Friends

Tonight, I just want to blog about my friends. I miss them so much!!! I haven't made any friends out here yet, but I suppose that is because I don't have a job or a church yet. I haven't really had any time to feel sorry for myself nor have I had time to cry over leaving my home of 37 years. I have just been here enjoying the kids and busily getting unpacked and settled. Honestly, I love this area of Texas. I am just lonely. The kids of course keep me busy and we love each other so much, but I miss Rona's laugh, Wanda's bossing me around, Amy's playing practical jokes on me, and Gina's telling me I'm short.

In many ways, I feel like I am on an island. I wonder if I'll even meet friends that I'll get to know and love as much as those listed above. And, the list goes far beyond that. I miss Allie's baked goods, Heather's sarcasm, Uncle Don's carne asada. I miss Jessica Fall stopping by my desk each afternoon to chat and laugh. I miss Lori Wallace telling me how she is praying for Zack and Sophia. I miss my mom so much. And, I even miss my brand new niece Torie who I haven't been able to meet yet. I want to hold her so badly. I want to smell her little head and put my pinkie finger in her hand. I miss my sis, her mom, Victoria. I miss the look she gives when she wants to be served! I miss my sis, Julia. I miss my bro, Manuel who just suffered a mild heart attack. I miss his 4 kids. I miss Samantha Pass giving me inspirations for the day. I miss Liz begging me to bring Zack and Sophia to work.

I guess what I'm getting at is that I am missing the familiar. I am missing living in a place where everybody knows my name. I am not complaining about Texas as I like it. I am just finally mourning what I left behind. I don't miss my beautiful CA home and sparkling pool. I don't miss the weather which I hear right now is very hot. I don't miss my job which had become far to rote. I don't miss the commute or busyness and lack of time with the kids.

But, I do miss Sing Star with Rona and Mad Libs with Amy. I miss shopping with Wanda and vegging with Gina. I miss what once was. I'll be back to visit, but until then, I hope I make some friends out here. You know the kind that you just instantly know will be friends for life.

To all my friends, even those I did not mention by name, I miss you. Treasure what you have. And, this here Texan is gonna cry a little, and then keep looking for a church home to see how I can get hooked in to serve.

I pick Gina up from the airport in 2 hours! I'll certainly post pics tomorrow.

Bikes, Bikes, Bikes

Today was the day of the bike. It has become a daily ritual that the kids come home from school do their homework and chores and than change into their play clothes. I guess I'm old fashioned because I, like my mom, have the kids change out of their school clothes before going out for a good dose of sweating, falling, and quite probably ripping activities! Sophia, however, made it out today in her nice clothes - she made it out with no tears or stains. PTL Oh yes, back to the ritual part. The kids (all 5 of them) look forward all day to going to the park each evening. They have met many friends at the park and Josh and Ken are learning skills over there each and every night. They truly have a blast, and it is so conveniently right across the street! We are so fortunate!

So, on to the bike part. Sophia learned how to pedal her own bike!!! She was so jazzed. She only needed to be pushed when she was going uphill. Below you see Zack helping her out. He is a good big bro.

The second exciting part of bike day was that Zack learned to ride his bike with no training wheels. He decided after seeing a very small girl riding her bike without training wheels that he was too big to have them on his bike so he asked Mike to remove them. He rides his bike very well.

However, as you can see from the second picture below, his legs are too short for him to get on the bike without help. He tried for an hour straight, and I am not exaggerating. He is a very determined little boy. I think at some point he'll figure out how to give it a running start and jump on, but for now. he is perplexed as to how he'll ride his bike without his mom helping him get started.


In this next pic, you see Josh and Ken working on their basketball skills. Kenny is actually doing a lap at the request of his trainer, Mike. They have an agreement. Kenny is Mikes diet trainer and Mike is Kenny's basketball trainer. They both annoy the crud out of each other when one of them is breaking a rule. But, I see growth in both. Well, in Mike's case, less growth! :) Ken practically has a shock treatment going each time Mike reaches for a soda or a nutty bar! And, on the court, Kenny gets tired of practicing technique and then Mike has him running to keep his head in the game. So, they both get their share of being annoyed. It is such a dude thing, and I just watch and smile and encourage at what I think are the right moments!

