I know, I'm weird. But if it doesn't get done in the morning, it doesn't get done.

I am a completely inappropriate people watcher! That is what I've learned about myself in the past month since joining the gym. I cannot stop watching other people.

There's a guy there who is strangely flexible. He leans over with his feet out and puts his face between his knees so it is touching the mat. Meanwhile I'm struggling at an 84 degree angle. I look like I'm merely resting, while my hamstrings are on fire. Sweet mother.

I always wonder what people are up to when I see them at the gym. Where do they work? What time do they have to be there? How long have they been working out? Is their spouse taking care of the kiddoes? Do they return the favor in the afternoon and let him/her work out then?

There's a few older women who are there regularly in the morning. I think that's awesome and I hope I'm in that good of shape when I'm their age. Heck - they're kicking my tail now and I'm probably thirty years younger than they are!

It's a good thing I'm so self-confident because if I see one more 7-month-pregnant woman kicking my booty on the elliptical machine, I'm going to scream! So far the count is up to three. I had no idea so many pregnant women - REALLY pregnant women - worked out so hard on the cardio. I think Stan walked around the block with me a few times and that was it. Of course, that thinking is probably what got me so out of shape in the first place!

I would do it completely differently

2008-04-13T20:09:00.002-05:00

My wedding, that is.

I wouldn't have the extremely traditional wedding dress. I got married in July for pete's sake & I had the whole poufy shoulders, long sleeves, and cathedral train.

Good grief.

I wouldn't have the corkscrew curls that hairdressers do so generically. I would have something more soft and natural - more me.

I wouldn't get married inside of a church. I would do it outside under some trees and near water. Not sure where this perfect location is (or how much it would cost!) but I would definitely try to find it.

I would get married in the evening. The July sun was a killer and under a shade tree at 8:00 would've been much better.

I wouldn't care how my bridesmaids did their hair. I can't believe I wasted valuable time worrying and thinking about that.

For that matter, I wouldn't care about their dresses. I would give them a color and tell them to go get what they wanted.

I would've had a 'food' reception. We were trying to save money, but if I could do it over again, I would have some kind of buffet set up - again, very casual.

Anything you would do differently???

Uncle Terry uncled his nose...

2008-04-06T19:45:00.008-05:00

Isn't Anezka's little dutch girl dress precious???

Saturday was one of those days to relax, reconnect, and laugh with family. We had a blast at my in-laws' house. We got to spend time with Stan's sister, Sheila - not an easy feat since she married a navy man. We got to laugh at Gerrit, Caden's older cousin by 4 months - he and Caden had fun running around being silly. And we got to snuggle with Anezka, the newest cousin, who's 6 months old.

We found out when we got there that Uncle Terry and Gerrit had been in a go-cart accident a few days before. Uncle Terry had stitches in his nose (hence the title; that's what Caden said today when I asked him if he had fun yesterday!) and Gerrit hurt his right arm a bit. He didn't want to use it too much, but then he and Caden would get to wrestling and he would forget that it was hurt.

The goal was to get all of the grandkids together for a nice picture before Sheila and Terry move to Washington (state), but alas, the two older cousins had prior commitments. So...we decked the remaining 3 out and snapped pictures outside my in-laws' house. It was a hoot. A 3-year-old, a 2 1/2-year-old, and a 6-month-old - can you imagine? We'd get one set up and looking good and then Caden or Gerrit would jump up to see what the picture we had just taken looked like. Sheila was trying to hold Anezka because Caden and Gerrit were having none of it. Gerrit didn't want to get dirty so we couln't put them in front of the tree. Nobody would be still and smile at the same time, and the adults barely got in any good pictures because we were laughing so hard!

I miss spending quality time with that part of the family and I wish they lived closer - BUT! - it is fun to travel and visit them wherever they are stationed. So far, we've made it to Pensacola, FL; Charleston, SC; and Memphis, TN. We had tickets to go to Connecticut to see them there, but that was the day after the BIIIG power outage across the country and it was a big rigamarow, so we had to cancel that trip. I'm still a bit bitter.

So...even though we wished they lived closer, we are already planning the Washington trip to go visit them!

We love you Uncle Terry, Aunt Sheila, silly Gerrit, and snuggly Anezka! We'll see you soon!!!

Getting closer!

2008-03-30T18:41:00.003-06:00

We have been working. Working. So. Hard. Trying to get Caden potty-trained. The reason we've been really working on it is because we can tell he knows what's up; he's just being stubborn. He goes at school, so ergo, you would think he would go at home, right?

Not so much.

Until Friday night.

He had been in bed until I got home late from a district UIL meet and I walked in his room when I got home at 9:00 pm. He was awake so I laid down with him and I could tell he was NOT going to go to sleep anytime soon. So...we let him up for a little while longer.

At 10:05 (I know - we're horrible parents) I told him it was time he really went to bed for the night, and I asked him if he wanted to go potty. He said (screamed), "NOOO!"

I then had an epiphany.

I asked, "Caden, do you want to go potty on the BIIIIG potty?"

He said, "Uh uh" and walked off. He got his stool and told me to turn the light on. He pulled his shorts and his pullup down, stepped on the stool, and lifted the seat - such a big man. He stood there for a few seconds and let out a few sighs. I thought it was a no-go, but then - he grinned at me real big and I saw the stream going in the potty.

CADEN WENT POTTY!!!! For the first time at home!!!!

I was so excited. I then gave him a little toy that I had been saving for this auspicious occasion. Stan wouldn't let me take a picture, much less post that on the blog. Doo-doo head.

We didn't have such luck yesterday, but we bought him some sidewalk chalk today and I told him this afternoon that if he wanted to play with it, he needed to go potty again. He tried to tell me a few times that he had gone potty, but he flushed before I got in there so I don't think he really did.

I told him I had to see it before he could play with the chalk.

He said, "OK" and walked in there. Same routine as Friday ending with him peeing in the big potty. Proof, I tell you, that he is just stubborn and pig-headed.

I went outside with him and we played with the chalk!

Now what do I use for incentive now???

Can't get offended

2008-03-28T16:15:00.002-06:00

Last night at the Aalbers' house...

I'm sitting in my chair when Caden drives up to me on his digger. I put my foot up to make sure he didn't run me down.

Caden: (pointing at my foot) That's yucky.

Me: laughing my patooty off

Caden: Yucky, yucky, yucky!

Me: Caden, that's mean!

Caden: It's OK. (Pointing to his own foot) Yucky too.

You can't pay for entertainment like this, folks.

Hospitals are our friends

2008-03-21T23:28:00.004-06:00

I was lurking on a blog the other day - one that I frequent - and the post really made me stop and think, and the more I thought about it, the more irate I became. You see, the author is pregnant with her 2nd child and this time around, she's doing the whole midwife / home delivery thing.

