August 2006 Archives

So, we're at Sam't Club getting a few things and we see a couple of nuns wearing brown habits. Myra looks at them and then asks us, "What are those Indians doing in here?"

It's been one very long summer with Myra being home all day and "bored" all the time. I tried to do my best at keeping her busy. I gave her "homework" and we played games. We did plenty of swimming and a bit of traveling. It wore me out but I guess it just wasn't enough for her. Well, today that's all changed.

Today was Myra's first day of "Kinder-y-garten". Since she's attending Chisholm Ridge with Aunt DooDoo ... I mean, Anna (we're using her "school name" now), we were able to drive her to school and pick up Hannah at the same time. Let me tell you, it was a mad house! Kids and parents EVERYWHERE. We even lost Noah for a minute (he followed the mass into the cafateria where he found a microwave door to open and close). After tracking down the little man, we made our way to the table where Myra was to gather with her class and meet her teacher.

I was a tad bit sad that we couldn't stay to actually see Myra off to her room but Daddy had to prepare for his first day also. We were, however, able to stay long enough to meet Mrs Maddox (the teacher "with the soooo cute room") and let her know the plan for after school.

Fast forward to after school ... I loaded the babies into the car and drove over to Josh's school to drop off Hannah and pick up Josh. After waiting and chatting with Uncle Ricky and a couple other teachers, we were off to find Ms Becca's house. FYI: Ms Becca is one of Myra's teachers from last year who's daughter is in Myra's class this year. She was kind enough to offer to watch Myra for us until we are able to get over to that side of town. Following the directions that Ms Becca gave us was easy. The only way they could have been any easier is if they led us to the right house. Yes, we went to the wrong house but that was quickly corrected. We got our "baby girl" and took her to Sonic to hear all about her day.

Myra wasn't real clear about what she did but from the bits and pieces we got out of her, it sounded GREAT! They went over the rules, had recess and lunch and they even did some handprints. Myra's hands were still red from that last activity. I asked her if she wanted to stay home with me tomorrow and she respnded by saying "Mommy, the is OPEN tomorrow." I said "I know, but I thought you might want to stay home with me and the babies." to which Myra replied "No, Mommy, I want to go have fun." I guess I better enjoy her liking school while I can.

Here's Myra with her new teacher, Ms Maddox, on their first day of school. (Again, there are more pictures to come as soon as the photo gallery is up and running.)

That's right. Our baby girl turned five last Friday. That night, we had our own little family party. We dined at the finest McDonald's and then enjoyed a 4" double layer cake with sprinkles for dessert. We had to be sure to save all our energy (and belly room) for the BIG party on Sunday. I'm glad we did.

2:45 Sunday afternoon, Myra and I (unfortunately, Noah was not feeling well so he and Daddy stayed home) headed to WalMart to pick up the cake and then it was off to Main Event for a little bowling. Several of Myra's friends from her class last year had come to help us celebrate. It wasn't as terrible as I had imagined keeping seven five-year-olds entertained. Yes, it helped that Main Event provides their own hostess so the parents can sit back and relax or, in our case, take pictures.

We had a fun filled hour of bowling (Myra bowled a 76) which was about all the kids could take. By the time that short-but-somehow-long-at-the-same-time hour was up, all of them had asked me at least once "Are we going to have cake? ... When?" Thankfully, it was Karyn (our hostess) to the rescue. She lined the kids up in single file and lead them to the desk to return their shoes. She then lined them up side by side for a quick game of Red Light Green Light on the way to "Party Street". That's where we were finally able to eat some cake ... after some yummy pizza, that is. When all the kids had finished their piece (or two) of cake, it was time for the gifts. From what Myra said, she got everything that she has always wanted! After gifts, our time was up. All the kids were sad to go; they were ready for some more bowling. Luckily, Myra was smart enough to pick up some finger bowling games to place in goody bags.

Here's the big girl with the cake she "designed" all by herself. (There's more pictures to come as soon as we get the photo gallery working again.)

All in all it was a very good party. I will admit, I'm relieved that it's over and that we don't have to do it again for another year.

Well school is almost back in session and things are really picking up around here. We spent all last week going to inservice and trying to get our rooms back together and there just hasn't been much time--or energy--left to post. Last weekend, I volunteered at the Cowtown Warbird Fly-In with the EAA. I took some pics and hung out with a bunch of cool people while I signed up Young Eagles for free airplane rides. Here's the best one of the day:

I've been up to my eyeballs in school work these last few days. I'm STILL trying to get my computers working so my kids will have something to work on the first days but I doubt that's going to happen. I've been studying up on yearbook like crazy. I spent all day today at a New Adviser Workshop put on by my yearbook publisher. I learned a ton and I'm almost excited to get started on this year's book. I've already chosen my staff out of a stack of applications. I hope they're smart, motivated, and above all, not annoying. Every one keeps telling me that the move to Middle School is going to be great. I hope they're right. So far it's been a headache, but most of that is just related to the move to a new school. The Highland Staff has been very friendly and they seem like a great bunch of people. I'm sure I'll settle in fine.

Of course we're gearing up for Myra's big bowling party tomorrow. About 5 or 6 kids are supposed to show up so it will be just the right size for fun! If you mention the party her eyes light up and she begins bouncing off the walls like she was made of flubber. More info on this after the big party!

Aunt DooDoo brought some Zoo Pal plates over for Davis Day Care (yes, the school year has begun). Well, while Myra and I were getting our snack during quiet time (babies are sleeping YAY!), we decided to add a little fun.

Myra thinks we should get the babies out of bed with our masks on. I'm thinking that might not be the best idea she's ever had. She also thinks it would be fun to go pick up Daddy from work with them on. I wonder what the other teachers would think of the new guy's family then.

