Summer Wrap Up!

June:  Camp, Camp and more Camp!  :D

 Lots of swimming! (LM with the red swim mask)

July:

More Camp,

Flag Football Camp! (4th blue shirt from the right..kinda hiding)

Church Camp!

Little Man and M.I.B (Most Important Businessman-camp nickname)

Camp Crew!

Pet Emergency!

Henry, "The Reformed Lizard Slayer", go into some medication (thank goodness not much left) late one night and I kinda freaked!  Called http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com.  Turns out the most that would happen was "stuff" coming out each end of him but after a night quarantined to the laundry room….he was fine…and seemed to wonder what all the fuss was about.  I HIGHLY recommend calling them if you don't have access to a vet or pet emergency clinic for after hours or weekend emergencies.

The Evidence

August:

Roller Skating Party for the soon to be 2nd Graders!  (hope the video works!)  

LEGO Engineering Camp!

And a last minute "stay-cation" for the family.

Perot Museum of Natural Science in Dallas

T-Rex behind LM

Rooftop at the Museum

The frogs!

Digging for Dinosaur bones!

Doing the weather report!

LM programmed a robot attached to a desktop computer via USB cable them put it in the maze to run…it worked!

Lots of reading!  The Boxcar Children, Franny K Stein Series, The Magic Tree House and a little Sherlock Holmes.

LM loves a good mystery!

Little Man has been asking for a REAL bow and arrow set FOREVER.  I finally did some research and came across a Discover Archery class at the local Archery Club's indoor range.  And luck would have it that I found a GROUPON as well.  Score!  Had an hour of instruction and shooting for $10! LM was so excited!

Look at that form!

I'm sure we'll go back soon and this time I'll shoot with him. :)

Once a month the LEGO Store has a Club Build.  This month was LEGO CHIMA!  The kids get the store to themselves for one hour to build and share their creations with the group.  Pretty Cool!  They also receive a T-Shirt, a mini LEGO set and a coupon towards a in store purchase.

LM socializing.

Finishing his project

Sharing his project with the group.

LM also helped me babysit my nieces so their parents could go out for their Anniversary.  Happy Anniversary Ryan and Lindsey!!!  

Miss A putting a stethoscope on LM and 

Little Miss A is watching the Smurfs.

Went to one of our favorite places for our Last Night of Summer Vacation.  

 Twisted Root Burger Co.  Yum-O!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Summer Vacation!!!

May Wrap Up!

School Fund Raiser - Crawfish Boil 

Next Door Neighbor - John - in the Dunk Tank!

A cooler on a motorized scooter - How cool is that!!!

Crawfish!  Eeee!

Several kids ended up getting pinched! :D

1st Grade Field Trip - Dallas Aquarium

Little Man and a big Manatee

LM and his buds

L to R - Luke, Owen and LM

The mustache monkey wants a Cheeto!

Most of the group of 1st grade boys!

The Sloth getting a good look at Owen's Dad. 

Trip Home / Baby J's 2nd Birthday

Grandma McKenna with Jordan, James and LM

LM and bubbles bright and early at 6am at Grandmas!

Grandpa and Henry - 1 of 2 grandsons  :D

Grandpa and LM

Happy 2nd Birthday James!

Quick trip down to The Woodlands to celebrate Hubs Bro's 40th (Bro not pictured!  Argh!)

Me and The Hubs

May Update!

(Sound quality of the videos might not be that great)

1)  The Hubs and I just celebrated our 12 year anniversary! Woo Hoo!  It was a pretty low key affair…had our sitter come hang out with LM so we could go to an outdoor art fair and have a nice quiet dinner.  Ahhhh….  relaxing.  :)

2)  I had just picked Little Man up from school and were on our way to WalMart when we passed an apartment fire near our neighborhood.  LM wanted to do a "Breaking News Report" for his Dad.  (side note:  The apartments are about 2 miles from our house and WalMart is about 5 miles from our house.)

Action news with LM!

3)  LM has been in a R.E.A.C.H (Realizing Excellence in Academic Cognition Heuristically) class for a few months now.  His big project was to do a scrapbook about Russia and present it to the class.  Here is a short clip:

4)  Little Man has been taking Taekwondo two days a week since late February…he loves it!  Monday he took and passed the 2nd half of his test for his orange belt!  Yea!  We're so proud of him!  Here's a video of him being presented with his new belt.

Yea! LM!

Orange Belt!