I could not disagree with her more.

When I was pregnant with Caden I gave about 10 minutes of thought to the idea of a home birth. Enough time to say, "Gee, I guess that's an option; what would that entail?" After a few minutes, I decided that no, that most certainly was not for me.

And it's a good thing, too.

Because if I had? I wouldn't be a mom right now. I wouldn't have had a baby to bring home from the hospital. I wouldn't have ever known Caden.

We had a prolapsed cord situation and 5 minutes after my doctor discovered it, my son was born via emergency C-section. We're talking straight off an ER script - my 8-months-pregnant doctor is riding on my gurney with her hand holding Caden's head off the cord; nurses are yelling "STAT"; doctors and nurses are running from every direction in the hospital; cords are flying. The last thing I remember is them POURING iodine on my stomach and asking me how much I weighed so they would get the anesthesia right. (I was oh so tempted to lie and say "a buck twenty", but you don't want to lie when numbing is at stake).

The doctor looked at my husband afterwards and said, "That's why you have babies in hospitals."

So I feel mighty strongly against the whole home birth thing. Isn't that what people in the 1800s did??? Didn't we have a lot of babies and WOMEN die in childbirth???

My stomach churns when I hear someone say they are more "comfortable" giving birth at home.

Me? I'm more "comfortable" knowing life-saving equipment and a staff of medical personnel are there to save my baby if needs be.

A long overdue 'thankful' post

2008-03-15T20:37:00.002-06:00

It's been awhile since I last did one of these, so without the alliteration, here's my 'Thankful Saturday'.

1. An extremely well-adjusted and happy child
2. Kids who make me laugh all day
3. A very fulfilling job; I get to feel like I'm making a difference
4. Great teachers to work with
5. Spring Break - mine is THIS week!
6. Good friends I'm still connected with
7. A husband who enjoys talking to me
8. Parents who will drop what they're doing to watch Caden when necessary
9. Never having to have paid anyone to watch Caden
10. Digital cameras
11. Nora Roberts books
12. A husband who will let me enjoy Nora Roberts books
13. A son who loves reading as much as I do
14. Franklin Covey planners
15. Golds Gym
16. Quality time on my best girlfriend's porch
17. A car that has 96,000+ miles (in 3 1/2 years!) on it & gets AWESOME gas mileage!
18. The writers' strike is over - bring on 'House'!
19. Upward season is over & I have my husband back on Saturdays!
20. There's a chance the dirt is on the way out of my driveway - stay tuned...

Incentive

2008-03-13T20:46:00.002-06:00

Today a friend brought her new baby up to school to show her off and she is absolutely precious.

But I was more interested in the stroller.

That and the matching diaper bag are almost enough to make me want to have another baby.

Today

2008-03-05T19:51:00.003-06:00

Want to know what I did today?

I kept nineteen 17-year-olds absolutely quiet - not a peep - for FIVE and a HALF HOURS! With only a small 30-minute break for lunch in there.

Why would I ever attempt such a feat?

TAKS, my darling - the wonderful test of all tests.

Now I just have to convince them that we still have to work for the rest of the year...

Ode to Monkey

2008-02-25T19:08:00.004-06:00

A few weeks ago, I had school and Caden's school was closed, so we called our bestest babysitter ever, S, and she agreed to babysit. She has 3 wonderful kids - I'm convinced they do no wrong - and they're usually happy whenever we let them babysit Caden.

Stan picked him up and said that he had a great time over there as usual and he even brought home a souvenir - Monkey. Now, we have bought Caden bears and other stuffed animals, but he has no attachment whatsoever with them - only Monkey.

He sleeps with Monkey. He watches movies with Monkey. He even eats with Monkey. Every Friday at his school, they have 'Show & Tell'. He's taken Monkey ever since he got him. Stan lets him take Monkey in the truck with him on the way to school & he'll leave him in the truck when they get there. Not so this past Wednesday. He would NOT leave him in the truck! Thankfully Ms. Beth said that he could bring him in to school that day.

So thank you S & little L for giving Caden Monkey! Our lives would be so empty without him, and we love him so much!!

This is how we work

2008-02-23T22:46:00.014-06:00

Our weekends lately have consisted of much basketball.
Well, maybe not mine so much - directly - but my life has definitely had to shift because of it!

Case in point, Friday nights. I go straight home from school and Stan & I pick Caden up together. We then make the all-important stop at Wendy's to ensure that our boy's stomach gets full of food as soon as possible, and then make the trek to the school to set up for Upwards basketball the next day.

Caden eating with Monkey, whom he has taken to 'Show and Tell' the last 5 Fridays! He also took him to school on Wednesday when it was NOT 'Show & Tell'

That's when the workin' starts according to Caden. He LOVES to work and if his daddy is doing something, he needs to be helping him. Stacking chairs and pushing the dolly is better than going to the park for this kid!

After the work is done, there's always a bit of playing that needs to be done.

This is our family's Friday entertainment. I'm more worried about the end of Upward season than I was the end of football season! Here's a great picture of my 2 most favorite boys in the whole world.

Remembering

2008-02-22T20:42:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I went to the funeral of my first cousin once removed (he's my mom's cousin & I'm her kid - hence the 'removed' part - I think!)

He's a little older than my parents and he'd been in ill health for about a year, but I was still surprised when I found out this weekend.

In honor of my 'Uncle' Kenny, here's what made him unique.

He called a handful of girls 'George'. Until yesterday, I thought I was the only one, but alas, that is not the case! 'We' made the preacher's speech as he said there was a very special group of girls who could say they were known as 'George'. That made me happy.

He judged sandwiches by how messy they were. He would put a big glob of mayonnaise on the bread and then slap a tomato on it. A really good sandwich would have the juice flowing down his arm. EWWWW!!

He was driving somewhere with his radio turned up very loud when a policeman pulled him over. He turned it down, pulled over, and waited for the cop to come up to the window. The cop came up and apologized for pulling him over saying, "I'm sorry sir. I heard some loud music, but it must have been some kids who pulled off the road." Kenny LOVED that story!

On a sadder note, he could not attend funerals. He would go, and then drive around and around the church where the funeral was being held. When he was in Vietnam, his friend was killed and he got a picture of the friend in his coffin in the mail. From what I hear, he was never able to go to a funeral after that.

He wore overalls everywhere and was just a laid back, casual guy. One thing that was said over and over again at the funeral was that if you needed him to do anything, he dropped whatever he was doing and helped you out.

The funeral was very simple and moving. Being a vet, he had 2 members of the military there and watching them fold up the flag and present it to his wife, Pat, was nice. What was even more moving was watching the Vets who were there tear up when Taps was played.

