frenzied mother of 3

Photography Fun....

2011-10-19T17:14:00.001-05:00

So I took a beginner photography class and have been having fun using my camera on manual! It is liberating I tell you! Who knew having so much control over taking a picture would be so fun! Just loving it! Now I need a new lens or two and I will be goooood to go! Here are some shots of DB and the girls today using my friends 35mm AF lens! These are completely unedited....Also on my list to buy some good photo editing software!

Been too long....does anyone still check in here....

2011-10-19T12:49:00.010-05:00

So here I sit in front of my computer contemplating my next blog post, all the while realizing that it has almost been a year since my last post. The Rock N Roll 1/2 Marathon is almost upon us again only 3 and 1/2 weeks away. And to answer the question you want to ask, yes I trained again for the race this year and will be running the 1/2. I am determined to be crush my time from last year.

Suppose we should play a little catch up....For the most part all is the same just a year later, girls are great and growing up too fast. The Twins are in first grade and Lila is finishing up her last year of preschool. DB still is still with us enjoying out her retirement. She still enjoys laying in the sun and sleeping. I am still working a for WSU and Agpro from home. I am still running and really enjoying the time I get to spend out on the trails and my long runs with my running group R+R Fitness, which also helped me FINALLY lose 30lbs over the last year.......Shawn is doing awesome he did have a job change in September. He is now working for Rackspace Hosting and loving it! The last year including a trip to New Mexico and Shawn and I got to enjoy a trip up to Seattle for a wedding.

I am thinking it will be tooooo crazy to try to go into detail all the happenings of the last year as it was pretty much a speedy blur!...So I guess I will do my part to just move forward with the happenings of this year.....So until some time in the near future.....and I do mean near! Time to get back at it I hope to post at the very least a word or picture or sentence a week....
Kaelee

1/2 Marathon Running Momma...

2010-11-15T09:07:00.005-06:00

Well I did it! Yes, after 5 months of dedicated training with my good friend Ana, we finished the San Antonio Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon! Ana and I were so excited to start the race together and we are so proud of our accomplishment! Of course we were so excited that we forgot to take a pic of the two of us! Too funny! I am now going to try to increase my per mile time, hoping to get it to 10:30 or 11:00 per mile. I think some weight training may help! I finished the 13.1 miles in 2:36, just under a 12 min mile. I was shooting for 2:30 so not too bad for my first 1/2. I have until Dec 15th to decide if I want to Rock n Roll in Dallas at the end of March.... My girls and Shawn were at the finish line with about 30k of their friends....There were soooo many people there!! And in case you were wondering, nope I have no desire right now to ever run a full marathon! :)

Birthday and Halloween....Spoooooky!

2010-11-15T08:19:00.005-06:00

So it seems I am always behind this year.....Oh well I suppose a short post is better then no post! Ha!

The girls celebrated their 6th birthday this October eating dinner at Grimaldi's Pizza, a great place to play with pizza dough before you eat, they love that! And us adults love eating there....So good! They were spoiled once again this year they had both Grandma and Nanna in town! So fun to have them both here!So Halloween was on a Sunday this year....made for some light fun! No adults partying and staying out until 3am like last year! The girls had fun trick or treating with me this year......it was good fun, just love our 'hood, it is the perfect size to get through in a night.....Fun times....Shawn did an awesome job at carving the pumpkins the way the kids drew them....Kiara wanted the WSU Logo, must say dad did and awesome job on that.....Love Mikiah's pumpkin with all fun teeth....Too Cute! Some pics below....MJ getting all fairy-ed up! Kiara was Harry Potter (her favorite movies)! Lila was the purple My Little Pony....that girl just LOVES PURPLE! Mikiah's is on the left, Lila's is in the middle, and Kiara's is the Coug one!

I have some girls on a big new adventure....

2010-08-23T09:42:00.007-05:00

So Mikiah and Kiara are at their 1st day of Kindergarten! I could see the excited and nervousness written all over their faces as they loaded on the bus. They are ready and a little shy, which I think most kinders are....Nice part is a friend of mine called me after she dropped of her son and she said she saw my girls and seemed to be doing ok....I am sure this will be an exciting adjustment for them....by the end of the week they will have it all down....Here are a couple of pics...

Summer.....where did it go....

2010-08-13T11:24:00.006-05:00

Wow....so it has been too long since my last post. I haven't posted anything in 2010...Seriously...talk about insane! I really have no one to blame for this but myself and my lack of words to share....So now that summer is almost over and school is about to start I am forcing myself to be a better blogger....This post will probably feel more Christmas card like then my usual bloggy self....but I think an update on all is in order before I am move on to my usual.....some of what is written may be totally random and out of order....yep I am pretty random sometimes....and you are stuck with me....

Since January we have had many guests visit us down here in Texas...Grandma's, Nanna's, Grandpa's, Aunts, Great Aunts, Uncles, Cousins and the girls sweet cousin Kieren!!....We LOVE having guests in town and the Harper Hotel is always open for business....just wanted to thank all of our visitors we loved having you here! Maybe when I have a bit more time I will upload a slide show with all our famous guests!

So lets see.....The Twins finished and graduated from Preschool in May....they are anxiously awaiting the start of Kindergarten in about a week....I have never seen them so excited! They are thrilled to ride the bus (the bus stop is right outside our house, how could this mother say no!).....Both have grown up so much the past 8 months.....Kiara is as head strong as ever, sometimes I feel like I am looking in a mirror, did I really treat my mom like that on occasion....WOW! (Mom, I am sorry) But most of the time she is a sweet heart. She loves to learn and is always working in her Kumon books, she is showing signs as leader but also does a great job of encouraging her sisters to lead too!.....Her new favorite movie is Harry Potter....Some may thing I am crazy for letting my girls watch it.....but all 3 really enjoy it....wizards and magic, oh my!.......Mikiah is as sweet as ever....that is until she has sugar (Nanna learned the hard way by sugaring Strawberries).....it seriously makes her crazy...so we limit it! :) She still loves to dance and art projects....she sure is creative and can sing just about anything.......We are still taking quarterly trips to Houston to see her Endocrinologist....She had an MRI in March and started growth hormone then too.....Her daily shots are going great and we are seeing great results with her growth.....She still loves a good princess movie...she is my true girly girl!......Still so hard to believe that Mikiah and Kiara will be 6 in October....really makes you take a step back....

