We are SO Excited!

Everyone is a-bustlin'...Grammy and Vin are coming!

Living Life

The last week has really been insightful for me. I have had loads of "ah-hah's" and gentle nudges that just made a lot of things finally appear in black and white. I finished reading my wonderful book. It's one of those books that you finish and feel completely satisfied. I already want to read it again to catch what I may have missed.

I really had an itch about two weeks ago to get "it" together. My mom made a comment one morning to me on the phone that I needed to be more organized with the boys' time. That is easy to say coming from a pre-school teacher's mouth. I am not a pre-school teacher like my mom. As a child, she had a regular preschool going in my house with crafts, activities, and songs galore. I even have her pre-school files in my basement in Tulsa. Files that make perfect sense...to her! I only wish I was good at that stuff, as maybe my house would resemble the peace and quiet that was in her house back then. So, I set out to try. I started by making a reward chart for JBS, and I did lots of laminating of pictures and bible verses for both the boys. (and I must say, they love them) I started thinking with a new head.

What I realized at that moment (and thru reading my book) is that for the last, almost year, I have just been surviving. I have been doing everything possible to keep my head above water and survive. I haven't been truly living. The last year has been made up of these statements: "If the Bear deal goes through...", "When we find out where Babe will take a job...", "After we move to Houston...", "Once we find a house...", "When we move to The Woodlands...", "When our house is finished being built...", "When Babe's job settles down..." (that's a joke!) I keep thinking that the stress is going to go away, when, in essence, it never will. There will always be something on our plate. Some sort of stress will always be there, whether it be financial, job, physical, or everything all at once:) It has become comical these days at the list of things Babe and I are dealing with. I often think, "We are too young to deal with this!"

I have to start living for the moment, enjoying these crazy (and often stressful) times with my boys, despite the external factors. One day, I will look back and it will all be gone. Coincidentally, I heard this song on the radio for the first time this week. It pained me to think that "When the house is built..." will be a year and a half from when we found out we were leaving Tulsa. A year and a half of stress, but more importantly a year and a half of putting our lives on hold. JBS will almost be five and JLS will be well into his second year of life. I would hate to look back on that year and a half with regret because I was always looking for the next breath.

Wherever you are, even if you are in a moment of peace, some day stress will come again. Make sure that you are really living life to the fullest and not just surviving when those times come. I strive to appreciate every moment of my day....even if those moments are full of tears and screaming. Some day, I am going to miss it.

There is so much more to life than waiting for it to pass.

Good Friday

I realize I am going backwards in time, but I gotta fill you in on Good Friday. Babe and I really like the church we have been visiting here. On Good Friday they had a Family Fish Fry up on the fields at the church. We decided to be joiners and check it out. It was so much fun, loads of people and a big picnic. They had music and a cross raising. I will admit, the fish was fantastic. I was expecting lunch line style fish, but this was the real deal! They had their fish fryers set up right there!

We sat with some friends we have met here and the kids had a blast. It was a beautiful evening and really, for the first time in a long time, gave me a moment to think about Good Friday and it's true significance.
I wanted to bust out in song, "Lift High the Cross" and all my favorite old Easter hymns. What a wonderful day we had as a family.

Happy Easter!

This could have been the first warm Easter I have had in a long time! And most notably, only the second ever Easter I have spent away from my family. (sniff sniff)

JLS, of course, had to change clothes before we walked out the door for church. We didn't realize he was stuffing his mouth full of jelly beans until multi-colored slobber cascaded from his mouth...all over his white linen shirt. For the first time in my life, I was amazingly prepared. I guess with JLS I have come to expect drama. I had another new and pressed shirt waiting in his closet that matched his pants...phew!

JBS was quite handsome. He had great pride in his first ever tie and was equally proud of his penny loafers that looked just like his Daddy's. I was just as proud of those penny loafers, as for the first time in JBS's four years of life, we were able to buy normal shoes. Until this point, JBS has had double wide feet, which really narrows the shoe choices....quite an ordeal, really, if you have seen the boys' double-wide shoe selections.

All in all, it was a beautiful Easter to celebrate the true meaning of Easter...that Christ has risen, indeed!