The Pivot Questionnaire

I'm a HUGE fan of "Inside the Actor's Studio".  I can go on YouTube and watch hours and hours of interviews.  If you get a chance, watch the one for Mickey Rourke (after he returned to acting)…its a GREAT interview… Natalie Portman, Meryl Streep and Robert Downey Jr. are great too!

At the end of the show, James Lipton always asks the actor "The Pivot Questionnaire" questions, and their answers are interesting and sometimes funny.

I've decided to answer the questionnaire myself. :D

These 10 questions originally came from a French series, "Bouillon de Culture" hosted by Bernard Pivot. 
They're better known as the questions that James Lipton asks every guest at the end of "Inside the Actor's Studio" show. 

Answer them for yourself, and have fun with your friends. You'll be  amazed at how much they reveal about a person's thoughts, feelings and beliefs.

What is your favorite word? 3 words together, I Love You.

What is your least favorite word? No. ;)

What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?  Lots of sunshine.

What turns you off? Negativity, constant complaining, gossip and anyone who uses the F-Bomb.

What is your favorite curse word? Shi+ and Dam3 it.  Although when I hear someone say, "Balls", I crack up every time. :D

What sound or noise do you love? When Little Man laughs like a chipmunk and when Henry (the dog) yawns.  I used to love it when my cats sneezed too.

What sound or noise do you hate?  Screeching tires.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?  Veterinarian.

What profession would you not like to do?  Working at an animal shelter that gases.

If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? Over there are your loved ones AND pets.

Randomness Part Deux

When parking in the creepy multi-level parking garage…don't make a "mental note" of which level you leave your car.  You'll never remember….ever.  They usually have a little card holder by the elevators with a sign that reads, "Remember where you park…take a card".  TAKE THE CARD!  Spent 5 minutes riding the elevator up and down and hitting the "clicker" trying to find my car after work today…sheesh.  

If your nails need clipping….do it at home!  This is one of my BIGGEST pet peeves.  People that clip their nails in public.  Its like nails on a chalkboard I tell ya!  Argh!

Had to break out the reading glasses at work today….not happy about it.  I thought about taking a selfie and sending it to the hubs…ya know, "the secretary look" ;)  but when I saw myself on the screen, I shut off the phone and went back to work….nothing "sexy secretary" about that!  :D

Another perk found at work today!  I was snooping in the break room and lo and behold!  A cabinet full of tea!  Every flavor you can imagine!  Regular AND Decaf!  Niiiice.

Randomness…...

Just random stuff: 

We have underground parking at my new job……have never liked parking garages (think creeper lurking in the shadows waiting to jump you) and underground parking garages even less (think cave in and you'll be trapped).  I still think they're creepy and stinky but I'm sure I'll appreciate it in the height of TX summer….maybe.

Amazing how the little things make me happy at the new job.  Free brewed Starbucks coffee, at least 5 different types of pods for the coffee maker, Crystal Light for you water…which comes from a filtering dispenser…HOT AND COLD!  The parking is paid for and you get to wear jeans on Friday.

When using a public bathroom, make sure you use the paper in the holder…not the roll sitting loose on top…because you will always drop it on the floor….ALWAYS.  And it will roll across the floor UNDER.EVERY.STALL.  Thank goodness nobody was in there and I could retrieve the evidence.  But little man thought it was funny. :D

When you're at the dentist and she/he says, "this cavity isn't very deep, I don't think we'll need to numb it."  GET IT NUMBED!  3/4 of the way through I about came out of the chair and smacked her!  (sniff sniff, what was she thinking?!)

When you're spreading something on bread or a cracker, always make sure you're over the counter because it will always, ALWAYS fall goop down on the floor.  ALWAYS.  And its not like you can use the 3 second rule when you have a pet.  Furry toast and jelly anyone?  bleh.

When you're over 40 and you catch yourself saying, "mental note to self"…you better write that stuff down because it will be gone 2 seconds later.  ALWAYS.  What was I supposed to do before Friday?  What did we need to pick up from Target?  sheesh.  Getting old brain SUCKS!

When you're child is in the back seat playing on the iPad while you're driving and you think they're not listening to your conversation…THEY ARE.  And they will repeat everything they think is remotely funny.  Keep that in mind Hubs! :D  

Have a great day!

Working Hard for the Money!

You know how I posted my "professional" head shot and was all excited about re-entering the workforce?

Well, I've gone from this:

to this:

Well, thats not really me but thats about how I feel at the end of the day. :D   But its a good tired!  

Been at it for almost 3 weeks now!

Back story:

I was bopping around on the computer when I received an email from the "Talent Acquisition" department of the company…but the email was addressed to someone else.  So I replied that they emailed me by mistake.  They didn't, they just put the wrong name on the email and said to give the job opening a look.

