Updates

We are doing quite good health wise for being in the full swing of allergy season. Both boys have had the occasional stuffy nose, but so far we have managed to avoid any croup or Respiratory illnesses that are going around. Praise God!!!

Since Brian was diagnosed in April with diabetes, he has lost a total of 50 pounds! He looks amazing and feels even better. We have changed the way we eat and we both have more energy. His levels have been good, which is a good thing since he took himself off the medication (we won't go there, long story) and probably won't go on them again unless it is an emergency.

Since starting my exercise class 3 weeks ago, I have lost 3.5 pounds and feel stronger than I have in years. I am still looking forward to going 3-times a week and will ride this high as long as I can. I did pull my hamstring muscle on Monday but is is starting to feel pretty good today. I am on my way to my first goal of losing 10 pounds and am excited!

Camden had a follow-up appt. about the lump on his knee. It has not changed in 3 months which we were happy to hear. We will continue to watch for any changes and follow-up in 6 months.

On a different note....

Last night at Noah's school they had a Book Fair Blizzard that we attended. The kids wore their P.J.'s and took their favorite stuffed animal and then sat and listened to the teachers read them bed-time stories. While they listened, Mom & Dad went shopping at the Book fair. We pretty much bought what was on Noah's wish list, with a surprise waiting for his birthday or Christmas. Afterwards, there were book characters dressed up in costume and snow cones to enjoy outside. We had a nice time and both boys are already looking forward to it next year.

Have a great weekend!

Fun with water

b here

Water Park on Saturday, the "spray ground" ya know.
great time and lots of fun.. stories.
Everyone is having such a good time and I think to myself, my kids are both going to have to use the bathroom. (Looking around) Uh oh..
Thinking, ... I wont say anything and hope for the best.
About a minute later I hear "I need to use the bathroom", followed by"...Me too".
Lets go I say. Being resourceful I think, "I can handle this, and maybe even be discreet".
We go to the nearby school, AH-HA! Drains from the roof. Sure enough a small drain funnels into a big drain at the ground. It has to do. Job done.. I think;
Lots of fun later, minutes anyway I get, "daddy, I need to make stinkies". I'm like, home we go, sorry, not doing that into the drain pipe. I am wrapping up and I find out we have a portable "potty in a bag". Yes!, problem averted. This was a great idea, I'm excited. Off we go to the school. To the school... there was a little patio that was protected. I set up the potty, of course Camden says Look, a "baby potty". I tell them, No it is just portable so you can go wherever you are. It has a cool bag to stay clean. It is sweet! They did not buy it, Noah sat down for one second and miraculously did not have to go. Back to the fun. What, 15 minutes later, they both run over, "I really have to go tinkle, really bad!" Did I mention the sweet game of treasure hunt the kids were playing, prior to the near catastrophe. All these kids in a giant group looking around the place. We will get back to that. We run back to the school.
I tell Noah to just run over and we will catch up to him. Just as I shouted to Noah that he did not need to take his pants all the way off (?), he is standing there naked peeing on a pole |-() (in case you cant otherwise picture this site) Here comes the treasure hunters! the treasure is apparently closer to the school than what I was planning. (by this time I am just about dying)
I tell Camden to just go and tinkle.
He does, all before he gets his shorts down.
I throw up my hands to give in.
I tell Camden to go play in the splash park and "rinse off"... no one will ever know!
Oh yeah, we did finally have to drive to a tire shop to use the restroom.
These kids could not have asked for a better time.

We got home and the first thing Noah said about the day was (... suspense...)
Mommy there was a house for sale right by the park. (he was then asked) "would it be cool to live that close to a water park?" (he answers) "no, because we would not be close enough to Courtney.

Oh my how I can complicate such a simple life.
I love them like crazy!

A note from the teacher

I promised Noah I would email you and tell you what a GREAT job he is
doing in kindergarten. I have had the opportunity to get to know him
well. He is so smart and so sweet. I really enjoy him. He is very
insightful and makes great observations. He really helped me get on
track when I returned to school. He knew all the procedures and made
sure to explain them in detail to me....so cute! I know he will have a
successful year. Thank you for the opportunity to teach your little
guy.