Sittin' in my Rocker

When we moved to Houston in December, my sweet friend, Whitney, must have heard about the lunatic I had become in response to the stress in my life. She gave me this book by Linda Dillow, "Calm My Anxious Heart". As usual, I am a champ at having 5 books going at a time, so I have just climbed in to the meat of the book and absolutely love it. Maybe it is just that I have hit the chapter that was written for me...Worry is Like a Rocking Chair. Simply stated, it's a lot of work and you get nowhere.

While I have no intentions of competing with Oprah at this stage in my life (or ever), I just have to share what I have learned. I might just be on the short bus in this department called Faith, but maybe you are, too! I found a quote that will be mine forever. I have always thought of myself as more laid back, as I don't over-react to much and, for the most part, I don't worry about things. Of course, Mom had me pegged from about my freshman year of high school as a girl who "internalizes" things. (Pah-lease, Mom, I am a cool freshman..I had no time for that!) Linda Dillow expressed it perfectly when she said, "Quiet tension is not trust. It is simply compressed anxiety." Bingo. ME? I don't stress. I have complete faith that God is in control. I know God will take care of us. I KNOW all these things, but my soul was just completely exposed, as I am the queen of quiet tension...internalizing, so to speak.(Mom does know all) Self-discovery! I love it.

She goes on to discuss a more in depth explanation of faith. A friend of hers described faith as walking on a dark path one step at a time. She so poignantly stated that when we pray for greater faith, "Please God, grant me the ability to trust more in You, " many of us (myself included) are actually wanting more sight! "Sight says, 'I see that its good for me, so God must have sent it,' but faith says, 'God sent it, so it must be good for me.'" Ding, Ding, Ding! The bells are going off in my head, even at such a simple statement. I just said to Babe this week, "I know God is in control of our lives, our house, our finances...I know it! I just wish I could SEE the big picture." Maybe that big picture isn't for me to see at all....just yet.

I feel like I can breathe a little deeper today. I "get" it just a little more. If you have not read this book and you ever go through stressful times in your life, get it! It's a life changer...full of "ah-hah" moments, for sure. Don't take months to read it like I did...read it now.

Lactinex Packets

I would like to introduce the world to Lactinex packets. It has taken me 4 years of children being on antibiotics to finally have these little packages of heaven introduced to me. My children are plagued with the uncomfortable (for everyone) side effects of antibiotics. Their stomach is always upset and thus their stinky diapers are frequent and huge. With JBS having had constant sinus infections for the first years of his life, I was very surprised when I was instructed for the first time last year to give JLS acidophilus pills to combat the side effects of antibiotics.

We usually pump JBS full of yogurt during the antibiotic season. However, JLS, who still doesn't eat anything more than cereal and baby food, won't touch yogurt. I told this to our doctor last week and that we didn't think the acidophilus pills worked. She suggested these beautiful little Lactinex packets and our life has been golden since. I, unfortunately, ran out yesterday and so did our pharmacy. This morning told the stinky, dirty tale of the lack of Lactinex in JLS's system yesterday. Once I realized how vital these packets were to the health of my baby, I called every pharmacy around until I found one that had them in stock....and boy did I stock up!

If your children have digestive issues when it comes to taking antibiotics, PAH-LEASE try these little packets. Ask your pharmacist for a box...no prescription required. You keep them in your fridge and add a packet to their drink 3 or 4 times a day while they are taking antibiotics. The effects are miraculous.

I only wish someone had told me about these little beauties sooner. Go forth and conquer...the poop!

Spring Break Hump Day

Am I the only one that thinks it's crazy to equate anything during Spring Break to "hump day?" For most of my life, the second or third week of March meant I was somewhere in Colorado on a mountain skiing til my heart was content. I never once considered, "It's Wednesday and Spring Break is almost over...yeah!" Well, times have changed. I love my little toots, but Spring Break now means five straight days of chaos in my house. No Mother's Day Out, absolutely no running of errands with these two, and 100% bonding time with momma and boys. Woohoo!