Lila....(aka my little trouble maker)....nah, not really but she sure does know how to push the buttons of her older sisters! So crazy she is 3....considering she was 9 months when we moved down here.....She enjoyed her last year of freedom.....but is super excited to start preschool in the fall....not sure how she is going to feel being the only one home during the day with mom but I am guessing she will love it while missing her sisters at the same time.....She loves to sing and dance and has to be the center of attention! And boy is she a ham!! So funny! She does a good job of keeping us all laughing! As for her CP, she is doing great....running everywhere and barely showing any signs of limping....Still have occupation all therapy to do for some things and to strengthen muscles...but for the most part people will probably not notice anything.....

Shawn is still working at his same job and loving raising his 3 girls.....he is quite the BBQ master and makes a mean smoked brisket!! I am still working for WSU and have been training with a good friend to run a 1/2 marathon in November....I must say the training process has been fun, we have group runs on Saturdays and a workout schedule during the week to do....I think I am going to do the training program again next summer even if I decide not to run the 1/2 marathon again....who knew running could be fun! HA!

So that is all that has really been going on....a whole lotta nada! We have been enjoying our summer out back with the kidding pool and card games.....summer sure has gone by super fast! But are all excited for the adventures that lie ahead of the girls.....I promise to keep you all posted on our life in the land of Texas a bit more often.....

1st Tooth of many.....

2009-12-30T22:30:00.002-06:00

So Kiara lost her 1 tooth yesterday....we had a visit from the tooth fairy last night....So fun. Here is her new mug!

Catching you up newsletter....

2009-12-28T10:00:00.004-06:00

So Happy Holidays....Yep, I am back...I have totally neglected my blog for far too long....part of it is I am running out of storage and may actually have to cough up some money........we shall see.....We have been doing great and are amazed daily by our children, just living life and loving it.

Shawn continues to do amazing at work and I have taken on another job as well....I work for Shawn's parents (AGPRO) as well as my WSU job and after school care. Both of my real jobs (I consider after school care too much fun to be called a job) of course are done remotely...I love being able to continue to work from home while raising my 3 girls......I still can not believe how fast this year has zoomed by.....My dad and Ri were here for Christmas, it was so wonderful to spend the holidays with family....and of course Uncle Joel and Jessica came down for a visit too.....just love them to pieces!

Kiara loves school and she loves to do homework books (that is what she calls the Kumon learning books, she has like 6 of them), she will sit down and work in one for hours at a time, taking it wherever we go....She is growing up super fast and loves to act like the oldest.....mother hen like I suppose! She likes playing outside with boys in the 'hood....and she is one of the tallest in her class, neck and neck with the boys....She is pondering getting her hair cut shorter, we shall see how this develops!

Mikiah is doing wonderfully....she really loves school, music and dancing. We are getting ready to put her into ballet soon....she is so excited. She is my little sous chef in the kitchen and enjoys helping make all our meals.....it is so fun for both of us to work together to get dinner on the table. She is pretty excited about her Paula Deen Cookbook she got for Christmas! On the health front all is good, insurance approved her to be able to take Growth hormone therapy....She just has to have an MRI and then we will get started. The shots will be daily and we will re access at a time in the future if they are helping. We will keep you posted on when we start and how she is progressing.

Lila is my little mischievous one. She likes to cause a little trouble here and there but she is so sweet.....She is a talker and she says so many sentences and statements that really blow Shawn and I away, it is like talking to a mini adult sometimes. She is just growing up too fast, she certainly doesn't act like a 2 1/2 year old until she throws a fit! She loves playing with her sisters, but is perfectly content going in her room, shutting her door and playing by herself. Which is good considering her sisters will be gone all day next year.....She will be attending preschool next year, probably 3 days a week...she is excited for that! On her health front we will be starting Physical Therapy soon but she is already running better then she use too.....

I have included an album with pics over that last few months, overkill I am sure....hopefully it will not be this long until I blog again!!! You can tell after the first few Christmas day pics the quality of pictures changing.....I got a new Nikon Digital SLR D3000 for Christmas, I LOVE IT! Hope this post finds everyone doing well and gearing up for a Happy New Year!

Fall-Winter 2009

Harper Girls 5th Birthday......

2009-10-07T22:05:00.003-05:00

I still can not believe my twin girls are 5! They had a wonderful day today....We started off the morning with Scrambled Eggs and Sausage....Their favorite! Then they went outside to see a huge sign in our yard with balloons from our neighbors and friends "The Garcia's"....The girls were so surprised!!!! Then we were off to preschool and took cupcakes for snack! They Loved it....After preschool it was on to La Cantera to Clarie's to get their ears pierced. This was a crazy moment for me and the girls. Kiara went first and since it was the middle of the day only 1 person was working so they did her ears 1 at a time (was really hoping for double piercing)....She braved through both ears and was delighted at her new ears!.....MJ was a trooper, she was hesitant and I stressed she didn't have to get them done but she wanted too. As soon as the first ear was pierced she was done....She wanted nothing to do with getting her other ear done. And there was I was a bribing, pleading, crazy mother trying to convince her that she needed to do it....after about 30 min or so, Shawn and I gave up and took her home (feeling like total jerk parents)....So MJ is sporting and earring in her right but not her left.....Hopefully she will decide to go back and get it done soon....She doesn't want to take it out (which was what I suggested)....anyway.....After Dad got home from work it was time for Chuck E Cheese, girls loved it and had so much fun....I had signed up for the E-Club and with that we got dinner for $26.00 along with 80 tokens (40 were free for their birthday and 40 were included in the coupon I had for 18.99 dinner) can we say a cheap night of fun.....After playing we headed back to the house for presents, cake and ice cream.....All in all it was a spectacular day for both.....