The red section really cracked Brian and I up. You see, his teacher had been out for the first three weeks of school due to maternity leave and we have no doubt that he would take the opportunity to make sure she did everything according to the rules. That is just the way he is! He did come home telling us that "we are going to do things differently, now that my real teacher is back". Uh-huh, I bet.

Great job in school Noah, we are very proud of you.

Lesson Learned

Today while I was loading the groceries into the back of my SUV, Camden holds up a pack of gum and says "look Mom at what I found". We did not buy this gum and immediately my heart felt like it fell into the pit of my stomach. Irrationally, I was thinking "we are going to jail", rationally, I was thinking, "no we aren't, he is only 3!". So I explained to Camden that we can only keep the things that we buy and we needed to return this back to the store. He was cool with that. We went back and explained the situation and Camden said he was sorry to the store manager. As we were walking back out to the car, a woman stopped me and said, "he doesn't know how lucky he is to have a Mommy like you." I thought about that and the lesson I taught to Camden this morning and really a lesson to whoever else may have been watching and learning as well.

We have a busy weekend packed full of soccer games, a birthday party and balloon watching. I am thankful that we can live so close to the Balloon festival, that we can see the balloons from our house.

Have a great weekend.

Soccer, Cell Phone, New Cake and I'm Addicted to...

Power-washing!!!

I have been power-washing everything in sight... the sand box, the fence, the sidewalk and patio in the backyard and the sidewalk in the front yard. Brian said I went a little over the top cleaning the sidewalk that is not technically our property, but it is addicting and I just can't stop! It gives me such satisfaction to see the lines of dirt spray right off! Just look at the difference on the above fence! Satisfaction, ahhhh!!!


Camden had his first two soccer games this weekend and they were fun to watch. His team is made up of 3-year old boys who all understand the concept of the game. The opposing teams that they played mostly cried and in one instance wouldn't even come onto the field to play. At one point Camden's team was playing themselves. I'm not surprised the other teams might have been a bit intimidated, because when Camden and a few others got the ball they were on a mission. They drove the ball down and didn't care who was in the way until they scored. Camden scored 5 goals in his first game and 2 in the second game. I don't think either of the other teams scored at all. We will have to work on keeping "his hands to himself" and "not jumping on the other players when they are down on the field".

Noah had his second game of the season, sorry, I don't have any pictures. The field is big and he had a great time running and driving the ball down the field. He is looking forward to playing goalie hopefully in the next game.



I made a new cake for a friend's birthday. Good practice... if he doesn't come and get it I may start eating it.

Last but not least, I have a cell phone. It has been over 5 years since we have had such a luxury and I really have not missed having one. It seems to have been a bigger deal to those around us and that is how we ended up with this phone. My employer gave it to me so that I could communicate with his son whom I take home from school. I had to have a 9th grader show me how to work the thing and for a day and a half I couldn't make it ring (that's a whole nother story). Anyhoo... he videoed the front dash of my car and every time I opened the phone it plays this video. He just left me with "this present" and didn't tell me how to fix it. So.... I won't tell you how long it took Brian and I to figure it out but it has now been corrected. Whew... I didn't know cell phones were so much work. So... I have a cell phone without the cost and I'm loving it!!!

This, that and the other

I just love it when the kids get a hold of the camera and take self portraits!

















Camden is having lots of fun at soccer practice. He is really doing a great job listening and following the coaches directions. That is no easy task for being 3. We had a glimpse of what his game will look like on Sat. during a brief scrimmage at practice. For just being 3, the boys know the concept of getting the ball to the goal and scoring. They will do whatever it takes to get the ball including pushing, pouncing on a downed player or just plain running over you. Watch out, E.R. here we come! We keep drilling it in Camden's head that this is a team sport and we play together. Hope he is listening, I hope they are all listening.

Camden is still adjusting to Noah being gone during the day. Our routine has changed and he is doing his best to keep up. I really love having this one on one time with him. He has the sweetest personality with humor tossed in quite often.

Noah is doing well in school but did have his first incident with a bully in his class. My first reaction was to take the the kid by the throat and throttle him for hurting my baby. After calming down, I decided that Noah and I would pray for him. I am sad that a child so young has "whatever" going on in his life that he feels the need to take it out on his friends. Please keep this situation in your prayers.