Towards the end of our stay at the park, the three youngers were playing basketball. They were having a good time as you can see. And, check out how hard they play. I love seeing them get all this exercise! And, for those who might wonder, Sophia can certainly hold her own on the court. Of course, she can't make a basket, but she certainly tries.


Tomorrow the training wheels come off of Josh's bike. Stay tuned for an update. He is eager to get out there and try. If you know Josh, this is half the battle. He likes to do things perfectly and if he can't, he generally doesn't try. I had to pinch myself today when I heard him say, "I am glad I don't play video games so much anymore because I love playing basketball and riding my bike at the park." That there is an incredible statement from a boy who three days of every week is a video game junky. Kudos to Gina who has been consistent in limiting him to 30 minutes a day each day he is with her. It's paying off! I am enjoying a well balanced little Texan! You should see how he struts around in his basketball gear!

Sophia was an angel baby today. She and I are enjoying the time we are getting to spend together. I plan to be working by January so I am enjoying every minute of the time we get together! Once my mom is out here, little Sophia will stay with grandma and enjoy every minute of it. My mom is the most awesome grandma there is! Sophia calls her graham. Not gram, but graham. She says the H.

Tomorrow is a very exciting day! Auntie Gina is coming to visit for the long weekend! The kids are excited especially Zack who has called Gina many times to go over the list of everything he wants her to do while she is out here. :)

This weekend will be a kid weekend for sure!!!

Blazing a Trail

Here are the pics of the haircuts! The two knuckleheads were having a great time posing for me! These pics are taken in our back yard right after school. Don't they look clean? Both of these guys are neat freaks. It is a rarity that they get their clothes dirty! Spaghetti night is the exception!!!


Here is Sophia's first girl' bedroom. Surprisingly, she even plays with some of her own toys now! She readily invites the boys in to play with her, and they indulge her as she likes to pretend she's a puppy, kitty or a baby!

Here is the boys' room. Thankfully, it's a good sized room. As you can see, it is not spotless nor is it completely pulled together yet, but I wanted to give you a look see. The middle pic is Ken's side of the room. He has his own little dormitory-like set up! There is a game room so all the boys do in this room is sleep. The littles go to bed an hour earlier so Ken has a lot of private time even with sharing.

Movie Night!!!! In the first pic, Auntie Stepha lets Sophia watch her popcorn pop! Sophia watched Mary Poppins for the first time while the boys were out playing basketball! I am happy to report that she LOVED it! I am hoping she'll like all of the classics and that one day we can watch Pride and Pedjudice together!

And, here are a few pros and cons about life in Northeast Texas.

PROS:

• The view from the back of our house! I LOVE it!!!!


• Family time - Mike takes time to teach Josh to tie his shoes and with no more commuting we get to eat together at a decent hour every night.


• AND, last but definitely not least, Bluebell Ice Cream! There's nothing like it!
  
  
  

CONS:

• Electric cook tops suck!


• Exposed backyards suck too!!!
  
  

PROS REVISITED: These houses are priced between $250,000 and $300,000! I picked the one on the left for Rona and the one on the right for Wanda and fam. I want Heather and Allie too so I picked a house with lots of space as I know Jeff will have to move in with ya'll! Do you think people found it strange that I was cruising and taking pics of houses that aren't even for sale????

Today's milestones: Ken was excited to get his first pair of Jordans. Josh learned how to tie his shoes (finally). He has tried before but gets SUPER frustrated when he doesn't get something right the first time. Last time Stepha tried to teach him, he literally got a headache! He is his mother's son! Michael seemed to have the magic touch as he sat and taught him in about 20 minutes. Next both boys will learn to ride their bikes w/0 training wheels. We saw a very little kid today riding w/o training wheels and now the boys don't want to be coocalas (babies)!

It was a good day, but this stay at home mom/aunt thing is HARD work!!!! Calgon take me away!!!!

Sorry, no pics today!