Harper Girls Turn 5

The Magnificent Marvy.....

2009-09-27T19:38:00.005-05:00

I know, I know....I have been a total slacker when it comes to updating the blog. I seriously can only blame myself, even though I would rather blame Facebook...Ha! We have been doing great. The twins have settled right into Pre-K.....they LOVE it....Kiara even said "Mommy, I like being in school better then being at home"....now some moms may take some offense to this statement, but to me I am just happy that they like it so much, 'cause next year they will be in full day kinder (Yeah!!! Ooops, did I say that outloud!).......Lila likes the break from her sisters but is always ready to go get them....I think she likes to get there early so she can play on the indoor play structure....Other then getting into the groove with School, after school care for the Garcia kiddos and working around the house/yard....we have been pretty much the same...Last weekend we worked on the back yard, mulching, and weed blocking....this weekend we have been working on moving bookcases, getting the library more comfortable and usable, and cleaning up....No real new news or anything...Suppose you could even call us boring homeowners....HA!

So this weekend MJ, has had Marvy the Marvelous Monkey (the twins class theme is Marvelous Monkey's). Marvy is the class mascot and each week some one in the class gets to take Marvy home and take care of him/her......Marvy comes in a bag full of clothes and a notebook for each kid to write down what they did with Marvy.....So this weekend has been super fun for MJ.....Here is what she did with Marvy in Pictures.....

Preschool, Preschool, Preschool.......

2009-09-09T19:41:00.003-05:00

So today was the Twins official first day of Preschool at Oak Hills (We went and visited their class last week for teacher meet and greet).....they will go two days a week (Wed/Fri) for 4 hours in the morning, they have morning snack and bring their own lunch, music class, life skills, motor skill, etc........Anyway today was awesome....the girls LOVED it. They were so excited to get up and get ready and head out the door.....they didn't even pick their head up to say bye to me went I left their classroom....and they both talked non stop on the way home....They had such a wonderful day and can not wait until Friday.....Lila and I too had a great time, we did a little shopping and then came home and Miss Lila took a 2.5 hour morning nap (Very Rare for her) so I think she is trying to rest up and not catch the cold that seems to be going around.....She missed her sisters and was so excited to go pick them up. I do not think Lila will have any trouble starting preschool next year at 3.....she actually can not wait! Here are some shots before and after....Love it!

Pre-School Pics....

Another trip to Houston....

2009-08-12T16:29:00.006-05:00

Well we have just gotten back from another quick trip to Texas Children's in Houston. We left last night after Shawn got off work, at some dinner at Buc-ee's and rolled into Houston around 8.30ish.....MJ's Endocrinologist only works on Wednesday so we will most likely make it an every 4-6 month routine........We do not mind the drive so much, love Buc-ees and the girls like staying in the motel....Maybe one time we will take some days off and actually do some sight seeing....Any who, MJ's appointment went well. We had her blood work done before we left and it all came back normal, this is something we will have to do yearly....the only thing that stood out was that her height is beginning to fall off her original growth chart, she is still in the 19% for her age (down from the 33% at her last appt 6 months ago).....We knew it was only a matter of time for this to happen....most TS girls fall off the chart at age 2-3......We did ask the endocrinologist about how tall MJ may be w/o any treatment and it is a rough calculation but we are looking at 4'8" for a final height. We take her back in December and will have some important research to do on Growth Hormone Therapy before then.....Most likely she will start Growth Hormone Therapy in Dec if we choose......We have learned that there are more benefits then just height increase for girls with TS and I was happy to see that our Drug Prescription Insurance covers most of the brand names of HgH.......We would most likely just have to pay our co-pay depending on which one our doctor prescribes......I have to admit the idea of MJ getting a shot everyday doesn't thrill me......but I also do not want her later in life questioning why we didn't try HGH to help her be taller.....Quality of life also comes into play.....Oh the decisions we get to make as parents.....

Home Sweet Home.....

2009-08-02T10:44:00.002-05:00

So after being gone for 5 weeks we are finally home....the girls and I rolled in to San Antonio on Friday.....What a trip we had....it was so great to see so many family members and friends....We enjoyed our time on both sides of the mountains....and it was nice to get a break from this Texas heat....which is turning out to be one of the hottest summers on record down here.....UGH! In the 100's again yesterday and today.....

Some Seattle fun.....

2009-07-13T09:08:00.002-05:00

Shawn and I have just returned to Pullman after a short week of fun in Seattle with Joe, Victoria & Kieren. My mom was over as well and we all had a blast....We got to see Melissa, Natalie & Brodie....Went to an adult dinner with Joe & Erin @ Boom Noodle in Bellevue (SO YUM!).....had family pics (which were disastrous!).....Checked out the Children's Museum.....hit the Old Spaghetti Factory, always a favorite with me and the kiddos.....Saturday night we had one of the best nights of our lives.....we went to the Mariners Game and sat at the Diamond Club.....talk about awesome!...Food, drinks, amazingly close seats......I just can not describe how appreciative we are that Joe & Victoria invited us to go with them....Thanks you two! We love you!

Seattle Fun July 2009

Mariners Game 7-11-09 Diamond Club

Sunday we had a BBQ with my Mom's family at my bro's....So great to see the family! Just love them...I am always amazed at how fast all the kiddos grow up.....Shawn is working today and tomorrow and then files out on Wed....We are soaking him up before he returns to SA......

Lila Update.....

2009-07-13T09:02:00.004-05:00

We heard back on Lila's MRI last Thursday. I talked to her Orthopedic Doctor and the MRI confirmed what she had believed all along. Lila has a small amount of scar tissue on the right side of her brain which most likely formed while her brain was developing in the womb. So the good news is there is not a tumor. As for what is next we meet with the Neurologist in August to talk more about the scar tissue and see, if anything, what else it could effect. We will be going back to see Lila's orthopedic doctor in 6 months to see how her muscles & tendons are doing. I am not sure when she will start physical therapy.....probably not until after her appt in 6 months.....Thanks for all your love and support.