After the funeral, we all piled back in our vehicles and headed over to the First Baptist Church. In typical southern fashion, there were 2 tables loaded down with food. It was so nice seeing family I hadn't seen in years. There's just something about being with family (even the crazy ones - and some of them are looney!) that is just so calming.

I would be doing just fine and then something would happen and my mom would start to cry and then I would lose it. You can't NOT cry when your mama's crying!

So anyway, to a really sweet guy who never had a bad word to say about anyone and enjoyed the simple things in life - you will be missed and you are loved tremendously.

Update Post

2008-02-16T23:17:00.002-06:00

It's been so long & I truly apologize to anyone who is still checking this. Hopefully I haven't lost too much of my fan base.

Anyway, here's a rundown on my life the past couple of months.

If people who have no intention of going fast would stay out of the fast lane (or at least avoid driving the exact same speed as the person exactly beside them) I would be a lot happier. Me and my anxiety medication would thank you.

Moody people need to get over themselves.

Administrators who say "data" and "TAKS" and "benchmark" make me want to spank them. Seriously.

The next 2 weeks of Upward need to run smoothly. For everyone in the Aalbers household's sakes. If you receive an email from my husband, ANSWER IT! Do not make my husband call you and the 30 other poeple who did not respond to said email on a Thursday night. He is already giving up one whole day of family time. You don't get Thursdays too. A simple "I can ref" or "I"m not available" will suffice.

Not to name names but a certain contractor with the initials GW has attained "Awesome" status in our house. Seriously, he can do no wrong in any Aalbers' eyes.

If anyone has a good product to make your nails stop cracking & splitting, I would appreciate a shout-out.

Freshmen students need to be observed 24/7. You cannot rush out of a computer lab with 16 freshmen left unattended because your pea-sized bladder is about to spill. If any administrators are reading this, no, I did not do this personally.

Juniors rock. There is something about the 16 to 17-year old psyche that I love. God bless the 11th grade.

Caden likes peeing in his pants. And really, how can I argue with him? He doesn't need to stop playing or eating in order to go to the bathroom. The kid's going to be 4 before he uses the potty.

To the cop who made me turn the other way when I was physically unable to get in the turn lane of my choice because you were directing traffic into it? I don't care for you.

Dirt piles do not belong in driveways longterm.

Chace Murphy is back doing the news on Candy 95 in the morning. Everything is all right now.

If your child takes 30+ minutes to open presents on Christmas morning, you have bought said child too many presents.

Big boy beds are easier to go to sleep in than toddler beds.

Caden's favorite song right now is "Wipeout" from the 1950s/1960s.

I really don't like shaving my legs, but I dislike that prickly feeling when I get into bed even more. I suppose Stan does, too.

10 things about me

2007-12-31T20:33:00.001-06:00

I've seen this done on a few other blogs, so in honor of my hitting #34 the other day, here are 10 things that you may not have known about me:

1. I was saved at 16 & baptized on Easter Sunday.
2. I played the shrew in The Taming of the Shrew in HS and dreamed of an acting career.
3. I met and fell in love with Stan at McDonald’s management class – and we got engaged 2 weeks later.
4. I took the LSAT the day after I took the GRE thinking that I may want to go to law school.
5. I played softball very competitively from the time I was 7 & my dream was to go to A&M & get a scholarship there.
6. I have never broken a bone in my body.
7. I was a Shy-Anne at Bryan High.
8. My fist car was a Ranchero.
9. My all-time favorite movie is Field of Dreams
10. I’m still bitter Milli Vanilli is not a legitimate band. To this day, if I hear “Blame it on the Rain” I will stop what I’m doing & sing at the top of my lungs…while ‘stage-dancing’.

Happy Birthday to me!

2007-12-28T20:08:00.000-06:00

Everything is Gerrit's

2007-12-14T22:28:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago, we made the mistake of shopping for our nephew while in the company of our son. Caden decided he wanted the lego blocks that we had gotten for Gerrit, so we will now have to give Gerrit what we purchased for Caden.

Now, it's a really cool gift. And I should've known better, but I wrapped it in front of Caden. Caden kept pointing at it and saying, "Caden's!" I had to tell him no, it was in fact, his cousin Gerrit's. He got the lego blocks so we had to give Gerrit this other equally-fantastic toy.

Caden got over it - mostly because I pointed at it & said over and over again, "Gerrit's!"

Now Caden goes around the house pointing at various objects, looking at me, and saying "Gerrit's!"

But when he gets to the wrapped present, he grins and says "Gerrit's. AND CADEN'S!"

At least he's willing to share. Let's hope Gerrit feels the same way.

Fun at the tree farm

2007-12-09T12:30:00.001-06:00

We met some great friends last weekend at the Red Kaboose Tree Farm. Their daughter is 2 months older than Caden & they tend to be crazy about each other!

The kids had a great time: running around the Christmas trees, petting the one-eared goat, riding the train, & sitting in the fire truck. Caden didn't even get too upset when a grumpy rabbit snapped at him.

They have BEAUTIFUL Christmas trees - at incredibly reasonable prices - and I got a gynormous wreath for only $20.

This is definitely going to be an annual tradition!

Flu shot hurts

2007-11-24T23:52:00.000-06:00

DeAnn asked me to write this since getting the flu shot this year was a father/son experience.

Most people dread getting shots. Me, not so much. Not that big of a deal. So without thinking about it, when I picked Caden up I told him we were going to get his flu shot. His response...."OK."

When we got to Scott & White he walked in telling everyone that he was getting a flu shot. He was very excited. I got several looks of disgust from other parents who were attempting to keep their children calm. I don't think they were very happy with Caden repeatedly saying "flu shot". Their children certainly were not.

The nurse administering the flu shot had me to take him behind a privacy screen and take his britches off since she was giving him the shot in his thigh. I got him ready and held him in my lap. When the nurse arrived she told me I needed to lay him down so I could hold him better and so he wouldn't see what she was doing.

I attempted to humor her. I layed him down, but I simply laid my arm across his chest. She said that wasn't good enough. I needed to hold his hands. So I laid my hand on top of his hands without grabbing them. When she applied the alcohol he sat up. The nurse looked up at me, but I just nodded at her.

She then gave him the shot with Caden watching the whole time. Not one peep. No sound. Not even a whimper. When she finished Caden said "I got flu shot". I looked up to see the nurse sitting there with her jaw dropped. Apparently this is not the normal reaction from a 2 year old.

I put his britches back on, put Caden down and we started to head for the door. I was asked by a couple different people if Caden really just got a flu shot. I didn't have to answer. The nurse said Yes.