I had my second work-out today. I was sweating it and I stunk when it was all over. Did I mention she is tough, as in drill-Sargent tough? Wow, she makes you work. (A little note about the teacher... she has 6 kids and is so "cut" that you would never have thought she had one child) I decided at the beginning that I would push myself past my comfort level but not to the point of puking or passing out. So far, it is working and I feel good.

It's a good kinda sore

Here are a couple of pictures of Camden at Meet the teacher and his first day of school.

Today is Tuesday and if you have been outside you know just how beautiful of a day it is. The humidity is low and you can feel a cool breeze blowing. We just might have an actual fall in Texas this year.

I have decided that I have to get this fat off of me. No more monkeying around. I need to be pushed by someone other than myself or I will just talk and talk about it without really ever doing anything about it. I signed up for an Aerobics/Body toning class and started on Monday. I figured if I paid money to exercise I would be less inclined to back out. It was a great class, the teacher is demanding and she is tough!!! That is what I need. I am so sore today and know that tomorrow when I go back that I will just be adding to my pain. I am looking forward to going back and that is the first time in a long time that I have been excited about getting fit. So, I will try this for a couple of months and see where it takes me. Hopefully, I will shed a few pounds and start to tone up.

Gracie's day at the pool

That's right, Gracie got her day of swimming at the neighborhood pool. All summer long she has watched us leave and return wet and she has waited patiently. Today the long wait was over, Brian and the boys took her to K-9 Kerplunk and she had a splashing good time! K-9 Kerplunk is the only time of year that dogs can get in the pool while humans watch from the side. At first, Gracie circled the perimeter of the pool for a while deciding whether or not she was going to get in. She did a bit of barking at the dogs who had tennis balls in their mouths. Once confident, she got in and swam with about 150 of her closest friends. She eventually found the deeper water and just circled happily while by-standers were trying to show her the steps to get out. OUT, no way she said, I am happy swimming in circles!!! She found a tennis ball and would take it to anybody and drop it waiting for them to throw it. She would even take the ball and drop it in front another dog asking them to play. She hooked up with a male Chocolate Lab and we feel confident if left alone a relationship would have blossomed. Gracie is looking forward to next year and may even be sporting a hot pink bikini!

Another busy day

Camden started back to pre-school yesterday and took it all in stride. He walked in and just started playing. I had to hunt him down to give him a hug and a kiss. What a difference a year makes.

I then headed off to work after a long summer off. Typical day until I left to pick up Camden and my car didn't want to stay running. One nice thing about working for a trucking company is that we have our own mechanics on site, so he checked out my car and of course it started right up for him with no problem. When I arrived at Camden's school he was full of energy and sporting a spiky hair-do (not what I left him with). I quickly learned they were trying to make him look as cute as possible because he had literally rolled in the sandbox and was covered in sand! Oh well, he had a blast.

After a quick trip home, we set off to pick up Noah from school, and then Dillon from Jesuit. Thursday's are always a long day in the car and so far it has worked out well. They boys get some great sleeping time driving to Dallas and then to Wylie and then home. Domino's Pizza was for dinner to help Noah's school with fundraising. How can you say "no" to your child when they give you a speech about how eating pizza will help his school make money and he is sporting a neon sticker for advertising? I fell for it, so we had pizza.

We all piled in the car and were off to Noah's first soccer practice of the season. He is on a new team this year and I am loving the coach. He reminds me a lot of my brother with lots of energy and he is really great with the kids. It is no secret that I was not overly fond of the last coach who cancelled practice on a whim and was always late when they did have practice and just wasn't very organized at all. Brian and I both noticed this season that the boys kick the ball REALLY hard at this age. They are also fast and are starting to learn positions and play "together". This should make for some exciting games to watch.

We made it back home and were all in bed by 8:30 p.m. Sorry, I don't have any pictures to post...a part for the camera/computer has disappeared. Wonder where it is?

What time is it again?

Wow, it's 8:00 p.m. and I am still standing! Whew, it has been a long day.

Today was a big day for Noah, he wanted me to drop him off in the car pool line at school this morning. No more walking him in, he CAN do it himself. I just wish he would of let me know of his entire routine before we had 20 cars behind us all waiting to drop off their kids. It was still just precious how he hugged and kissed me and then Camden and then very slowly put on his back-pack in the car and then opened the car, exited and then entered again to get his lunch box and then exited again and headed for the front door on a mission. Thank you to all the parents behind me for your patience today as I watched my baby grow up.