First Part of our Trip.....

2009-07-06T11:16:00.005-05:00

So we made it to Pullman, WA last Monday.....and have been having a blast. Busy Busy Busy! We have camped in the backyard,the girls LOVED it......We have seen most of the family on Shawn's side (We will see mine in Seattle) and a good amount of our friends......

Here are a few photos from are trip up, my dads and our arrival....we left on Friday after Shawn got off work and made it to my dad's super early on Sat, which was so nice to run around and stretch the legs.....Sun & Mon were both 10 hour driving days, but the kiddos did awesome. So fun measuring time in the number of movies they can watch....and Miss Lila kept her pull up dry both days, she went potty every time we stopped.....I think she is ready for some potty training....

July 09 WA State Trip

On Wed, the girls and I headed to Headquarters Salon for a hair appt and to get their nails painted. We were there all day...I got my hair cut off.....I love it....She cut it so I could wear it straight or curly....MJ & Kiara both got trims and Miss Lila got her hair styled....Nanna got a trim and a pedicure....good times for sure!

Day at the Hair Salon Pullman WA

On Thursday the 2nd we headed up to Spokane to pick up Joel & Jessica and then headed to a Harper Family BBQ at the Robinson's....Good times in the pool and great to catch up with everyone that was there.....

Harper Family BBQ

On Friday the 3rd we headed over to Sindy's house (Nanna Anna's Best Friend) for a Prime Rib dinner and BBQ.....the girls love going out to the country.....Longball & Amie and Joe & Erin made it out too! So fun! We also headed out to Rico's that night to see everyone that was in town, nice to get out and hang with our friends sans the kiddos.....of course I didn't bring my camera! Oh well....

July 3rd BBQ out at the Zerbe's...

On the 4th we planned a big BBQ at Shawn's parents house. We had most of the Pullman crew in town. It was so great to see everyone and their kiddos. The kids all had a great time playing together while all of us adults were able to catch up.....good times!

4th of July 2009 Party

Sunday the Grandparents (Great grandparents to my kiddos) came over for a BBQ with Nanna Anna's side of the family.....Lots of swimming and sun. So great to see Grandad and Gram Callaway!

Family BBQ on the 5th with The Callaways

So now it is Monday, I have some work to catch up and we may head up to campus to check out all the work that was done on the CUB and meet the great/grandparents for some ice cream at Ferdinand's, just my have to get some Cougar Gold Cheese too......I will have more pics to come.....and sorry about the overload....internet here has been a bit hit or miss.....

Fun Father's Day.....

2009-06-21T19:04:00.002-05:00

Happy Father's Day to all those daddy's out there especially my dad, Jerry, Joe (my bro) and the best dad in the world, Shawn....We have had a wonderful day that started with the girls delivering Shawn coffee in bed followed by Breakfast Tacos in bed....although we did move to the table as the tacos can be messy....the girls and I baked Shawn a cake and made a BBQ dinner....they are so helpful....too fun! We did take time out of our day to get in a BodyPump class since we missed yesterday morning (we were out a bit too late the night before with the neighbors! Good Times!!)....felt good to get a work out in, I suppose I do not feel so bad eating the piece of cake I am eating right now....Ha!

Fun & Fathers Day 09

Now we are just gearing up for our road trip to WA state. I can not believe we will be heading out of here at the end of the week....just crazy! I have so much to do before then! Plus Thurs we have Lila's MRI....it will be here before we know it.....the girls got some last minute supplies for the road trip yesterday, sleeping bags, shoes and sun glasses....I did manage to get our grocery shopping done for the road trip and this next week....man it has been a wild fast weekend.....Hope everyone has great weeks ahead!

One Stride at a Time.......

2009-06-14T17:51:00.007-05:00

Well we certainly have had a roller coaster of a week.....

The twins had follow up appts for their ear infections on Monday....Kiara's ears were perfect and the infection was gone...but poor MJ, her ear infection was worse (after a round of antibiotics) and she was running a fever....so she is finishing up her second round of antibiotics and doing great....When she is done with her medicine, she and I will go get our blood work done.....She has to have hers done w/results by Aug 12th (for her appt at Texas Children's) and I just need to get mine done....so I thought it would make it easier if we did it together....Lila had an appt on Monday as well....nothing like forking out $90 in co-pays! She has had a rash on her arm that has been getting worse....sometimes it goes away but lately it has been pretty red....well anyway she has Eczema....so she got a prescription for that along with a ton of samples....the non-steroid cream she got worked great and it has now cleared up.....but I know it will come and go.....I had it as a child too....

On Wednesday Lila had an appt at an Orthopedic Surgeon...She has always had a slight limp since she started walking at 14m, we thought she would grow out of it, but finally made an appointment to get it looked at. It has become much more noticeable now that she runs everywhere.....Well we where shocked at the diagnosis....We were thinking something was wrong with her hip or her knee or maybe her leg was longer.....but it turns out Lila has a very mild case of Cerebral Palsy. I couldn't believe what the doctor was saying....my little girl has brain damage on her right side of her brain somewhere that is affecting her left side motor skills for her leg and arm....Most likely Lila's CP was caused by damage to the motor control centers of the developing brain during pregnancy (which is about 75 percent). Lila has/is/a Spastic hemiplegia, so only one side of her body is affected.....she basically drags her left side of her body along when she moves/walks/runs....We never noticed her having trouble with her left arm but of course now we are watching her every move....If you looked at her you wouldn't notice anything....Anyway we now need to find out where the brain damage is to see if the damage that is done will effect anything further as she grows up......One of the bright sides of CP is the damage is already done and it is non-progressive. We do know Lila will need Physical and Occupational therapy and will continue to have an Orthopedic doctor. On June 25th Lila will have an MRI done of her Brain and Spine, she will be fully sedated (we have experienced this before with MJ so we are ready and know what to expect).....The results will come in while we are on vacation in WA but the Orthopedic Dr will call to confirm where the brain damage is and what to expect when we go to Lila's Neurologist. On Aug 5th after we get back WA we will be taking the MRI results to the Neurologist to find out the next course of action if any (besides physical therapy) and we will find out if there is further brain damage....it all sounds pretty scary sometimes but we know that we all with get through this and we will do everything we can for Miss Lila.....She is still our happy, smiley, and chatty little girl....she will talk your ear off and still continues to amaze me with her vocabulary....We thank you all for your continued love and support....and look forward to seeing most of you soon!