Today was an interesting day. I got up at 7:00AM to take all of the kids to school after which I came home and sat on my bed to go online a bit at which time I fell fast asleep and woke up 3 hours later! If you know me, you know I hate to sleep a day away! And, my immediate thought was oh my I hope Stepha got Sophia out of bed. I ran upstairs and there I found Sophia singing as she sat on her bed. She said, "Mama, I got up and went to the potty all by myself." "Then I come back to bed." I was praising Jesus that I trained her early on that she couldn't roam about the house until someone told her she could get out of bed. Then this tired mom fed my angel baby a late breakfast and kept telling her how proud I was that she went potty and was singing in bed. :)

After this, Sophia and I went out back to play in the water. I basically put her in a bathing suit and gave her power over a running water hose. She loved it and had a great time for a good hour. We followed that by a bath and later went to pick up Zack and Josh. Once we picked them up we followed Auntie Gina's instructions to "GET THOSE BOYS A HAIRCUT"! Yes, she did call me and say that their hair was looking "shabby." For those who know Gina, she typically doesn't pay close attention to these things so I was surprised! I will post pics tomorrow. Basically, they don't look like chia pets anymore!

Sophia begged for a haircut, and I kept explaining that she gets to grow her hair long. I think she'd be happy if I had gotten her hair cut just like the boys! Someday she'll grin at these stories. Sophia's latest thing is to say, "Turn it up, mom." She loves to listen to music and sing along. The other day in Target, she sang "Good Morning Baltimore" the entire time we were there! The other phrase she keeps saying is "I'm too little." So to make up for that she tells me and the boys, "When you are little, you can't go to school." "When you are little, you stay home." At some point, she'll realize that none of us get to be little again. If only...

I had put some chicken and bbq sauce in the crock pot for dinner and asked Stepha to make mashed potatoes and some green beans. We are a good team! She did so and wouldn't you know at dinner Zack says very proudly, "Stepha YOU MAKE A GOOD LUNCH"!!!! Stepha looked at me and grinned. She said, "Mama made the chicken." He said, "No, I sawl you cooking." We laughed hard!!!!

This evening we hit the pool which the kids love and then Ken and Mike went across to the park and challenged some guys to a game of bball. In their words, they have "schooled" three teams now. It is cool to see Ken learning some skills on the court. They have a good time together. And, don't tell Ken I told you, but he already has his eyes on a girl at school who he ran into and was bragging that he talked to her when he said, "Excuse me"!!!! So jr. high, huh? I just said, "That's a start" and smiled.

And, Josh said I really love school. My teacher is so pretty. She got married though - frown.

Zack says, Miss Brown is funny. She was playing with me on the grass.

And, tonight right before bed Josh taught Zack the song, "I'm in the Lord's Army."

That is pretty much today in a nutshell with the exception of my attendance at a band meeting at Kenny's school. It was rather dull. Ken didn't really want to be in band, but art was full so he is in band by default. It looks like he'll end up playing the French Horn. Anyone have any ideas as to how much I should charge Gina for having me attend meetings such as this while she is still in Cali????? :) As long as I don't have to be a chaperone at band camp, I'm cool!!! :)

The band teacher sounded a lot like a friend of mine, Richard Babbcock. It was uncanny.

Kim, congrats on your trip to Russia!!! How excited you must be! My prayers are with you as you travel and on every step along the way!

First Day of School Pics

Here are Zack and Josh on their first day of school! It is early so they look kind of Chinese! :) Cute and tired!

Here they are each in the hall near their classrooms. Yes, I got to walk them in and was glad to see them off for an exciting time! Zack only got to stay for an hour and was disappointed! Tomorrow he goes all day - 8:00AM-3:00PM. In CA Kinder is half day but not here and no naps!

And, here is the girl who gets to stay home alone now. That is until I go back to work and find a preschool for her! I think I'll find a Christian preschool where she can hear Bible stories and things of the sort. Look at those legs! She is one lucky girl! Heather, I think she'll want to shop for shoes with you soon. Notice the new hair do? This is the hair do I see most on little girls in this here part of Texas. About 85% don't seem to brush their little girls' hair and the other 15% look like this! For those that know me, I don't think I'll go for the straggly look!

See ya'll tomorrow! Oh, and Krista, that is why I didn't teach more in CA. I never could afford to take so much time off to student teach! Here, they really make it easy for working people to switch to a teaching career! Good luck with the student teaching. I think you'll love it!

Fun in the Sun

Well today, we visited Crossroads Community Church of Frisco, Texas. The music was great! The pastor even played the bass. The church was good, but it was a bit too small for my little family. The childrens church is super small so there weren't classes for each age group yet. I feel the kids would not learn as much as they can in a more established church so hi ho hi ho, it is off to another church visit I go (next Sunday).