Then Camden and I were off to meet his teacher and see his new room this year. He is excited about school (he has the same teacher from last year) and it showed in his confidence walking in and playing with his friends from last year. We headed to the store and then to lunch with a friend. After a quick trip home, we were off to pick up Noah from school. We flew by the house and dropped Camden off and Noah and I headed to the Pulmonologists office. His lungs sounded great but we are waiting for a culture to see if he has a bacterial infection in his sinuses. We are also going to do allergy testing to see what exactly he is allergic too. Testing sure has changed, instead of pricking you multiple times they just do one blood test that tells you everything. Hopefully, we will be able to get the right meds and will be able to avoid this seasonal allergy thing. Wishful thinking I am sure. Four hours later, we are back home!

Camden and Daddy went to Camden's first ever soccer practice. Camden did fantastic. He listened and followed the coaches instructions and had a blast. He is so ready to play, he has been waiting for at least a year. We can't wait to watch him play!!!

Off to bed, good-night.

Things heard around our house this week

Camden: "Mom, there is grass on my bread."
Mom: "No, that is parsley on your garlic bread."

Noah: "I went to Kindergarten 4 times this week. Tomorrow is my last day."
Mom & Dad: Thinking to ourselves: "If you only knew!"

Camden & Mom were having a random conversation that didn't make much sense.
Mom to Camden: "Huh, I wasn't aware of that."
Camden to Mom: "That's not surprising!"
Mom: "Alrighty then."

Hope you had a good week.

Our Kindergartner

What a day!!! Noah had a FANTASTIC first day at Kindergarten. When asked how his day was, his response was "Great!!!". His favorite thing today was "the lunch room" and pretty much the only other thing he is talking about is going to the gym. Today may have been a bit overwhelming for him and he is just taking it all in and when he feels comfortable he will begin to talk more.

He has been ready to go to K since he was 2. No joking! After meeting his teacher on Friday afternoon, he asked me if I was going to walk him to class. "Of course I will, until you are comfortable to go by yourself". He thought for a second and then said, "Mom, I will be fine by myself, I don't need you to walk me to my class." I did walk him to class this morning and he was right, he would have been just fine by himself. He walked right in, put his back-pack and lunch box in his locker and then went around exploring and making new friends. I just stood there and realized there was nothing for me to do, so I left (a moment that was hard to swallow). I am SO VERY PROUD of the confident big guy he has become!

The rest of the day held a few surprises for me. I knew that Camden would be affected by all of this, I just did not know how it would manifest itself. The easy going, free-spirited child that I know was replaced by a little boy who was struggling with fear. He was afraid to go any place in the house by himself today. He also had to play literally right under my feet and I had to be his playmate continually. I knew some of this would occur but not to the extent it did today. He would not engage in free play on his own, since his brother was gone. He also had to wake up much earlier than usual, which threw his whole eating and nap pattern into a tisey! I enjoyed spending wonderful one-on-one time today with Camden, something he has never really had. This will be an adjustment for him, I believe a good one.

P.S. I have no idea how I got the underline on, I can't seem to get it to go away! I don't see an underline button as a choice. Any suggestions?

Mahalo

Hurricane Flossie cancelled our trip to the Big Island on Tuesday, so we ventured over to see the 8-10 foot waves she was generating on Oahu. What a sight!!! I just sat in awe of the body surfers and boogie board riders being churned like the inside of a washing machine in the waves.

















This picture is an incredible picture of a man body surfing inside the wave. As you can see Brian was ready to go in the waves. After seeing a 5 year old with her surf-board in the waves he was no longer sitting on the beach. The waves were powerful and it felt like you were going to be pulled out to sea. An experience I will never forget.

Does anyone recognize this picture with the beach and the rocks? It is from the movie "From Here to Eternity" and the opening scene from "Grease" was filmed here as well.


We are grateful to our families who made this trip possible for Brian and I. Thank you for taking such wonderful care of Noah, Camden and Gracie while we were away. We love you... Mahalo!!!

Aloha, Part 2

Friday, we headed to the world famous North Shore which is known for it's large waves in the winter. After navigating down through some fairly large rocks we reached Shark's Cove. We spent the morning snorkeling and watching the beautiful fish swim below us. The vibrant blues, yellows, reds and orange colors we saw are simply not possible to put into words.