In other news......it has been super hot down here this week....we have tipped into the triple digits for the last few days.....the only way to be outside is to have the pool out.....it makes a world of difference and makes it easy to stay outside most of the day.....I mean who doesn't enjoy sitting in a kiddie pool staying cool.....As we head into our hot months down here we can not wait to get up to WA to get out of this super hot heat where the overnight low is cooler then 78 degrees....Looking forward to seeing everyone soon.....here are some shots of our fun in the sun.....

Few Shots from Swimming June 09

Baseball Fun and the Sun......

2009-05-31T21:53:00.005-05:00

Another great weekend for the Harper's! Friday night we headed to the San Antonio Missions baseball game.....they are a Double A Farm club team for the San Diego Padres.....Our friends daughter's school choir sang the National Anthem....They were so great. The girls had fun as did Shawn and I....and talk about a cheap night out....the tix were like $5 each....and the food/drink was totally affordable!

Missions Baseball May 09

Shawn also finished painting the shutters....the house looks so great! I love the brown, I was apprehensive before we painted but I am so happy with the color we chose...here is the finished product....

Other then hitting the gym for BodyPump on Saturday and Cardio on Sunday, playing in the sun in the 'hood, and cleaning around the house, we were not up to much this weekend....My second job ends this week for the summer....I can not believe school is getting out Thursday....It has been so fun watching the Garcia kiddos everyday.....I know the girls will miss seeing them so often and watching all the school buses, but they do only live across the street........anyway, hope everyone has a great week ahead!.....

Memorial Day and more.....

2009-05-27T10:25:00.007-05:00

We had a wonderful holiday weekend...it was filled with projects, sun, fun, BBQ-ing, swimming and neighborhood fun....Friday night was peaceful....Shawn played some poker in the 'hood with some of the neighbors...nice for him to have a guys night out and nice for me to have a night to myself....Saturday we headed to Home Depot for some paint.....Shawn always likes to have a project for long weekends.....

We painted our 1/2 bath, FINALLY....Lila had taken a pencil to the walls and it was one of two rooms not yet painted in our house...and I can not remember if I mentioned it but Shawn also stained the cabinets a few weeks ago.....(he is going to do my kitchen cabinets in July the same color)....now we just have our master bath to paint....We still need to change out the mirror, the light fixture and faucet....we are also going to river rock the counter top....and add a few more accessories....so yes a work in progress but here is where we are..... ...and we also painted 4 out of the 6 shutters on the house....I must say the painted shutters really change the look of the house....before they blended right in....but the chocolate/dark brown that we picked and painted really makes the house look so much better.....Shawn is planning on painted the other 2 this weekend and hopefully we can get the front door painted the same color......I can not wait until they are done....but here is a sneak peek....you really couldn't tell we had them before....look above the garage...
As for us and the kiddos, we ate so much BBQ-ed yummy food....we spent time with the neighbors....love our driveway nights in the 'hood.....We also got another pool.....I had to repair the old one and the kiddos couldn't wait the 12 hours for the patch to dry....so dad saved the day with a new pool.....the girls got to swim and play.....the neighbor kiddos also came over to enjoy in the fun.....All in all it was a great weekend......

Memorial Day 09

Now on to the more....the girls had their 4 yr check up yesterday......and both are growing wonderfully!....Both have sprouted up a bunch.....MJ is still on the same grow pattern as she has always been on....so that is great news....we go to Texas Children's in Aug for more grow plotting and we will go over the blood work I have to have done for MJ......Kiara's well check had to get cancelled and changed into a sick appt.....Her and MJ both have right ear infections (which is strange since ear infections are not contagious, but I am sure the swimming didn't help)....anyway both are on antibiotics.....Kiara also has bronculitis, instead of the big broncular tubes being infected, its just the little ones in the lungs....she is on some asthma medicine (I think it is a steroid) and she also had to have a nebulizer treatment in the office....but she was a trooper....I am so not fond of all the meds but I want my kiddos healthy.....
We hope to get better soon and are on the road to recovery.....They did go to the dentist today and all have no cavities and are brushing great.....other then all that we are doing great! I have upped my BodyPump classes to 3 times a week and looking forward to a more toned over body.......Shawn is still going on Sat mornings with me....and I have been able to fit in Tues/Thurs nights.....I am addicted.......

Our world lately.....

2009-05-21T15:46:00.007-05:00

So I really have no excuse as to why I have not been updating y'all on what is going on in our world.....We have been up to our usual....weekends in the yard, out playing and soaking up the sun with good friends and neighbors.

I had my last MOPS last Thursday, we had a lovely bunch. It was so great to meet such wonderful women. I love all my new friendships MOPS has fostered for me. Such amazing ladies and mothers. I am looking forward to MOPS next year and will probably continue for as long as I can or until Lila heads to Kinder......years away, I know.

I really do not have much to update you on....we are looking forward to our trip up to the Northwest and can not believe it is only 5 or so weeks away.....seems crazy! We are looking forward to having daddy around for 3 days this weekend and all the BBQ food he is planning on grilling up! Can we say muscles on the grill.....YUM!

So here are some outdoor play pics....Lila finally figured out how to pedal on her tricycle, well down a short incline....the other pic is MJ pushing her back up the small incline....Too cute....

Here is what happens when you leave daddy home with the girls for bed time and they insist on wearing pjs that are too small.....Love that he cut the legs and made booties!

Poor DB, she got sticker'd!

The Twins tuckered after a day of playing....this was Sunday night right before dinner.....

Best Mother's Day Yet......