Today, it was Mommy's turn for a major hair chopping. I wasn't real sure how much I wanted off. The woman doing the big change had mentioned cutting it off little by little. As a result of her great idea, she ended up basicly giving me three hair cuts for a grand total of nine inches gone. What do you think? Me? I love it!

It looks quite a bit different from my picture in the little category stamp thingy in the corner huh?

Noah LOVES to crunch on ice. Because of this, I made sure to tell him "No taking off the lid" before I shared my drink in foam cup (this little bit of information is important) with him. He said "okay" in a somewhat disappointed tone. I gave him the drink and he happily went about his business. After a few minutes, I realized how quiet it was so I went looking for the little man. I found him sitting in the middle of the floor digging a hole in the side of the cup. I have a feeling he's going to be big trouble someday.

We found an item that missed the HUGE garage sale and we thought we'd try to eBay it. Unfortunately, it's not worth a ton and it looks like it'll be a big pain to ship so does anyone want this tennis racquet? It's a Prince Gravity TI Force 3 that is from the lost and found a couple of years ago. It's in great shape, but we just don't play tennis. If you want it, drop me a line.

**UPDATE** It's found a new home.

My friend Bob, the guy who helps out with the aviation club, invited me to eat breakfast with him at Rio Concho this morning. Rio Concho is a little restaurant on the Hicks Field Airport that features a crabby short order cook and an average-at-best breakfast plate. So I'm sitting at the lunch counter (I guess it would be a breakfast counter at this time) and Bob walks in and says, "You wanna go someplace else for breakfast?" I jumped at the chance. I was thinking the Hometown Cafe down the street, but Bob had another place in mind. There is a restaurant down at the Lancaster Airport so we decided to hop in his plane and fly down there. The consummate teacher, Bob showed me all the prep work involved in making the flight such as weather planning, radio frequencies, and the like. Then we hopped into the plane and took to the air.

It was HOT today and we never flew above 3500 ft so it stayed pretty warm in the plane. It was also super bumpy up there. I felt pretty airsick a few times but never lost my lunch--THANK GOD. I felt really green when we made a tight turn on the way down into the Lancaster Airport. The whole way there, Bob was filling my head with all kinds of aviation information. I was in charge of the radios and to tell the truth, I felt more like a hindrance than a help. All in all, though, it was a complete blast! We're going to take it up again next weekend when we fly down to Meacham Field for the airshow. Bob is going to give kids free airplane rides as part of the Experimental Aircraft Association's Young Eagles program. By the way, I'm the newest member of the EAA, and I plan on taking my big camera to the show to shoot some footage that I hope to turn into a Young Eagles information video to show at school. Here's a few pics I took:

Downtown Dallas. It was sooo hazy today!

On the way back we flew right over DFW Airport!

Well, as everyone already knows, my birthday was this past weekend. I wanted, however, to post about a couple of the gifts I received (besides the awesome garage sale). The first is a new ceiling fan for the master bedroom. It took quite a bit of time not only to install the thing but to pick it out also. You see, we have mission style furniture in our room and apparently, no one makes mission style fans. So, we were lucky to find this one. It's a little rustic for my taste but it matches quite nicely and it adds a some masculinity to the room which Josh seems to like. It's going to take a while to get used to the spotlight over the foot of the bed but ... I like it. It's just the thing I needed to motivate me to finally decorate our room. (Look out Josh, I'm invisioning a golden yellow with a touch of burgandy.)

Before: and After:

The second gift I'd like to mention is from my wonderful family. Josh had taken Myra out shopping one afternoon and when they got home Myra was so excited. She ran in yelling "Mommy, can you guess what your gift is?" Josh and I had both told her not to say anything. The next day Myra asked "Have you guessed what your gift is that you're going to take me to?" Okay, that made me a little curious but I resisted and told her to keep her mouth shut. About an hour later she said "Your going to take me some place that has banilla for your birthday gift. Is that a good hint?" I then knew they were going to take me out for ice cream.

The evening of my birthday, we had the Godes over for a cookout and a GIANT double cookie with cream in the middle. It was yummy! After dinner, Josh handed me my card and when I opened it up there was a gift certificate for a "Baby's Butt" pedicure. Myra said "Now do you know where you're taking me?" SHE TRICKED ME! She actually kept a secret for once.

The next day, Myra and I headed to the spa for some pampering. I got my relaxing pedicure complete with message and some sort of wax treatment. I just got the same ol' french manicure I always get (it goes with everything). Myra, not being a big fan of hot water, just got her fingers and painted ... She picked the colors herself.

I have had one AMAZING birthday weekend.

First, we had a garage sale (last Saturday) where we sold almost everything thanks to Granddaddy and Mimi help. We started out with a two car garage 1/3 full and stacked 3 feet high of stuff to sell. We ended with a half-full Honda CRV (back seats folded down and trunk filled up to the windows - still able to see out the back and sides from the drivers seat). AMAZING!

I wish I had taken a before picture of the garage but these picture of my little helpers will have to do...

Second, we actually had a person who had stopped by the garage sale come back the next day (Sunday) asking if we still had certain items. They just walked up and rang the doorbell. To bad for them, we sold those items. AMAZING!

Third, I had just gotten home from running errands with the kids when the guy working on the house next door told me what a nice car I had and wanted to know if I wanted to sell it. I thought he was talking about our Vue so of course I said "no". He clarified that he was talking about the Buick and wanted to know how much. Josh and I had planned on selling it but we were going to wait until around Christmas ... when we would get a new-to-Josh car. Since this guy was there with cash ... the "Granny-mobile" is now an "Abuela-mobile" (I think that's right). A-MAZ-ING!

I'm wondering what's going to happen next. I'm also hoping that our ... luck? ... won't be changing anytime soon. We're on a roll and we like it! We like it a lot.