Okay, so we finally made it to California. We left on Sunday morning and drove to Scottsdale, AZ to visit Joe & Debbie. Such a long drive! Let's just say that the U.S. has lots of mountains, and way more desert than I ever realized. TX desert. New Mexico desert. Arizona desert. California desert. aaaggghhh!!! California tries to trick new visitors, by putting palm trees and a little lake, even with a small beach, right at its border. They even have a small green patch of astroturf off to the side. But just when you think you've made it through all the desert, the facade ends, and it's desert once again.
Megan and Matthew were so good in the car. It is fun for me to listen to their conversations, jokes, and even sometimes their arguments. It was funny to me that for a long part of the drive, they wanted to listen to music, instead of watching movies or playing games. (Well Matthew played games while listening to music.) Their favorite CD's are "High School Musical" and a CD that John burned for them of a bunch of popluar songs. Matthew was singing "California Man", and was so cute that I wish I had my video camera. Megan is developing a beautiful singing voice, and knows almost all the words to the "High School Musical" soundtrack. (Which, as I found out, is a Disney movie that just came out on DVD last week. It's evidently all the rage among older elementary/middle school kids.)
The kids were really excited to play with Christopher, even though it was for a short time. We woke up this morning, ate breakfast, then the kids went for a quick swim. We finally left at about 12:30 AZ time. At 8:30 CA time (same time zone), we made it to Andrea, Simon, and Sarah's house. Sarah is an adorable baby. Dark hair, dark eyes, and a beautiful dark compexion. And so sweet! Simon and Andrea are having lots of fun with her. I will be taking lots of pictures, and will upload them and post them when I get home. (Since I've gotten a complaint that there aren't enough pictures on this blog.) (Michael.)
It's 11:30 here, but 1:30 a.m. in my world, so I'm going to stop now and go to sleep. I'll try to log on tomorrow and write about all we've done!
Monday, May 29, 2006
Sunday, May 28, 2006
It's Off To California
Well, Ami , Megan and Matthew are on their way to California to see Ami's sister Andrea, her husband Simon and their new baby girl Sarah....Which means Jacob and Daddy FINALLY rule the roost for a week...
We will attempt to post daily and keep you updated. (for example, we'll see if we set the house on fire before they get back...)
We will attempt to post daily and keep you updated. (for example, we'll see if we set the house on fire before they get back...)
Friday, May 19, 2006
Just busy, busy, busy!
okay, so maybe when I started this thing, and said that I was planning on posting several times a week, I was being a little over-zealous. Looks like I'm doing good to post several times a month. It certainly isn't because our family hasn't been doing anything...
Matthew is still playing baseball. He usually gets at least one "hit" per game, and has made several home runs. I think he is finally over his fear of the pitching machine. Since baseball started, he hasn't been very active in Boy Scouts, but he has managed to get to several meetings. He has earned his "Gold Arrow" award, and one "Silver Arrow" award. Very exciting for Mr. Matthew. Last weekend, (Mother's Day weekend) Matthew went camping with some of his Boy Scout friends. They had a BLAST! They had to come back Saturday night, instead of Sunday morning, because of some bad weather that was making its way to the campground. But, the boys got to practice with bows and arrows, cook their own meals, and their favorite, play in the mud pit!
As for Megan, she is busy too. She is still playing softball, and just loving it! She was having trouble seeing the ball without her glasses on, and it was hard for her to wear her glasses with the helmet they wear when they bat. Her solution? Contact lenses. So after two eye dr's appointments and 2 1/2 hours of Megan trying to get up the nerve to put her lenses in her eyes, she finally became proficient enough to leave the dr's office. She is quite the little contact lens pro now, though. Her game has improved, too. It's amazing how much easier it is to hit the ball, now that she can actually SEE it! Our Girl Scout troop just went on an overnight trip to the Fort Worth Zoo last weekend (The same weekend Matthew went camping,) We had a great time.
While we were gone, John and Jacob were home alone. They had a great time. Since it was Mother's Day weekend, and both colleges in town had their graduations, there were no babysitters to be found, so Jacob went with Daddy to work for a while, to a remote that Dad had to go to, and to the store. They found all kinds of great Mother's Day gifts for me, from both of them and from Megan and Matthew. They are great shoppers!
On Mother's Day, we all went out to brunch, to a restaurant names "River Terrace". The food was just fabulous. It's a good thing that Megan and Matthew have some mature taste buds...They just loved the salmon, arugula salad, and everything else that was served. On the dessert table, there were creme puffs that were shaped like swans. These were a BIG hit!
Jacob is busy just being Jacob. He is such a sweet boy! A little bit of a monster some days, but sweet nontheless. We have started working with puzzles with him, and he really enjoys trying to fit the pieces in.
John is getting ready to co-host the Children's Miracle Network telethon next month. He is also doing the PA for San Angelo's minor-league baseball team, the Colts. needless to say, our lives are little full!
But they are about to slow down a little... School ends at the end of next week. Boy Scouts is over for the year, and Girl Scouts will be over for the year after this Monday. Baseball and Softball seasons end soon too... What will we do with all our free time????
P.S. I tried to upload pics with this post, but I blogger isn't letting me... I will try again to upload them tomorrow!