2009-05-10T21:43:00.004-05:00

7:15am-(Over the baby monitor from Lila's room to ours) "Happy Mother's Day Mommy, now stay in bed because we are going to bring you breakfast in bed".......(Kiara talking while Shawn and Me are laughing from our bedroom listening to the monitor next to the bed)....

That was my first wake up this morning......so I rolled over went back to sleep until all 3 girls brought me in coffee and a piece of toast with butter & jelly.....I love my girls! They then persisted to get their toast and then joined me in bed to eat......very fun!

After breakfast it was time for my scavenger hunt, the girls and dad hid clues and presents all over the upstairs.....So fun and so creative....I LOVED IT and so did the girls! The presents were over the top and the girls and Shawn did a great job of picking out the best presents for me.....From Flowers, to Soap and Body wash, to a gorgeous blue tank top from Macy's, to a UT Reversible Vest, Sunblock, US Weekly, to an iTunes gift card and some Mexican hand painted serve wear for my kitchen....to athletic socks to thigh high socks, and a few athletic tanks.....hope I am not forgetting anything.....it was such a wonderful surprise......I must say he & the girls are bargain shoppers as they were able to get everything on sale....and the girls LOVED going shopping with just daddy!........love it......and to top it off, I also got to get a pedicure today with Miss Heather for Mother's Day.....So fun....I now have beautified blue toe nails!......

Shawn made steak wraps for dinner, with a little bit of my help...and we just enjoyed a piece of Chocolate Cream pie.....YUMO.....All in all we have had a wonderful weekend....I even got Shawn to take BodyPump with me on Saturday morning, we are both really sore, but looking forward to next Saturday's class.....I love working out together!......And today I have had the best mother's day.....my girls truly are angels and I have the best husband in the world......I did miss spending time with my mom today, but I did get to chat with her......and I am so looking forward to our trip to WA in July!......I warn you most of the pics below I am in my PJs.....no makeup no hair done.....

Mother's Day 09

A little bit of Woodthorn fun......

2009-05-03T09:16:00.003-05:00

So we have been doing great.....our weather has been a bit humid lately, UGH! The heat is nice though and the humidity has greened up all the yards!....We are looking at a week of 90's ahead of us.....Hot! Hot! Hot! already......crazy....

Tuesday night we had a Neighborhood Girls Night In at my friend and neighbor Jenna's house.....What a great time, we all brought desserts and chatted it up. We have lots of new neighbors so it was nice to FINALLY meet a few of them.....Shawn had fun playing games with the girls at home....and was pretty much asleep when I got home....

We had another great weekend....We did our usual Friday Night Driveway get together with a few of the neighbors....the kids love playing outside/inside and staying up late while us adults enjoy our beverages and conversations in the driveways.....It is fast becoming a Friday night tradition. It is pretty funny when neighbors drive by and see us, they usual park at home and walk back to hang out....So fun! The best part is we get to walk home........Saturday we had our Woodthorn Neighborhood BBQ......a spring social to get to know the neighbors....So fun, there was face painting, bubble blowing, chalk drawing and also a bike parade....the girls decorated their bikes before we went down.....too cute! This weekend we also painted our master bath room cabinets, we are trying to see how we want to upgrade the kitchen ones, whether to paint or stain (since part of the cabinets are wood and part our fake wood)....So today Shawn decided to stain the 1/2 bath cabinet/doors with my favorite stain color.....it will be nice to compare the two.....As of now I am leaning towards staining the kitchen cabinets.....but I love our painted ones in our bathroom....As soon as i get hardware and clean the bathrooms and I will post pics of both.....

Weekend fun Woodthorn BBQ

Earth Day Tree & Solar Lights......

2009-04-27T19:17:00.003-05:00

So those that have yards know that they are a total work in progress.......Shawn and I have been working in our back yard, little by little and it is starting to look a ton better.....we still need to do the edging around the grass, weed block, plant more flowers/shrubs/grasses, mulch, and build a pergola....but I am content if we do not get any of that done until we get back (well, the pergola is a few years out)......We did plant a tree for Earth Day, we got it free from our neighbors (thanks Garcia's, they have given us both trees we have planted).........Our new tree is a Live Oak, so it will get big and provide our back yard some much needed shade in a few years!....It is about 3-4ft tall already....unlike our other tree we planted which is 4-5 inches.....This weekend we also took advantage of Costco Coupons and picked up an 8-pack of solar lights....LOVE THEM....They make the yard look so much better and it is nice to have some light out there at night!!! Lila gives a little tour in the album below....

Yard....Looking Better!

Chilled out weekend.....

2009-04-20T07:45:00.002-05:00

Nothing much new to report......we relaxed most of the weekend and it felt good to have nothing to do.....Saturday night we did hang with the Garcia's and we let the kiddos stay up late.....they love that! We also figured out the dates for our WA State Trip.....which is pretty much the whole month of July for the girls and me......Should be a great time, I think we have a Mariners game scheduled with my Bro & Sis-in-law....and I believe a par-tay at the Harper's House, but so far that is all that is scheduled....I do think we want to take the kiddos to Pike Place, Pacific Science Center and all around Seattle........We are so looking forward to seeing family and friends!

Shawn bbq'ed a Ham yesterday....I must say he is becoming quite the bbq-er/smoker.....it was sooooo good. We are looking forward to homemade mac n cheese tonight with the ham in it....yumo....Speaking of food, I did FINALLY update The Breezy with some new recipes.....about time I know.....Our weather has started to be steady 80's again......I have to admit the sun always puts me in a good mood!.....I love it. Well I am off to work, walk, parent & enjoy our sunny day!

Up to no good.....