As we passed the tables I noticed Caden was limping a little. I asked if he was okay. He said "Flu shot hurts daddy."

A father couldn't be any prouder.

Tis the season

2007-11-24T19:33:00.000-06:00

Tis the season for all the cute photo Christmas cards. And I'm happy about that; I really am. But I would like to point out a few rules of grammar that many people have forgotten. In case you missed the rantings post, I'll cover them again.

Do not, I repeat, DO NOT use an apostrophe to form a plural of your last name.

Example - Merry Christmas from the Smiths is correct.
Merry Christmas from the Smith's is not!!!!!!

I realize that it's ridiculous that it gets on my nerves this much, but I think it's ridiculous how many times on a daily basis I run into educated people who don't know this rule.

If your name ends in an -s, as mine does, you have 2 options:
Merry Christmas from the Aalbers family
Merry Christmas from the Aalberses

So as you design your cards from Wal-Mart, Walgreens, or any other place, please keep these rules in mind. And please note, that a grammatically incorrect Christmas card will not find its way onto the Aalbers' (see how I showed possession by ALL of the Aalberses?) fridge.

So incredibly thankful

2007-11-22T21:58:00.000-06:00

For a son that is healthy & happy

For a husband who is sweet, loving, and who provides for me

For a job that is challenging, interesting, and fun

For 4 days off from said challenging & interesting job

For a house that is beautiful & sturdy (now!)

For clothes that are warm and comfy

For parents who take care of us and love up on my son

For in-laws who I enjoy being around

For friends who get me

For Caden's teachers who love him and teach him & do both incredibly well

For 2 vehicles that work and are comfortable and get us from place to place

For the ability to go to the A&M game tomorrow

For my education

For my son's inquisitive and adventurous spirit

For his sweet, sharing heart too

For fun trips to the zoo

For people who write awesome children's books

For a son who loves to read those books

For cold weather - finally!

From wal-reese to banana-moon...

2007-10-16T22:17:00.000-05:00

The latest lesson on living in the moment and enjoying the little things. Caden used to say 'wal-reese' for 'walrus' & I thought it was the cutest thing I'd ever heard. In the car, I would constantly ask him to say it.

He says 'walrus' now. In the span of a few short weeks, we lost wal-reese.

BUT!

Looking out of the truck window this evening, he said "banana-moon". It was hard to make out at first. Stan & I looked at each other & asked him to say it again. Sure enough, he spat out "banana-moon". I told Stan that's what I thought he was saying & he looked out the window to see if we could see the moon.

He could. And it was only a quarter-moon, a crescent if you will.

A real, honest to goodness banana-moon!

One tough booger

2007-10-09T21:16:00.001-05:00

This is a picture of Daddy holding Caden's big toenail.

Yes, you read correctly.

A week ago, Caden injured his toe at school causing it to bleed a little from around the toenail. Tonight he kicked a regulation-sized football barefooted & caused more damage. He started picking at it and both of us told him at different times to stop, but unbeknownst to us, he had pulled it almost all of the way off.

Stan got the nail scissors out. We sat Caden on his dresser. And I tried very hard to not let my squeamishness show.

Stan started cutting and the bottom lip immediately stuck out while crocodile tears welled up in Caden's eyes. Stan gently told him to be still and let him know that this was indeed going to hurt a bit. At this point, it's all I can do to remain strong for my poor little boy.

Poor little boy my foot. He watched the whole thing and barely whimpered. Then when Stan got the toenail off, he started giggling and playing with the afflicted toe. I cried more than he did!

All is well. Mama is a big girl and she's going to be OK. And, oh yeah - Caden fell asleep a mere fifteen minutes later.

This picture was taken IMMEDIATELY after the impromptu surgery.

This is the last time...

2007-10-05T21:40:00.000-05:00

I can't say no. I've always had a problem with it. When the cute little cheerleaders come and ask me to be in the pep rallies because I'm "funny" (and also because no one else will do it) - I can't disappoint my fans.

So today, I was part of AC/DC. I had to lipsync "TNT" for TWO whole minutes. I then went out and backup danced for Vanilla Ice.

My principal asked me if I had ever thought about audtitioning for American Idol.

I PROMISE I really do get quite a bit of teaching done.

Pee pee in the potty...

2007-09-29T09:51:00.000-05:00

and on the potty...and on the floor!

But it wasn't his fault. We have a ghetto training potty & the way he was sitting ('he' being the operative word) caused his pee to go up and over, but some went in to!

We sang the pee-pee-in-the-potty song and then went & put a diaper on him b/c he said he didn't need to go poo-poo in the potty...

All in a day's work...

2007-09-25T22:18:00.001-05:00

I'm the one in the 'toga'.

The four of us were the homecoming nominees at last week's pep rally. I'm still bitter that I lost. I let my juniors know that they are ALL failing because they didn't yell loud enough for me. Seriously, I had on ferarri red lipstick and glitter and everything.

Yes, those are little kids in the background & yes I teach high school. Cameron is small enough to invite every student in the district to the homecoming pep rally.

One more thing - it's hard to be a 'serious' teacher when you have glitter all over your face & your kiddoes have seen you wearing a sheet.

Just FYI...

Trying to keep the sanity

2007-09-15T09:23:00.000-05:00

The last 3 weeks of school have been great. It's been nice being happy in the mornings about where I'm going. The kids are awesome, I'm loving the new principal, & even the administrative nonsense isn't getting me down.

I've even reconnected with an old friend! I started a MySpace account a while back but never really did anything with it, and wouldn't you know it - my high school friend found me! I'm so excited; we haven't been able to talk yet, but just emailing back & forth has been so much fun.

I worked the varsity football gate last night. Every teacher is supposed to work 4 events in a year & I try to get mine done early. Right now I just have 2 to go. Oh my goodness! The bugs were horrible! It's so not worth the pittance we get paid for doing the duty. But...I had a substitute teacher run up and hug me and say she is so glad that I have her son in my class this year. I got to see 2 former students who are now in college & they BOTH said that I prepared them well. And I also got to see another former student who snuck up behind me & gave me a huge bearhug. Oh, it is so sad when they grow up and go away, but I guess that's part of my job - to prepare them for life after high school, but I DO miss my babies.

Caden is talking up a storm. He now says his name & he's even got a little headbob that goes with it. He's so social - the waitress the other night taught him how to work the nifty parmesan cheese shredder. Terrible twos? Poo on you. We're having more fun with him than we ever had.

Fall at our house is busy and awesome. There is just something exciting about living in CS when the Aggies come back & football starts & I get to play with high school juniors all day. They're so funny! They tell me the craziest things, probably more than I want to hear sometimes! But I love it when I hear kids say, "This is my most fun class" AS they are doing their writing assignment, turning it in, & then pulling their library book out to read for the last few minutes of class.