And, here are some pics of the chores I wrote about yesterday. Josh actually likes his chores as he chose them! :) Zack is under Josh's tutalage as you see. Soon Zack will take over some of Josh's chores as he is eager to have a longer list of responsibilites. Josh wants me to be sure to give him chores for a seven year old once he turns seven!

And, here they are, the Texans!!!! Check 'em out in their Texas gear!


We had another day in the park! The boys LOVE riding their bikes, and Sophia was learning how to balance. She was determined to make it all the way around this balance "beam." I was excited to see her drive and focus!

And, here you see Zack working on tightening his own training wheel. He was very proud and asked me to take the pick of him, "fixin' it"!

Here you see Sophia holding her own on the basketball court! She begs to go and play with the boys! And, after a couple of hours at the park, the kids all need a serious bubble bath!!!!! We are used to the humidity, but we are well aware that we need baths just about every time we come in from outdoors!

Tomorrow is a big day! The kids start school and Stepha and I will go to the college to enroll. I will be taking the Texas teacher certification tests and enrolling in the credential program here which can be finished at community college!!! :) I can get a job teaching once I pass the two Texas tests and am enrolled. I do not need to finish the program to secure a teaching job. I am, however, prepared to substitute teach until getting a permanent position. I did not make this big move without enough "security" to last me a year plus. So, I am not worried. All of the other security issues have been covered as well so no worries about me or the kiddos. We are well cared for and driven to succeed here in the Lone Star State.

By the way, I like it here!

Are Chores Good for Kids?

Brawn Meets Brawny (paper towels that is)!

Well, it was one of those late nights for the kids last night as they got home from the Monster Truck races quite late so they slept in until 10:00AM this morning at which time I did something I rarely do - placed a box of PopTarts on the table and said have at it. They like them untoasted.

Then at 1:00PM we had brunch - eggs, sausage, toast and chocolage chip pancakes which are a favorite around here! After brekky, we all did our chores. Here is what we do:

Josh
Clean Litter Box
Put any loose shoes where they belong
Make Bed
Brush Teeth
Put clean clothes away
Empty house trash cans

Ken
Make bed
Brush teeth
Put clean clothes away
Clean one bathroom
Read for 30 minutes
Do a practice math page

Zack
Make bed (he makes it perfectly)
Pick up any toys that are out of place
Brush teeth
Put clean clothes away

Sophia
Brush Teeth
Put clean clothes away
Help mama clean the kitchen and make breakfast

Stephanie does all of the laundry each and every day! Gotta love that! She is one of those people who launders clothes perfectly and folds them so straight and flat! She is gifted.

Mike is in charge of taking out the trash and doing any other type of manly work around here. He also keeps up after himself.

All kids swap turns cleaning up after meals. One day it is Mike and Kenny. The next it is Stephanie and Josh. Sophia and Zack clear the table each night even the china - no accidents yet knock on wood. They love helping.

That is pretty much how our mornings look. Soon when school starts all of this will be moved to the afternoon/evening time. Of course, depending upon their homework loads, we will adjust accordingly. I am not one of those people who believe that allowing "kids to be kids" means not giving them any responsibilities. I believe that we must equip them for their future. When they are adults, these household tasks will be known so well that they can finish quickly, and then have FUN, FUN, FUN. Or, if we do not equip them, they will have to waste lots of time learning how to run a house. I mean I can't imagine not teaching the kids to clean a kitchen or bathroom. I can't imagine not teaching Sophia how to cook. Chances are that the kids will be able to afford a maid and a cook, but if not, they will not be ill prepared. It will come as no surprise to them that keeping a house takes a little bit of work each day or a lot of work each week, or a ton of work each month. What do you think about kids having chores?

Zack and Ken are eager to start school! Josh is okay with it, but would rather not have homework. Josh is excited though that his teacher is a woman and is pretty. Yep, he already thinks that way. Once when he was five, we went to church and he asked one of the ladies who helped in his class sporadically if she changed the color of her hair. She was shocked. She had dyed it the day before! He is just in tune with the ladies. And, lucky for him, he'll know how to help his woman keep house! Who will be able to resist a guy who notices when his wife gets her hair done and then tells her he folded the laundry while she was grocery shopping????

Krista, I found the dress at Nordstrom for only $16.00. Great deal! Kim, do you live in Texas now or still in CA?