2009-04-16T07:54:00.002-05:00

Well, I thought I would provide a quick update as to what we are up too......its not much different then the norm....I am still doing my early morning workouts and loving it....Yesterday I went with my friend and neighbor Sarah to our friend Brittney's BodyPump Class......Wow, what a great workout, I have to admit I am a bit sore today!!! I love the combo of weights with music!!....Shawn and I have also started taking the girls to the gym on Tuesday & Thursdays when he gets off of work.....It has been fun working out with him.....So yes on those days I hit the gym twice....I love it....Next week I think I am going to take the Zumba class.....it is on TU/TH as well....I watched it while I worked out on Tues and it looks fun! Tiring but fun!.......Who knows maybe I will learn some new dance moves! I am still riding my bike and jogging too.....I am trying to road run for 5 miles without stopping......I think I am up to 1.5-2 miles.....Sad, I know....but running outside and in the gym is so different.....Oh well.....as you can see Shawn and I are trying to get ourselves back in shape before we get older and it gets harder.......and also trying to set a good example for our girls.....I have to admit they LOVE going to the gym and ask all the time if we can go....there is so much for them to do there.....a LARGE jungle gym (think HUGE McDonald's Play scape), basketball, books, play kitchen, coloring, and so much more I am forgetting....and KIDS.....oh my word so many kiddos......

Other then working out we seriously have not been up to anything.....I had Mom's Night out on Tuesday.....I went a coffeehouse with my MOPS moms and we got to chat and hang out.....Always fun.....We are sad that we only have 1 more MOPS meeting left.....it will be fun since it is a Brunch.....but hopefully we will all stay in touch over the summer....either a book club or something.....The twins are addicted to their new Leapster Games, Pet Pals....they have take care of a puppy and feed it/walk it/bath it...they can buy clothes for ......I have had to put limits on their playing time....They also have Webkinz that they are begging me to set up online.....I suppose I better do that soon too.....We really need to get a bare bones computer for them to use......anyway......I am off to get my reports done for work.....

Happy Easter Y'all......

2009-04-12T17:58:00.004-05:00

Well today has been simply wonderful. We woke up to Easter Goodies everywhere along with plastic eggs everywhere.....The girls were surprised to see the Easter Bunny had stopped by and they enjoyed their annual indoor egg hunt.....It was great to enjoy Easter Morning with Uncle Joel too....He made the trek down from Austin yesterday to hang with us and go to Church with us......after playing with their new stuff and eating breakfast we all headed out to Oak Hills Church for service with Brett & Jenna.....they are a newly married young couple that live across the street the we just love.....My girls love Jenna!!.......Jenna's dad, Max Lucado is one of the pastors at Oak Hills and they invited us to go with them....We had a wonderful time and all 3 of the girls loved going to Bibleland (Sunday School).....It is also the church where the twins will be going to Preschool so that made it extra special for them.....The service and sermon were great and we are looking forward to seeing if this is a good fit for us.....

After church it was off to my friend Sarah's parents house......It was so sweet of her to invite us to her families house for Easter....We enjoyed great food and good fun with a warm & inviting family.....The girls got to play with their friend & neighbor Naomi....They all enjoyed an Easter Egg Hunt!!! They also got to enjoy egg fight with us adults....We all brought Cascarones with us and had a massive confetti egg fight.....So fun, and do not worry we plan on bringing a bunch up North with us for a fight over the 4th of July!.....All in all we have had an amazing Easter and hope everyone else did too!!!!

Easter 2009

Good Friday......

2009-04-10T20:32:00.003-05:00

Well it had been a great two days for us......Yesterday we had MOPS, the girls LOVE going as do I.....It is so nice to get hand out with other Mothers of Preschoolers while childcare is provided for the kiddos....we have wonderful speakers and make/do fun crafts.....Lila has totally adapted to being away from me, this last Thursday she walked right in and didn't even look up to say good bye....I am so proud of her....she keeps begging me to take her to school, along with the twins.....Too Cute....it sure will be interesting next year when the twins are in preschool and she is not...oh well she will be in preschool the year the girls go to kinder.......I did learn how to make soap at MOPS yesterday, and it smells sooo good and tropical!.....I can already see Christmas gift ideas springing in my head....

Kiara's nose finally did go black and blue....just in time for Easter.....here is her latest look...
Today we headed to a park for an Easter Party.....a friend at MOPS decided to put together a last minute party and Egg Hunt.....We took a picnic lunch and enjoyed good times with friends....We also dyed Easter Eggs tonight.....We miss doing this with the Coffer's but got it done and had fun! Here are some pics from today.....Overkill I know, those are for the Grandparents!

April 2009 Park & Eggs

Maybe we are just boring.....

2009-04-08T07:20:00.004-05:00

So haven't figured out why I am so slacking on my blog.....I suppose I just get busy or distracted or dare I say it "maybe we are boring"......or I could blame my usual facebooking ways......and now that I am back at work I am more busy.....who knows....Anyway enough excuses....on with it....

We had a wonderful weekend with or neighbors, we hung out with the Garcia's on Friday night and then headed to Timmy's baseball game on Sunday.....it was so fun!!! His team lost but it was fun to get to see a ball game, I am sure we will attend more.....The girls are getting more excited about playing sports, yay!!! They checked out a softball game going on at the fields too!....Although, MJ is already asking to go to dance school so I am researching that right now....I have found a few and think I may have one picked out, thanks Heather!!! Saturday we headed up to Boerne to Shawn's bosses house for a housewarming party.....It was nice to finally meet his boss and a few of his co-workers......The house is in a new neighborhood called Herff Ranch, it reminded me a lot of the Issaquah Highlands with, different sized houses, an elementary, parks, pool, basketball courts, and trails.....it is still in development and there are more houses to be built but it was nice to see something new.....and the girls LOVED the park! We did work in the yard both Sat & Sun Morning.....We put down some weed block under our front hedge and covered it back up with the rocks we had......it looks sooo much better and I am excited that I will not have to be weed picking all summer.....The girls helped and played out side with Danielle....here are a few shots of some outdoor playtime and what not....They also made their first cake with not much help and even frosted it....there are pics of that too....

This week we have been hanging around the hood, soaking in as much outdoor time as we can before it starts to get "Too" hot to play outside in the afternoon.....I "force" the girls to play outside for 3-4 hours a day......I suppose I shouldn't use the word force as they LOVE being outside....Yesterday Kiara was playing around in the stroller while we were playing outside and managed to fall and land on her face....she is OK but I know some had asked to see some pics, here they are....I haven't seen her yet this morning to see how black and bruised it is......ok Kiara just woke up, it is not too bad, but definetly a little swollan.....