Now if I can just find the time to work in some scrapbooking...

I hope everyone has a great day!

SMOOCHES!!!!

Farewell faithful friend

2007-09-01T23:18:00.001-05:00

For those of you who are pet people, you will get this. Everyone else will shrug & think I'm kooky.

My dear, sweet, first baby passed away last night at the age of 12 1/2.

Ashton.

We woke up on Friday & knew that something was wrong. He was very lethargic & laboring to breathe. We went to work & Stan said that he would check on him at lunch. We came home & he didn't seem to be any worse, but he still didn't look good. We went to a high school football game & when we came home, I realized that I couldn't keep kidding myself - this was bad.

Stan made some calls & eventually ended up at the Small Animal Clinic at A&M. We called my parents to come sit with Caden, who was asleep by now. We drove over there & they immediately took him back while we filled out paperwork. To make a long story short, he had 250 ml of fluid taken out from around his lungs & the doctor (intern?) thought it looked like cancer or heart failure. Just to get the cardiologist there to diagnose him would cost around $1200, so we decided to just put him out of his pain. Around 12:30 am, after being there for 2 hours, we came home.

It was really strange, almost like I was in denial about it. I spoke to my parents about it & I could tell that they were pretty shook up, but then we started talking about other stuff & laughing & joking. Surreal. When they left, I saw a picture of him and started sobbing, and Stan just held me. We then went to bed. I woke up a couple of hours later and was physically sick - I guess from all the crying and stress of it all.

He was with me almost my whole adult life. I drove to Wellborn with my future college roommate to pick him up. I wanted a female but she was already spoken for, so I 'settled' on the boy.

I'm using this blog as a journal, something I can look back on, so here's a list of things that I think show just how special he was.

He would hold his paw underneath the bathtub faucet, wait for the drip, and then lick himself clean. No wasted energy on his part.

He would sneak in the pantry, laundry room, closet - anywhere - constantly getting shut in. After a little while, I would notice he wasn't joined at my hip like usual & then I would go look for him, opening the door to wherever he was to let him out. Sometimes he was ready to come out & other times, not so much.

He loved cheese. We could not eat queso without him whining and trying to sneak around my hand to get some.

He was running to jump on the bed once & he timed it wrong. He jumped up and then started going down...the eyes got real big...and he splatted right against the side of the mattress. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life.

He also ran into a cleaned sliding glass door. (I never said he was the SMARTest cat)

Bailey & Jasper were born on our front porch in Houston. When they were six weeks old, some neighbors took the mama cat to their new house & we kept the babies. They apparently were weaned a little early b/c they would go up to Ashton - a neutered male cat - and knead & suckle on his belly. Ashton would merely roll over and go to sleep while they did this.

When I moved out of my first apartment (where I lived alone for awhile) into my new apartment with my roommate, I left him alone while I took a load over. When I got back to the old place, I saw that he had gotten into the fireplace & was covered with ashes. I'd already packed his cat shampoo but not my own, so I bathed him with Salon Selectives. He loved it.

Speaking of baths, he was the easiest animal to bathe. He would patiently wait for an opening, then stealthily sneak away. He was so slow, I could basically hold him with one hand; sometimes I could take that one hand off of him for a few seconds.

My parents came & spent Christmas with me in my apartment while my roommate was at home. We were asleep when this rumbling, combination growling/purring woke us up. Ashton had caught a mouse & was playing with it - I guess until he decided to eat it.

Ashton is the reason my parents have their cats. He was so much fun & my parents enjoyed him so much that they went and picked out 2 cats shortly after I got him.

**Gross-out alert** We shared yogurt. One bite for Mama, one bite for Ashton. Strawberry was his favorite.

He thought he was a dog for a long time. My roommate had 2 dachshunds & he learned to hide behind the couch and then pounce on them when they went by. They weren't allowed in my room, so he would then run in there & stop just over the threshold. This was fine until a visiting golden retriever chased him into my room. Ashton stopped. The retriever didn't. All we saw for a few seconds was cat and dog rolling on the floor.

He always came to me when I called his name. Always.

He thought everyone came to see him. He was incredibly social & would go up to people - even those who (gasp!) hate cats. I think he fell in love with the DirecTV guy; I've never seen him rub all over somebody like that before.

He knew when I was upset or sick and would come lay by me & not leave.

He never wanted to be away from me. If I took a nap, I had to make sure he was in the room with me before I shut the door.

He never really got used to the litter box idea. He would do his business and then scratch the sides of the box - sometimes for 10 minutes or more. This drove me and Stan crazy & we would tap (bang) on the box to get him to come out.

He played with me when I was in the tub. I would tap my fingers over the side & he would grab them & nibble on them. One time, I was ignoring him & I felt a tap on my shoulder. I looked over just in time to see him dive down to wait for me to play with him.

If I was in the bathroom taking care of business, he would get in the tub on the other side of the shower curtain & play with me that way - pushing on the curtain from one side while I did the same from mine.

I loved him soooo much and I have found myself crying at the most inopportune times. I was just at the Aggie game & I would think about something stupid that Ashton did & giggle & tear up at the same time. He was with me from the time I lived alone in college until I got married and had my son. I distinctly remember looking at him the morning after I got him and thinking it was neat that this animal would be with me for some pretty momentous occasions.

I just remembered that when I woke up that first morning, Ashton was sleeping right next to me, in the EXACT same sleeping position as I was. I always felt that we were that in tune with each other.

Stan has said for years that this was a day he was dreading b/c he knew how attached I was to Ashton. While I 'get' that he was a pet, and NOT a human, I still feel like I lost a true friend. He was the very first pet I ever had in my whole life. He was with me when I was completely alone and single. I have shared almost every important thing that has ever happened to me with that cat.

So anyway...I'm sad & I'll be sad for awhile. I cannot believe he is gone & I will truly miss him.

Just say yes

2007-08-25T18:30:00.000-05:00

The new pills are here & so far so good. No meltdowns. No ranting. No raging. Stan's happy. I'm happy. Heck - even the cats are happy.

Just say no

2007-08-25T17:59:00.000-05:00

I started back to school this past week for staff development. I was working in my room when there was a knock on the door. One of my absolute favorite people at school, S, was standing there with a red face, red knuckles, and rapidly turning-red arms. She said she had taken zentrex - a diet/energy pill and she thought she was having an allergic reaction. We went back to her room and she took 2 Benadryl and then I walked her down to the nurse, all the while her face & arms are getting redder and redder. The nurse took her blood pressure and it was 130 over 86 - not high, but higher than it normally is. We talked her into letting me drive her to see the doctor and we started walking back towards our rooms.