When I realized it was Wednesday and we are more than half way there, I sort of got warm fuzzies. I have made it this far and we have done pretty well. That doesn't mean there haven't been threats or punishment for crazy and wild behavior, but we are altogether good. I just thought it might be fun to give you an idea what a day in the life of JLS is like. I say he is a pistol, but you just have to know him on a daily basis to really get the gist of his active little life.

Sunday-- JLS stood in a fire ant pile...barefoot. I was outside on the porch. The minute he started to cry, I swooped in and it was 32 ant bites too late. A matter of seconds. If you have never had fire ant bites....owiee! I will just leave it at big white painful pimples all over his feet. He is recovering, but it was a hard knock.

Monday--JLS and JBS were brushing their teeth. JLS comes out of the bathroom with AT LEAST half a tube of Crest Sparkle toothpaste....in his hair. He was using it as mousse.

Tuesday--JLS is really good about staying in his room when I put him down for naps. He piddles and plays until he falls asleep, but he always falls asleep eventually. I knew he was playing when I heard an "I'm hurt" scream. I ran to his room where he had used his new potty as a stool and climbed on the bathroom dresser. Not only had he emptied the lotion bottle and wiped it all over his mirror, he had turned on the HOT water to wash his hands and burned himself. Terrifying, yes. There is literally NOTHING unsafe in his room except the bathroom sink. He found it.

Wednesday--I went against everything I stand for and took BOTH boys to the mall this morning...alone. I realized we hadn't bought Easter shoes, yet! Honestly, it wasn't as bad as it has been before, as long as I kept JLS buckled in his stroller and let JBS push him. God had mercy on me. The worst part was having to explain JLS's poor little feet to the lady putting his shoes on.

So, when I say it's been pretty good, that's pretty good for us! Of course, this is the short list. It doesn't include the crashes, falls, scrapes and bonks that happen on an almost hourly basis. Let's hope there is no major catastrophe today for little JLS.

Unfortunately for JLS and for our future as parents, JLS seems to find trouble. He doesn't even wait for it to find him.

Early Birthday for JLS

We ride bikes all day every day here. All day. Every day. It is a new luxury for us to be able to play in the street. We live on a small circle, and next to a cul-de-sac. In fact, there are four cul-de-sac's on our circle. It's really nice for going on walks and riding bikes and boy do we take advantage of the free concrete!

JLS loves his tricycle and can pedal his feet faster than you can imagine. I have never seen a drag racer on a tricycle, but JLS comes as close as I have seen. He can maneuver a trike like no other. Every day when JBS parks his bike to play in the sand, JLS sneaks over and tries to ride JBS's big boy bike. Yesterday, JLS parked his trike and refused to get back on. In fact, as JBS rode at his high speeds down the street, there was nothing more heart breaking than to see little JLS running in his dust as fast as he could, bawling for the opportunity to ride on JBS's bike. I felt the eyes of all the neighbors looking out their window at the sad sight. Lord knows, you can't miss JLS's cries.

I knew the moment would come, but definitely not so abruptly. So, I did what any mother would have done. We loaded up the burb, drove to Wal-Mart and bought JLS a big boy bike and helmet. I couldn't bear to watch him run down the street in tears chasing down his big brother and refusing to get on that "baby trike" again. I have guilt. I don't like to buy gifts outside of birthdays and holidays, but this just had to be done. Didn't it?

We'll just count it as an early birthday present. Yes, that's it.

Pins and Needles

So, here I sit on the first day of Spring Break alone at home with the boys waiting for the phone to ring. I am waiting to find out if Babe still has a job. I want to know things like: Are we moving again? Do we pull out of the house we are building? Will Babe get a job with J.P Morgan? If so, does that mean we have to move to New York? Will J.P. Morgan sell off the trading portion of Bear's business? Who will buy it? Will Babe lose his job at that point? Will they pay for our move that we haven't even made, yet? Is there a reason my house in Tulsa hasn't sold, yet? So many more things on my mind!! So, in an effort to not revert to the painful cycle of stress that took a toll on my body just a few months back (cracked teeth, dozens of ulcers, hives, etc), I will focus on happy moments.