It was an administrative position in their Private Client department (sounded schmancy) and the hours were 9am to 1pm, Mon-Fri.  Score!  I met all the qualifications and I wouldn't have to figure out after-school care for LM!  And whats crazy is that the building is on a street with the same name as my first house address.  Its karma I tell you.  

I was getting discouraged that I wouldn't find anything that fit my weird schedule requirements and out of nowhere came this email.  I hadn't applied because I had never heard of the company…they must have found my resume on Monster Jobs under Part-Time Searching.  Dunno.  What I do know is that the hours are perfect, the ladies in the department are awesome, we get free underground parking, free Starbucks coffee and we get to wear jeans on Fridays.  AND the ladies / department head are just as anti-pantyhose as I am! :D

I have been working longer hours on Mon and Wed because LM catches the van to the Taekwondo after school program we have him signed up for but otherwise I leave at 1-2pm.

On my 4th day of work LM was sick and needed to stay home but The Hubs offered to work from home and watch him (he wasn't feeling too swift either - allergies).  So crisis averted there.  I called at lunch to see how they were doing and LM was in a great mood!  Daddy had taken him to Panera and the frozen yogurt place.  Niiiiccceeee.  I stay home with him and the kid is in bed watching videos all day…Dad stays home and they hit the town. :D

The other day I asked how LM felt about me going back to work and he said, "its good, but I miss you".  I explained that he still sees me before and after school like before but he said he misses me volunteering up at the school on Fridays.  Awww.

I think me being back at work is good for all of us!

Just need to figure out the logistics for summer! 

Birthday Boy!

Happy Birthday Little Man!!!  Can you believe that we have a 7 year old?!  Crazy!  I remember when he was a baby and people would always say, "enjoy it, they grow up so fast!"  They're right.  

Little Man on the morning of his Birthday!

He's still a good sport about wearing the Birthday hat. :)

The LEGO Movie wii U game!

Hot Wheels track and cars from Aunt Kathi and Uncle Lonnie!

Dinner at PF Changs with Cousin Lindsey, Abby and Ara.

Cat on the gift bag says, "Oh, It's your Birthday?  That's cool I guess, Ya know, I have like seven of those each year, but yeah, whatever".  ha!

LM and Abby

Minecraft figures!!!!

THANKS FOR THE PARTY HORNS LINDSEY!!! :/

The kid kept blowing them.all.the.way.home.

and more soccer.

Getting ready to goalie up!

Happy Birthday Little Man!  We love you!

Spring Break 2014

Spring Break 2014!  Little Man said that he wanted to go see his cousins down in The Woodlands during his vacation so we took 2 days for a quick down and back.  

While we were there we visited with our friends, The Hurleys, and met their new little guy, Keegan!  So cute!

                                   Little Man and Keegan

LM says, "I liked him!  He was heavy!"

A quick run to our breakfast place when we lived in Houston.

Harrys!  Best Migas!

Driving back up to the hotel in the The Woods from Houston, we hear from the backseat, "Um, Mom…"

LM had pulled his tooth that had been hanging on FOREVER! 

LM putting his tooth under his pillow

Waking up to find a dollar from the Tooth Fairy!

LM and his cousins!

Cade, Conley, LM and Rylan!

Back home...

LM enjoying some blue ice cream!

Thanks Daddy!

AND!

Soccer!

LM in the black sleeves!

Hope everyone had a great Spring Break!

Whats Up!

Snow!   That is one thing we missed while living in Houston.  Oklahoma always had snow and it was so nice just sitting and watching it fall.  Ahhhhh!  Nice that we get it here in Dallas too!

 Little Man chilling with The Henry.  

LM with his friend Grant.  Class picture day at school and they happened to wear the exact same outfit!  Too funny!  They're in different classes so that helped with the twins situation. :D

We're going to have new gutters put up and paint the exterior of our house soon!  Right now we have about 5 different swatches painted on the back of the house.  Sigh….who knew it was so exhausting and frustrating picking a paint color!  Too pink, too green, too light, too dark, etc.  Will reveal the final choice when we have it!

current greenish base, white trim, black shutters

This Saturday is LM's last basketball game of the season and its been great!  Some of the kids on his team are doing layups and 3 pointers!  LM has been great as a guard!  He gets in there and distracts the other team's players while they're dribbling allowing for steals!  

Grant, Ian, Eli, Andrew, Julian, Aiden, LM, Blake and Jett.

Will keep you "posted" on whats up with us!