Cuteness for a cause

Emma and her friend Madeleine have been planning for weeks to donate their hair to Locks of Love, and the day has finally arrived. At the last minute, Anna decided to get in on the fun. They took turns getting their ponytails cut off, hair washed ( which they loved) and cut and styled. It was their first time with a real hairdresser. What a fun experience it turned out to be! Emma was especially excited to share it with Madeleine. They are already talking about growing it out again so that they can donate another time.

Some pictures

Sam and Carly, the newest additions to our petting zoo Adam, Zach, Josh, Emma and Leah cooling off
Paul, Mika and "the chop"

Okay, Obviously I ran out of room...

Our travels

Okay, I can finally sit down and document the last week's events. We went to Bastrop to surprise mom with a visit. It took a while to get there, we got to Sonic for lunch right behind a scout troop-waited in the drive-through for an hour! Then we had our first potty emergency for Leah. It sounds tacky, but I was really pleased to see that she had the skill to go on the ground beside the Suburban. She loved "peeing on the floor" (more like gravel and mesquite) so much that we had to stop frequently for false alarms.
When we finally got there though, it was a great surprise. Mom was thrilled to tears! We did have to go do some grocery shopping that night though.
Sunday we went to church in Bastrop, which is always great because we can really fill up a row! Grammy was so proud! After church Catherine and her kids came over for a visit, and we got to meet baby Maj-Les (pronounced Mylees) for the first time. She is a beautiful, good natured baby and it was a blast to hold her and love on her! The zipline became the attraction once again. It was my turn and it was unavoidable. I had put it off as long as I could, and so at this point in the post, I must recount one of the more embarrassing moments of my life. I dont have many fears, but I am afraid of heights. The zipline is a good twenty feet in the air at the start. I climbed up the ladder and my poor brother-in-law helped me into the harness. We counted to three, and then counted to three again. Then counted again. The kids cheered and Jared tryed to hype me up ( which may have brought out my ugly side) and we counted again, and I clutched the rail. Finally after counting again, Jared gave me a nudge (which he denies ;)) and just like that, I was off. It was over as quickly as it began. I hit the brake at the end and my legs flew up in the air. I drifted back to the bottom to a stop. It wasn't until then that I realized I had been screaming, because at that point it turned into a wail. I was bawling like a toddler. I scolded everyone within earshot for making me do it. I nearly vomited. So shameful.
The kids played in the dirtpile and then took a wild and wet bubble bath in Grammy's whirlpool tub.
Monday we saw Wall-E, which was cute. Grammy fell asleep in the middle of it but woke up when Leah had to go to the bathroom. After the movie we went to the best burger dive in the world, The Road House, and fought the flys for our supper. Anna developed a major allergic reaction to something, and we had to make an emergency run to HEB for benadryl to cure the hives.
Tuesday we went to Catherine's house in Round Rock. After stopping at Sams for Grammy's camera and lunch, we went to IKEA- which was more fun than usual because Leah is finally tall enough, and potty trained, and could go into Smalland with the other kids.Then we went to admire Jared's houses in person. We could move in tomorrow-Beautiful! Leah christened the driveway with her blood when she tripped and cut open her chin, which prompted another emergency run- this time to CVS for steri-strips. Then we went swimming in Catherine's clubhouse pool which is a great family pool, as the deepest part is only 4' 6". The kids all had a great time and hated to leave... except for Anna of course.
Wednesday meant going home, after a stop in Fredricksburg for peaches and cider, and several stops for "peeing on the floor".
Thursday we had a moment of insanity and brought 2 gerbils home from Petsmart. They are called Sam and Carly.
Friday we went to Hobbs for the fourth. We celebrated with Tod's two brothers there, and their families. His sister Lisa came down from Albuquerque and we got a rare opportunity to play with her kids too. My best friend from Hobbs, Mika Newey, came over with her family and it was a wild night. Everyone rode the four-wheelers and played in the water. We ate burgers and watched the fireworks. Tod's brothers set off some of their own, but we halted by a visit from the fuzz! Apparently there is a burn ban in Lea county too? We got home at 2 in the morning.
It was an amazing and emotional experience to see so many people that we love so much. There is just something so fulfilling about watching the kids play with their cousins. It is too easy to forget how much your parents have to offer. It is nice that my dad keeps giving me bear hugs and calling me his little girl. It is fun to go shopping and giggle with my mom.
Even though it was a fast week, it passed all to quickly. Now all I have to look forward to is laundry!