JBS and JLS LOVE to dance. Before we moved, our nightly routine was to take baths and congregate in JBS's room. We would listen to the Curious George soundtrack and dance our hearts out before we went to bed. Now, American Idol has taken the place of Curious George, temporarily, I am sure. The boys go nuts dancing to any music they hear...albeit a commercial for a funeral home. They just love music. They are so fun to watch and it keeps Babe and I quite entertained.

For now, it is a great distraction.

Bear Stearns

I don't think I ever used the name of the investment bank that purchased the Williams trading floor where Babe worked. The same investment bank where Babe ended up taking a job....Well, it's none other than Bear Stearns. So, if you hadn't heard of it when we moved to Houston, after yesterday, I am sure you have heard of them now.

You know, life has its challenges. We are equipped to handle these continual challenges, but it sure would help if you prayer warriors out there would pray for us. I know there will be a time in our lives where there is peace...some time soon, I hope. However, there is a reason that verse from James 1 is on my blog. I have it memorized and I believe it. Just maybe, God is preparing our family for something wonderful...perseverance, completion and maturity and not lacking ANYTHING! Wow. Who wouldn't want to hear those words about themselves from God??

We can do this. But, we know we can't do it alone.

Haircuts and Freckles

I took the boys to get much needed haircuts this week. Aveda has their "Institute" here in the Woodlands. It's great and cheap. JBS passed with flying colors. JBS loves to get his haircut because he loves it when the girls wash his hair and rub his head...like father, like son. JLS, on the other hand, failed our first attempt...it was dreadful. All I wanted to do was get out of there before JLS squeezed a bottle of Hang Straight on the floor or threw a glass bottle of anything at his brother. The car never felt as safe as it did when we escaped that store. (Hallelujah!)

Later that night I tried again at the local Wal-Mart hair salon. I figured if he threw a fit there, I wouldn't have to show my face again. He finally passed...with a Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie in his sweaty little hand, and on his face, and clothes and my clothes and hands.

JBS has two little freckles on his forehead that are usually covered by his hair. However, they are covered no more with his handsome new haircut. I always tease him and kiss him two extra times for his two freckles and he gets a really big kick out of it. Well, this morning was a rough morning. Our mornings are getting more difficult as JBS takes FOREVER to get his clothes on. Or, he will say, "I can't" when he really can. Today, I lost it. He was crying and saying "I can't" over and over again and he wouldn't put his clothes on despite being punished. I absolutely HATE it when I have to spank him or even get forceful with him, but lately it seems I am doing it plenty. I told him to go to his room and get it done and not to come out until his clothes were on. He was still crying and I finally just collapsed on the floor in complete and utter frustration. This is my angelic child who, with the exception of getting ready in the mornings, is usually quite obedient. I didn't know he saw me laying on the ground with my head tucked in my hands. He had been standing there a few minutes when I heard him for the first time. I looked up at him and he knew I was distraught. He came over to me with a hug and said, "Mommy, do you want to see my freckles?"
The last half hour flashed before my eyes in a complete fog like a scene from Mommy Dearest. I felt like the worst mother in the world as this child hugged my neck and tried to make ME feel better. He held no grudge and so sweetly tended to me.

It was like a dagger in my heart and we ended up in a rolling hug on the floor with me kissing those freckles over and over again. Precious children. They are so forgiving.
I hope that someday I can have even half the forgiving heart of a child.

Happy Birthday, Vin!

Today is Vin's 30th birthday....well, thirty something. Here's a slice of history of Aunt Vin.
Birthday in the Hanover House in the chocolate brown dining room....

Dressing up at Gigi's house with none other than moi... Sixteeth birthday party...Vin now, with her family....

Happy Birthday, Vin!

Big Boy Bed Success!

JLS's move to a big boy bed has been surprisingly successful. The first night I only had to get up once to help him back to bed. Since then, the little toot has been sleeping ten to eleven hours. If you have heard my pleas in the past year it was always for JLS to just sleep thru the night. If I had known it would simply take getting him out of his baby bed, I would have done it months ago. Life is looking up for us. Our lives revolve around sleep and getting as much of it as we can in the little windows we get. Of course, as life would have it, JBS is now waking up at 3am every morning...just to keep me in the habit, I guess.