S then says, "DeAnn, I think I need to go to the emergency room". I said OK & began walking a bit quicker.

She then says, "DeAnn, we need to hurry". I said OK & was almost running down the hall.

She then starts sobbing and begins crying out for help. We're right next to our rooms & I see that our friend's door is open & she's inside. I yelled "K Come quick!" while running into my room to get my purse & keys. K runs out (she told me later that she could tell something was wrong by the sound of my voice), sees S and goes over to help her walk outside. I brief her on what's going on, all the while our friend is barely walking and sobbing uncontrollably.

Thankfully a man teacher showed up and helped K and S walk outside. I run to my car and pull it up under the awning where they are all waiting. S is now on her knees, completely unable to stand. We can't get her into the car so another friend, J, calls 911.

We laid S out on the ground after the dispatcher told us to and we're trying to keep her awake but she's having a hard time keeping her eyes open. The paramedics arrived within 4 minutes, took one look at the bottle of pills, and said they'd been called about these several times before. They took her blood pressure and it was 160 over something, I can't remember, but it had shot up in just a few minutes.

S started coming around, sitting up and talking. Her blood pressure started going down. Apparently the Benadryl was really working at this point. After a few minutes the paramedics left and S started getting her normal color back.

It was the craziest, scariest thing I've ever had to go through. I watched her go from having a red face and arms to not even being able to stand up in the span of 2 or 3 minutes. We were all so filled with adrenaline that at this point - after we knew she was OK - all we could do was laugh. We told her that we called 911 after we realized that we weren't going to be able to put her in the car and she said, "No wonder I was taking diet pills!"

Just give me the ketchup & no one gets hurt

2007-08-17T00:07:00.001-05:00

After I ranted and raved at Stan for not bringing home McDonald's ketchup to eat with McDonald's fries (I have to eat the ketchup that goes with the fries, each & every restaurant), he made the executive decision - for the good of the team - that I need to call the doctor to get on a new birth control pill.

Praise God for girlfriends

2007-08-13T23:12:00.000-05:00

Ladies Night - in my opinion - was a rousing success tonight! I had a ball & I hope I wasn't too obnoxious & everyone else had fun as well.

I love that we can cut up and have fun together.

I love that we can be silly & giggle.

I love that we can joke & tease each other without feelings getting hurt.

I love that I can depend on these women at the drop of a hat.

I love that I can turn to any one of them with a problem and get good, sound, Christian advice.

I love the way that they are all raising their kids.

I love that - if needed - I can call any one of them to babysit my son & I would feel confident he was in good hands.

I love that they see a need for Christian women to fellowship and bond together.

I love that we're doing it again next month!

What a difference a couple of years makes

2007-08-13T23:04:00.000-05:00

Yes, the cradle is still in the living room. I think Stan knows on some subconscious level that I need baby steps. The cradle's been taken apart, the legs are wrapped up and have mysteriously disappeared, and he knows that my psyche can't handle the big part disappearing as well.

We got in the other day from church & Caden immediately went & sat in it. I, ever on the lookout for a blogging moment, grabbed my camera & told him to lay completely flat. He barely fits! It made me laugh after my tearfest the other night.

I LOVE this kid!

Two Sides of a Coin

2007-08-11T22:41:00.000-05:00

Happy time - Today we put Caden in his swimsuit & let him play in the sprinklers. As you can see, he absolutely loved it. He went from one sprinkler head to another & giggled and squealed the whole time. Our neighbors across the street were finishing up their garage sale & their 2 oldest daughters came over & asked if they could run through the water too. We said, "Sure - why not?"

Sad time - This is the day we brought Caden home from the hospital. The cradle is handcrafted - by Stan & his dad - and is absolutely phenomenal. Experienced woodworkers have been shocked upon hearing that Stan built it; it's that beautiful.

I went out this evening to get a snack and when I got home, it was in several pieces in the living room. Stan took one look at me & said he had to do it in order to get it up in the attic. We simply don't have room in our office to store it anymore. And my head knows this, it's just that my heart hurt seeing it disassembled.

It's like this. I love the stage where Caden is at: talking, independent, curious. But I deeply miss the little baby. It's like a person who I loved so much and now I'll never get to see him again. Because he's gone. Because he's so much different now. And I know that's how it's supposed to be, and I'm TRULY happy with this stage/season of life. But walking into the living room and seeing a tangible piece of his babyhood in pieces...it just tore me up. It's tearing me up right now typing this. But then I look at the pictures of him playing in the sprinkler & I laugh and know that change - at least this change - is truly a good and natural thing.

Highlights of the last 2 weeks

2007-08-10T09:16:00.001-05:00

1. This is Caden & his friend Bekah at the Children's Museum in The Woodlands. They are super cute together & it is so much fun watching them interact. When one of them would be ugly to the other, they would immediately apologize & hug. So sweet!

2. Walking with my friend Krista last night. We started late, but we got a good hour in & neither one of us 'felt it' because we chatted the whole time! I met her in graduate school at A&M & we've been great friends ever since. Nobody except Stan really 'gets me' like she does.

3. Stan & I went to dinner the other night & the waiter 'properly acknowledged' Caden. He took forever getting our drinks & we had to wait for awhile on the check, but he still got a good tip because he interacted with our son.

4. Getting to visit with our neighbors across the street. Caden basically invited himself in so we all got to go in. They are really nice people & I'm glad that we're getting to know them better.

5. Getting completely caught up on my Christmas planning. ('Redeeming my Season' is great for tips on a stress-free holiday season this year.) Stan & I had the Christmas talk, I got my notebook organized, & I've even completed half of Caden's shopping. I've also got specific gift ideas for about 80% of my list already!

6. I started a running program this week - the Couch to 5K program. In 9 weeks (I'm shooting for 12), I will be running 3 miles a day. Gerald if you're reading this - I would LOVE to go running with you at Christmas!

7. I spent 2 hours talking to one of my girlfriends the other day on the phone. I NEVER do this, but it was fun! AND - she's going to sew a pillowcase & sheet for Caden's toddler bed. Her website - Oh me, oh my Sweet Baby is up and running & she's taking orders. She's incredibly talented & one of the most solid Christian people that I know - definitely somebody that I need in my life.

8. Getting 2 birthday party invitations for Caden. He's a social butterfly so he will LOVE getting to go to parties!

9. Getting to have some special one-on-one conversations with my wonderful honey. He's worked a LOT lately, but we've gotten some great quality time in.

Ranting from a self-described grammar nerd

2007-08-09T20:39:00.000-05:00

As an English teacher, I do not expect everyone to be as familiar with the grammar rules as I am, but I do expect some of the more basic rules to be followed...