Matthew is still playing baseball. He usually gets at least one "hit" per game, and has made several home runs. I think he is finally over his fear of the pitching machine. Since baseball started, he hasn't been very active in Boy Scouts, but he has managed to get to several meetings. He has earned his "Gold Arrow" award, and one "Silver Arrow" award. Very exciting for Mr. Matthew. Last weekend, (Mother's Day weekend) Matthew went camping with some of his Boy Scout friends. They had a BLAST! They had to come back Saturday night, instead of Sunday morning, because of some bad weather that was making its way to the campground. But, the boys got to practice with bows and arrows, cook their own meals, and their favorite, play in the mud pit!
As for Megan, she is busy too. She is still playing softball, and just loving it! She was having trouble seeing the ball without her glasses on, and it was hard for her to wear her glasses with the helmet they wear when they bat. Her solution? Contact lenses. So after two eye dr's appointments and 2 1/2 hours of Megan trying to get up the nerve to put her lenses in her eyes, she finally became proficient enough to leave the dr's office. She is quite the little contact lens pro now, though. Her game has improved, too. It's amazing how much easier it is to hit the ball, now that she can actually SEE it! Our Girl Scout troop just went on an overnight trip to the Fort Worth Zoo last weekend (The same weekend Matthew went camping,) We had a great time.
While we were gone, John and Jacob were home alone. They had a great time. Since it was Mother's Day weekend, and both colleges in town had their graduations, there were no babysitters to be found, so Jacob went with Daddy to work for a while, to a remote that Dad had to go to, and to the store. They found all kinds of great Mother's Day gifts for me, from both of them and from Megan and Matthew. They are great shoppers!
On Mother's Day, we all went out to brunch, to a restaurant names "River Terrace". The food was just fabulous. It's a good thing that Megan and Matthew have some mature taste buds...They just loved the salmon, arugula salad, and everything else that was served. On the dessert table, there were creme puffs that were shaped like swans. These were a BIG hit!
Jacob is busy just being Jacob. He is such a sweet boy! A little bit of a monster some days, but sweet nontheless. We have started working with puzzles with him, and he really enjoys trying to fit the pieces in.
John is getting ready to co-host the Children's Miracle Network telethon next month. He is also doing the PA for San Angelo's minor-league baseball team, the Colts. needless to say, our lives are little full!
But they are about to slow down a little... School ends at the end of next week. Boy Scouts is over for the year, and Girl Scouts will be over for the year after this Monday. Baseball and Softball seasons end soon too... What will we do with all our free time????
P.S. I tried to upload pics with this post, but I blogger isn't letting me... I will try again to upload them tomorrow!
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Craziness!
Okay, so I really did plan on posting several times a week... But to say that our lives are crazy at this time of the year is an understatement! M&M have had baseball/softball games. Two weeks ago, Megan was at bat, and got hit by a softball. She wasn't hurt too badly, just a red mark on her stomach. It was actually a good lesson for her- for the next game, she wore her glasses when she was at bat. The game really works so much better when you can actually see the ball coming. (!) She didn't get to hit the ball, but she got "walked" to first base. (The pitcher threw 4 bad pitches in a row, and she didn't try to swing at them.)
She was so cute, as she was running to 1st base, she put her arms up to celebrate. Everyone in the stands, on both sides, chuckled. That night she learned how to "steal" a base. She made it all the way to 3rd base, and then the team got three outs. She was so excited to make it on base at all, let alone 3rd, that it was all fine with Megan.
Fast forward to tonight... Again, she got to walk to 1st, stole second, and then got to run to third. Then, there was lightening. several times. close. So, the game got called. Poor Megs! We got home before the rain got too bad, and the storm that was expected went around us. (whew!)
Matthew has also been busy with baseball. The team didn't win the last game, but Matthew got a home run! In the game tonight, Matthew didn't get to hit the ball, but they won the game!
I took M&M to see Akeelah and the Bee on Sunday. It was SO good! So many different story lines going on at once. It was the kind of movie that made us talk about it all the way home. I asked them questions, to make sure they understood the movie, and they asked me questions about things they didn't understand. They were the perfect age to see it.
Last night was our Girl Scout Troop talent show. It was so much fun. For the most part, the girls in our troop are not shy, and had no problems getting up to perform their dances, songs, magic tricks, etc. But, there were a few that needed some "prompting". They were all wonderful! Megan played a piano solo.
Lots of stuff coming up this week. I will try to write more, and more often!
She was so cute, as she was running to 1st base, she put her arms up to celebrate. Everyone in the stands, on both sides, chuckled. That night she learned how to "steal" a base. She made it all the way to 3rd base, and then the team got three outs. She was so excited to make it on base at all, let alone 3rd, that it was all fine with Megan.
Fast forward to tonight... Again, she got to walk to 1st, stole second, and then got to run to third. Then, there was lightening. several times. close. So, the game got called. Poor Megs! We got home before the rain got too bad, and the storm that was expected went around us. (whew!)
Matthew has also been busy with baseball. The team didn't win the last game, but Matthew got a home run! In the game tonight, Matthew didn't get to hit the ball, but they won the game!
I took M&M to see Akeelah and the Bee on Sunday. It was SO good! So many different story lines going on at once. It was the kind of movie that made us talk about it all the way home. I asked them questions, to make sure they understood the movie, and they asked me questions about things they didn't understand. They were the perfect age to see it.
Last night was our Girl Scout Troop talent show. It was so much fun. For the most part, the girls in our troop are not shy, and had no problems getting up to perform their dances, songs, magic tricks, etc. But, there were a few that needed some "prompting". They were all wonderful! Megan played a piano solo.
Lots of stuff coming up this week. I will try to write more, and more often!
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