So, this is what JLS does when he should be sleeping in his new bed... lining up cars like his big brother. Naps are a different story. JLS won't just lay down and go to sleep. He has to drop dead in the middle of play. So, I throw a mess of toys near his bed and he plays until his eyes slam shut. Yesterday, I checked on him an hour and a half after I put him in his room because it finally got quiet. I found him face down backwards in his bed with his feet up on the wall. He was surrounded by cars and had his hand on the last one he was playing with....he played until his eyes said, "No more!"

At least he listens when his eyes tell him "No!"

My Little Cowboys

Yesterday was the aforementioned Rodeo Day at school...in support of none other than the Houston Rodeo. Check out my little cowboys.

There were games and chili dogs and evidently mustard dogs, as told by JBS's white shirt that was 20% yellow when I picked him up. Thank the good Lord for bleach...and bleach pens (I love those!).
The day was a big hit.

(P.S. JLS's waist is so small and his legs are so long, we had to pull off an illusion that his pants
were long enough by rustling them up in his boots:))

Fire Ants

There are always good and bad moments between the boys, but for the most part JBS and JLS are inseperable. JBS always has his eye out for JLS...in the time of need, but also in the time for tattling. With the warm weather here, we have had a major lesson in dealing with fire ants. JBS really gets it and all but calls 911 when he spots a fire ant in our yard.

The other day JBS came running in the house yelling. "Mommy, Mommy! JLS has fire ants ALL OVER his socks!" So, I run outside and true to his word, JLS is standing outside in the garden in his socks (?) with fire ants crawling up his ankles. I scooped JLS up, ripped his socks off and squished all visible ants before he got a bite. While doing this, I look over at JBS and he was jumping and stomping on the place where the fire ants were. He was yelling at the top of his lungs, "You hurt my brudder, so I am going to kill you!!"

However noble his efforts were, I think we might need to work on the "kill you" part....maybe.

Bye Bye Baby Bed

I had just laid my head down during a rare, but silent moment in my house. JBS was either playing in his room quietly or sleeping and JLS was sleeping for sure. I heard the door to JLS's room open. Expecting to see JBS sneaking in for a peak, I jumped out of bed to snatch him out of the room where JLS was quietly sleeping. (We just don't wake JLS up. We like it when JLS sleeps:)) It wasn't JBS. It was JLS. He opened his door, walked into my room, gave me the tiniest piece of fuzz and turned around to walk right back into his room. He did all of this as though he doesn't sleep in a baby bed! I was so startled and in awe of the complete silence in which he completed his devilish task. I followed him to his room, I picked him up and rocked him a bit. I put him back in bed to try once again for that sacred moment of silence in my house. A few minutes later I heard him talking it up, so I thought I would just let him out of his bed before his long legs scaled the bars again. When I opened the door, there the little stinker was in his rocking chair with his legs crossed reading a book. In a matter of minutes he stealthily escaped his baby bed twice without a sound! Life as I know it is over. Tonight, JLS will be free to roam the house when we have to say "good-bye" to his baby bed. sniff sniff.

This was so much more exciting when JBS got to move to his big boy bed. Mostly because we didn't know what lay ahead for us in the wee hours of the morning...sigh.

Houston Rodeo Parade Part 2

There was just too much fun stuff to share in one day, so here are some more pictures of our big day at the Rodeo Parade.

At first glance, I thought this might be the NRA in their hunting vests, but it actually turned out to be the Airport Authority from Bush Intercontinental. Is there a difference? Or is the contrast too sharp?

This funny guy was an ace at using his rope...

We also saw Arabian horses...

My favorite was the Pink Ladies...even their horses tosies were painted pink.

I had to take a pic of this one as it was the Oklahoma-Texas Connection...aahh

Elsie and Beauregard were present...

Ronald McDonald in his shoe....

Wells Fargo fit right in in their Stage Coach...

Well, this just had to be taken. The token equal opportunity Pom-Pom girl/boy?

Lastly, this little girl is 9 years old and was interviewed on TV, as this is her 6th trail ride to participate in.

That sums it up. I am sure there will be more to add over the course of the next 3 weeks. The entertainment opportunities for this family are endless at the Houston Rodeo.