Later that evening, we spent the evening on a 40 something foot sailboat watching the above sunrise.

Brian played two rounds of golf while on vacation. He played at the Ko' Olau Golf Club, one of the hardest course in the U.S. on Saturday and did very well with an 81.





















Sunday after church, Brian and I headed over to the North Shore to take a hike in the mountains. After driving for about 45 minutes we arrived in the parking lot where I just didn't feel right about hiking. After some discussion we left. We drove to a North Shore beach where the endangered Green Sea Turtles (see pictures) swim in the surf and beach themselves to eat algae. We watched the turtle and listened to a volunteer talk about the turtle and learned that if you wear a bathing suit that is green you need to keep your distance from the turtle because they think you are food. Well, I am sure you can guess, I was wearing a bathing suit with lots of green on it. We snorkelled cautiously with the turtles and then headed back to Shark's Cove for more snorkeling.

Later that afternoon after swimming at Waimea Bay,
we noticed smoke in the direction we were driving. When we arrived home, we found out that 3,000 acres were burning due to a brush fire and the mountain we were going to hike on had been closed due to the fires burning. Several days later, the wildfire had spread to 7,000 acres and was still not under control.

Aloha

We are back and still trying to catch up on sleep. We had a wonderful 10 days on Oahu and came back relaxed and ready to tackle the coming school year. This first picture is our first night on the Island. We headed to the beach to drink a few Mai Tai's and watch the sunset with Sharon and Ross.






























The second day we headed to a Luau to celebrate my 35th birthday. We had front row seats (it is all about who you know, and we thank Sharon and Ross for their connections) and were treated to the best Luau on the Island. Fia Fia, was incredible!!! The fire dancers were dazzling and our night was topped off with a tattoo and the singing of Happy Birthday to Sharon in Samoan.

Brian, Sharon and Tutu headed out the next day to the other side of the Island to Tropical Farms a.k.a. Macadamia Nut farm where we learned more about the Hawaiian culture. At this location we saw where several movie have been filmed. The pier is from Fantasy Island where he would stand and shout "de plane" and the building in the other picture has been used as the restaurant in 50 First Dates as well as scenes from E.R., Jurassic Park, Lost and several others. Next we headed over to the shrimp trucks and some of the best Kahuku Shrimp on the planet!!!! I have waited 2 years for this shrimp and I was not disappointed. To top it off we then drove to the Dole Plantation and had a Pineapple Whippee!!!! Yippee!!!! Once again, we were not disappointed.

fun in the sun

Wa-Hoo!!!!! It was a Wild Ride...

This past week was Vacation Bible school at our church. It was a wonderful time spent having fun and learning about Jesus. Noah had a smile on his face from the time he walked in the front door of the church until he fell asleep each night. He knows all about each bible story and doesn't forget all the little details that he learned. Camden had an equally fantastic time and came home asking some great questions about Jesus' death. Wow, it is amazing what a three year old can process! I had a blast doing pre-school crafts each night with the kiddos, but am really exhausted!! Thank you Kerrie W. for some of the wonderful pictures above.

I am going to take a break from blogging for the next 10 days and just sit on the beach in Hawaii. The kids are going to have a fabulous vacation here at home with the extended family. Until then, Aloha.

Last week in pictures - creativity, Lowe's Build & Grow Workshop & the Zoo

Here is Noah all ready to be creative and build and something. His finished project is the "monkey" that you see. He also made a "penguin" out of a Cheerios box.

We had a great time at the zoo last Friday. We went with one of Brian's cousins and her two girls. Noah has been waiting too long to see the penguins and he finally was rewarded with some very energetic penguins on our trip. Camden talked all about the monkeys, but when we finally made it over to that area, he has lost his enthusiasm. They both loved playing in the stream and floating rocks down the water.






Brian took both boys to the Build & Grow workshop on Saturday in between birthday parties and picked up the project to make. Later that afternoon, they built their own toolboxes. Each one hammered it together by themselves, then they sanded it and put on the stickers. I am so proud of my "Mr. Fix-It" guys.










More zoo pictures.











This past week, I have been working on pre-school crafts for VBS. VBS starts today and we are so excited. Wa-Hoo!!!! This will be a busy week for us, but I know it will be well worth it!