Like how to use an apostrophe.

It is there to show when a letter or letters have been left out: shouldn't (should not), can't (cannot), should've (should have), etc.

Or it is used to show possession: Caden's shirt, the player's ball, The Smiths' house (all of the Smiths, not just one)

It is NOT, I repeat NOT EVER to be used to make a word plural. You add an -s or an -es to the word. Sometimes you have to change the 'y' to 'i' and add -es, but that's the only tricky part: shirts, Tuesdays, boxes, babies.

This Christmas when you create your cute photo cards that say Merry Christmas from the... don't put an apostrophe there. Just add an -s or an -es. Smiths, Aalberses, Steinbeckers - it's easy.

I realize I probably let this get to me a little bit too much. If I see this on a TV program like I did the other night (Food Network was talking about food phobias except they said phobia's), I will look at Stan and say, "You've got to be kidding me". If I see it in an email or blog, I just shake my head and vow to teach my students not to do this. If I see it written on a board I will stare at it forever, never hearing the point of the lesson or presentation.

Yes - I am a grammar nerd. But please - if you learn nothing else from reading this blog - please, please learn this lesson. It's the one thing I'm freaky about. I realize I need help, but until that day comes, just please do not use another apostrophe to make a word plural.

Stan - and my blood pressure - thank you for your consideration in this matter.

Random act of kindness

2007-08-07T14:16:00.000-05:00

I was at Albertson's this morning picking up a few needed things. I only went b/c it was right next to Walmart & I didn't have to drive anywhere else. Goodness - how does that place stay in business? Absolutely sky-high prices.

I saw a young mother with a brand new baby perusing the aisles. She had the new mother uniform on: mismatched, wrinkled sweats, flip flops, and her hair was tossed up in that "the baby's crying; I don't have time to be fancy" ponytail bun style we've all done before.

I smiled because I remember those days. I remember them much more fondly than I thought I would when I was going through them. You know, when you're brand new to motherhood and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight to the waking up at all hours, wondering if he's hungry, dirty, itchy...the list & uncertainty goes on.

I kept shopping and as I turned a corner, I saw her again. Her baby was fussing and she was attempting to get her out and get her covered with the blanket as soon as possible because we were in the frozen section and it was quite chilly. This other lady turned the corner down by the new mother, obviously in a hurry to get what she was searching for when she saw the young mother. She stopped. She grabbed the blanket from the young woman and held it until the mother could get situated with her baby. She then gently laid the blanket on the baby's back and tucked it up under the mother's arms. She then went about her merry way.

I smiled throughout the whole interaction. That is something that I would never do in a million years. I'm too shy; I wouldn't want to intrude - whatever the excuse is, I'm just not comfortable going up to a complete stranger & helping her like that. But I think we're called to do that. So...next time I see the opportunity I am going to pass it forward, this random act of kindness thing. Pardon the cliche, but I will definitely be stepping out of my box to complete this task, but I will remember this blessing I saw today, take a deep breath, and step out.

At least he didn't poop again...

2007-08-05T20:30:00.001-05:00

It has only been a week since we had Poop-gate at our house. So far things have been uneventful in that arena.

Until tonight.

At the end of his bath, Caden stood up and peed right in the tub. He looked down, looked at us, and said, "I potty".

What a kid.

Too busy dancing...

2007-08-02T21:58:00.000-05:00

I haven't really had the time to post too much the last few days. Every time I sit down at the computer, Caden asks for one of two things.

He either points to the screen and says, "Football" or "Aggie Ball", meaning that he wants to watch the "We Bleed Maroon" video, or - and this is embarrassing, he points to the speakers and says, "Deet", his version of "Dance".

Now we can't dance to just anything. It has to be "Last Night" by Diddy, as in P. Diddy, as in Puff Daddy the rapper. I know what you're thinking - "What is WRONG with her? Why does she let - no encourage - her son to listen to rap?" In my defense, it's quite catchy, and it's not naughty at all. He absolutely LOVES to listen to it and he dances like he's on Solid Gold. Sometimes I have to hold him and dance, and the song is SIX minutes long!!! Oh my sweet goodness, the boy does love the hip hop. It's especially funny when he convinces Nana to dance with him.

Being a teacher of high school hooligans, I like to keep up with what's hot and happening on the music scene. I earn an exhorbitant amount of street cred when I look at them and pop off hip hop lyrics, albeit the clean ones of course. Sometimes they point and laugh, but most often they say, "Awww miss - you cool!" It's then that I get a golden opportunity to teach them how to conjugate the most complicated of all the verbs - to be. That wouldn't have happened without hip hop. So hip hop actually makes me a better teacher.

And it makes me a better mother because I can dance with my son.

We Bleed Maroon

2007-07-31T09:45:00.001-05:00

I love this video! And I love the fact that I figured out how to post it.

Poop in the tub

2007-07-28T20:52:00.000-05:00

I wish to everything that is holy that I was making this up...

Caden played HARD with his Purple Bomber car this afternoon & he smelled like a 100% little boy. I mistakenly said to Stan, "He really needs a bath tonight" and here he comes running.

"BATH!!! BATH!!!" and he's pointing to the bathroom & dancing in circles. This kid seriously loves bathtime.

So I get up & he goes and gets Stan and we make it a family affair. Midway through the bath, we start smelling something rank. The kid's got the toots & we're laughing and gagging at the same time. I decide that it's time to get him outta there before he does something REALLY gross.

As we're picking up the toys, I'm chanting, "Don't poop. Don't poop. Don't poop." Well what does he do? He squats down and starts grunting. Stan's fiddling in the office at this point. I'm screaming. Caden's pooping.

I pick him up & get him wrapped in the towel. He sees how hysterical I am and begins crying. I quickly calm him down & tell him he didn't do anything wrong, Mommy's just...well I don't know what I said at that point, but he calms down.

I get him into his room & on his dresser - thankfully he's still very clean. I have never gotten a diaper on that kid as fast as I did tonight. Stan's trying to leave to go get something to eat & I said, "You're leaving NOW?? While there's poop floating in the tub?" He got the hint & went to clean it up. Here comes part II.

Stan is very strong in so many things, but smells get him every time. As he's cleaning up the tub, he becomes physically ill. I immediately feel super guilty for making him do this & I'm trying to talk to him through the door, while trying to keep Caden out of the bathroom.

Caden is clean and hopefully not emotionally scarred from this trauma. Stan recovered well enough to go to McDonalds for dinner. And I'm kicking myself for letting a potty training golden opportunity slide right by. The potty was RIGHT there! All I had to do was pick him up & put him on it.

I WISH I was making this up...

HELP!!

2007-07-28T20:50:00.000-05:00

Can anyone help me?