Takin' a ride...on the potty train

Finally! Leah celebrated her third birthday on Father's day. It was not only a milestone, but a deadline of sorts. I have been trying to potty train her for a year. We decided that it was time to draw the line...no more sippy cups, no more diapers, no more...baby. So Leah got her choice of underwear and we got serious. I won't say that it is perfect, but we are almost there. Like so many other moments in motherhood, this one is bittersweet too. It means I am officially out of the baby business. According to Leah, "I'm not a baby. I drink big girl cups, I pee the potty, I brush my teeth, that I can do." Yes you can, baby, yes you can. "I'm not a baby."

It's so true. What do I do now that the years of being completely devoted to my babies are over? I guess now I have to turn some minute part of my focus back to myself. I am forced to stop rocking back and forth even when I'm not holding a child. I will have to relax when I hear a baby cry, because more than likely, its not going to be my own. I am now willing to pick up any baby, whether I really know their parents or not. It's scary but still so exciting. Happy Birthday Leah!

Miracles do happen

This week was a fun week for the boys. For over a year they have been asking for a Nintendo DS. Most people know what this is- a portable video game system. Needless to say, it isn't cheap and Santa has yet to come through. The boys have been saving their money and we have been talking about ways for them to get to their goal. I explained that when you are a good person and you do the things you are supposed to do, good things happen. If you do more than you're expected, you can make your own miracles. Thursday there was a mysterious package on the doorstep when we got home from the store. I whipped out my phone and caught it all...

The joy of summer

It is finally here- summer, and the bliss that comes with it. No obligations, no practices or games, no early morning starts, no lunches to pack. We can wake up when we want, eat when we want, go where we want, play in the water, have Wii tournaments, etc. It has been a great week so far! I love this calm and the fun of watching the kids work out their disagreements and interact in the way that only siblings can. It makes me remember all the summers I spent as a kid in Idaho. We have such great memories! I was talking to my dad about the way we were raised tonight and he was saying that there are things he regrets- being too strict. I feel so bad that he would worry about that. We got to do such amazing things. I rode in a tank, sat in a helicopter and an F-16, and shot a machine gun. I raced sailboats and rode mountain bikes in Moab with Hans Ray. I rode and wrecked motorcycles before the age of 10. We had Smartie olympics and made salads with weeds. We searched for Oregon Trail artifacts, survived a tornado in a tent and camped on the trampoline more nights than we slept in our beds. If anyone asked I think we would have said we had a normal childhood. I think looking back I can now say that we had an exceptional childhood. We didn't just grow up, we were raised. We were taught and loved. I know that my kid's stories will be different, but I hope that someday they will look back and tell people that they were raised to be exceptional people.

A night at the ballpark

Here come the fireworks!

Leah loves all you can drink!

I am so over this baseball thing!
Can I just watch the game?

So Glamorous!

Tonight we had our yearly company picnic. Every year we go to a Midland Rockhound's game and enjoy a really great picnic before- barbecue, hamburgers & hot-dogs, all you can eat and drink everything...my kind of party. It is a long night for the girls, who don't really get baseball and frankly have had enough from the little league season to last them a very long time. The game was exciting though. I took one or more kids twice to the souvenir store (didn't buy anything) twice to the bathroom, twice to buy drinks and cotton candy, twice to get ice cream, and I guess that's it! We got free ice cream, but with the temp at the ballpark at 106, it didn't even make it back to the seats. The poor boys and I were covered in ice-cream soup. To add an extra dynamic to the situation, there was a stiff wind blowing in the twenties. At one point it was creating a sort of chocolate mist that would make any mother cringe. Can you say Tide-to-go? Needless to say it went straight into the trash! Keeping Anna calm and Leah in her seat was a challenge, but when the post- game fireworks started, they were in heaven. I think this year Leah actually looked at them with thrill instead of fright. She was in awe- it was so fun to listen to her comments on the stars and sparklies.