I've signed on to YouTube to get videos uploaded to my blog, but I can't 'add' my blog! ARRGGH!

I select blogger as my 'type'. I then enter my email & password - the same ones I use for blogger, right?

It then pops up something about this being 'forbidden'

Please help!!!

Day at the Museum

2007-07-27T10:06:00.001-05:00

Yesteday we went to the Museum of Fine Art in Houston. It was supposed to be a "Mom & Me" adventure - me & my mom - but when I dropped Caden off at school, he fussed because he just knew we were going to be doing something fun. So I picked him up from his breakfast table, went back home to pack his bag, and then all 3 of us drove to Houston.

I'm glad we took Caden. He had so much fun looking at the pictures - there was even one of a bullfight & he stood in front of it and yelled, "COWS!" for a few minutes. Luckily there were several other groups of kids there who were making kid noises as well.

He also enjoyed running around & then sitting on the padded benches. I wish I had taken my camera; I turned around one time to see him sprawled out on the bench, on his elbows with his feet crossed & a cheshire-cat grin. He was soooo super cute! As soon as I stepped towards him, he jumped down & took off running, giggling the whole way. Like I said, I'm glad there were other kids there disrupting the quietness!

My glorious mother then took me to Pappasito's. I LOVE Pappasito's! While we were waiting for a table, I saw Stan's former supervisor who still works at the Houston office. We said our hellos & I looked at my mother and said, "I bet he calls Stan". Sure enough, 30 minutes later I get a call from Stan & the first words out of his mouth are, "So - how's Pappasito's?" Our waitress was so cute; she told us we were the happiest table she'd had all day. My mom retorted that as long as the redhead's happy, everybody's happy. And he was since I moved his high chair so he could be between his mama & his nana.

A really fun day with 2 of my favorite people.

It was a love affair...

2007-07-25T21:34:00.001-05:00

Some of you may know that our washing machine went kaput last week. We tried to fix it, but it was no use. After 11 years of faithful service, it went to that appliance heaven in the sky.

We bought another one - shiny & new - installed it & it's working perfectly.

Now the problem is...the dryer.

It's been cranky lately, not drying stuff that it was supposed to be drying, not paying any attention to our heating preference, just drying everything on super hot, and now it's putting off a burning smell.

It's obvious to me. The washing machine was the wife. When she died, the dryer could no longer make it without her. He didn't like the new girl, and he is now on his last legs.

Stan made the executive decision that, before the entire house burned down around a fluffy, snuggly load of clothes, we should replace it, which we did tonight.

So now the dryer is once again side by side with his mate of 11 years in the garage, awaiting the funeral that is - Big Stuff Pick-up Day.

God & Football

2007-07-21T20:11:00.000-05:00

Does anyone else get the image of God as a football player in that song "Everlasting God"?

I do.

The lyric, "You're the defender of the WEAK" sounds like "defender of the WEEK".

I can just hear the announcer:

"And now, introducing the defender of the week, with more tackles, interceptions, and pass-breakups than anyone else - GOD the Almighty!!!!!"

I hear the crowd cheering as God runs out with His hands up and then starts jumping in place like the regular football players do to get geared up for the game.

Seriously, does anyone else get that mental picture?

Only me

2007-07-19T14:33:00.001-05:00

I have really enjoyed my summer so far: sleeping in, playing in the park, catching up on my reading. Well, now I am in Huntsville this week for my "Teaching American History" academy. Everything's going great, but it's been an interesting week. After 6 weeks of "playing" a stay-at-home mom, I'm thrust straight back into my real life - that of a teacher mom. The conversations & discourse have been great & I'm learning a lot, but the brain 'gear shift' has taken some getting used to.

On to the thing that could ONLY happen to me.

I stepped out of a presentation this morning - on purpose - because the man was going on and on about something that everybody in the room was already familiar with. I decided to take a break. I go to the bathroom, take care of things, & I am pulling up my britches when I feel a disconcerting wetness on my leg. Oh no. There's water on the floor. And now there's water on my britches. I stand there in horror for a moment before I begin the positive self-talk. "It's gonna be OK. It's just water" I tell myself. Then the other - negative - voice pipes up, "but it's right next to a TOILET!!! Nothing good ever comes out of a toilet!!!"

Right before I hit hyperventilating-nervous-breakdown mode, I straighten up & walk out with my head held high. I go wash my hands & then grab some paper towels to try to slough off the excess. Right then I see a hand dryer. Oh bless the automatic hand dryer!! I go over - and thank goodness I'm wearing gaucho pants - and pull the leg of my pants up & run them under the hand dryer. Nothing was indecent, but I must've looked funny with my leg propped against the wall, holding the bottom of my pants, and waving them side-to-side and up & down in order to keep the motion sensor on. I got dried off and put lotion on & then walked back into my room.

Moral of the story? Don't text your husband or pass notes when you're supposed to be paying attention to a presentation.

God will get you.

Quality time

2007-07-18T17:40:00.000-05:00

Our anniversary was AMAZING!! When Grandpa arrived at 4 to pick the boy up, Caden shot out of the house and ran full-throttle to get to him. He ran so fast that he fell in the street right at Grandpa's feet. What's scary is that he got up & reached for Grandpa & never cried. That child's pain threshold is VERY high!

Grandpa took off about 4:30 and then the quality time began. Stan gave me my present & we got ready to go out to dinner. Oxford Street was our choice. It was where we went on our 1st date & also where we ate on our wedding night. The food was delicious & the atmosphere was very romantic.

We returned home for a nice night alone. I did get a little teary when I walked past Caden's room & his automatic nightlight was on. I made sure there were no cats in there & then I shut the door. Later on I heard some very loud caterwalling; apparently Mr. Bailey (my 18 lb. cat) missed him & was standing outside his door crying.

We got up on Saturday morning & went to eat at Madden's in downtown. This is definitely on my top 5 restaurant list. Oh my goodness, the atmosphere is great - rustic & fancy at the same time, the service was phenomenal, & the food was delicious. For a tony restaurant, the breakfast prices are great. I highly recommend.

Stan then took me to Barnes & Noble. He NEVER does this! I can spend hours in a bookstore & that's why he'll never take me. I guess he felt safe b/c we were after one particular book; there was no need to browse.

After that, we went to the paint store, came home, and began moving everything out of our master closet so Stan could repaint it. That took several hours. That evening we went to Blockbuster & rented movies - something else that we never do. Neither of us had seen Facing the Giants & it was nice being able to watch it - kid-free - with no interruptions.

Sunday morning we only had to get ourselves ready for church. It was weird not going into the nursery! We even got to share our 'story' in Sunday school.

It was an absolutely perfect anniversary weekend.