Seriously it is Thursday???

2009-04-02T08:19:00.002-05:00

So I am trying to figure out where the week went.....I have been consistently working out this week and I suppose that just helps make the week zoom by.....I am committed to finally lose the last bit of weight I gained with Lila, yes I know she is 2 already.....I have been pretty lazy about those last 10-15 lbs.....so next size down here I come!!!

Yesterday the girls and I went to Storytime at the Library....They love going and listening, dancing and doing a project....so fun for them....then we headed to the park next door, for a picnic lunch and playtime....I think this we be our every Wednesday routine.....it works well for Shawn too, having one car in all.....It is so nice having the new park next to the library, now if they would just make a path so we could walk from the Library parking lot to the park that would be nice, I hate having to strap them all in do drive a whooping 200 feet around the corner.....and get them all unstrapped again....Oh well.....

I have started back at work too! So nice to be back working close to my old schedule after going down to 7 hours last month.......Brain food for sure, nice to be using my noggin for more then just mothering.......Working from home really does help keep my sanity, that the gym and quiet time! I believe it I didn't have those 3 I would lose it daily......for those that asked the bunk beds are working great for the twins and so is the new schedule......The girls still can not wait until they start preschool.....they talk about it daily......Love it!

Weekend in the Yard....

2009-03-29T19:47:00.003-05:00

We didn't do too much this weekend.....Just a bunch of yard work and we have TONS more to do! But we love working in the yard....we have been edging and shaping our back yard....hard work because of the type of grass down here.....but it is starting to feel like a back yard now....we still need to put in the black edging stuff and weed block and then plant flowers and top with much but we are liking how it is looking......

As for the kiddos not too much is new.....Lila continues to amaze me with her speech she can say just about anything......Kiara and MJ are loving their bunk beds.....we switched them top to bottom yesterday.....MJ loves sleeping on top too.....I figure we will have to continue trading off on some sort of schedule so they both get equal time on the top bunk....Lila also LOVES the top bunk.....she tries to FAKE sleep up there during story time hoping that we will let her sleep there....So we are thinking when it comes time for her to get a big girl bed we are going to go with a Loft bed....that way she has more room to play in her room....it being the smallest bedroom in the house....anyway.....I am hoping to have a productive week as all the girls are loving their new schedule, I finally broke down and made one up so they have a little more structure to their day and then I drew pictures for the activities on what we should be doing when....they LOVE it, so far sooo good........After working less hours the past month I get to hopefully go back to my regular work schedule.....I actually missed working the past month (I worked 7 hours instead of my usual 80)....and moving forward I think I will be working 78 a month....or something like that.....it all has to do with benefit costs and what not....anywhoo.....here are a few pics from the weekend....

Last Weekend in March 2009

RIP My Cousin.....

2009-03-29T19:17:00.002-05:00

So this morning I got a call from my mother around 8.30am Central time, which is EARLY for my mom cause it was 6:30am her time (she sleeps in till at least 9am on the weekends).....So I knew something was up and that it probably wasn't good news.....and of course I was right. She was calling to let me know that my cousin Syril had died in a car accident Saturday night....He was 43.....details about the accident are still being investigated, here is one of the preliminary storeys about it in The News Tribune, I am disappointed to read he wasn't wearing his seat belt......We will sure miss him and my heart goes out to my Aunt Ineze, Uncle Dick and my cousins Bridget and Scott (Syril's Siblings) and the whole rest of the Cookson Clan.....I love and miss you all!.....

Monday Already....Blah!

2009-03-23T10:55:00.002-05:00

So here is it Monday again! I say it all the time but I am truly amazed at how fast weekends go by for us.....This weekend was pretty productive as I did not have to grocery shop, I actually finished that during the day Friday.....I got the girls photos back from JC Penny....they turned out so good....I have them up on Facebook for those who want to check them out....

Saturday we took the girls shopping for a few things for the yard and let them pick out some flowers to plant! Very fun, the girls LOVE to plant flowers...Danielle (neighbor girl) brought us over a Oak Tree Seedling so we will be planting that in the back yard soon! Yeah for a shade tree, it is so small right now we will probably have to stake it and keep the dogs away from it.....Shawn and I worked in the yard most of Saturday....I even got a tan.....just the way it goes down here.....So much for "Pale is the New Tan".....We are working on putting down weed stop netting in a few of our flower beds and then probably will get started on edging out part of our side yard and begin the process of making another pretty flower bed along the side of the house....we think this will add a bunch of curb appeal plus weeds seem to be the only thing that grows along our side of our house.....the backyard is still a work in progress too....we are edging it out too....along the entire fence to keep our neighbors grass from creeping into our yard...I hate it because we have two kinds of grass back there now because of it.....Oh well....We so love working in they yard.....and I can not wait for our green grass to come back, just need a few more days of hot sun and it will green up!

Joel came down on Saturday afternoon to stay the night, hang out and help Shawn with his baseball draft on Sunday....He brought with him a yummy new Vodka....Firefly Sweet Tea Flavored Vodka....You can drink on ice, or you can add a bit of water and enjoy w/ a Lemon Slice....OH MY WORD.....it is so dangerous....You have to like Sweet Tea (found at most restaurants all over the south) to like it but I must tell you it is YUMMY!!!......I only allowed myself one glass as I know I could have taken down the whole bottle.....Thanks again Joel for such a fun drink! Saturday night we did another BBQ with the neighbors.....we got started before the others but ate over with them....Makes for a super fun Saturday night.....Sharing food, fun, drinks and laughs....We ended up putting the kiddos to bed around 10pm or so and Uncle Joel for that matter (he goes to bed earlier these days!)....and headed back out for some adult conversation....I can not say enough how much I love our neighborhood, I am sure y'all are sick of me saying that!!! It is just fun to find neighbors with similar interests!.....

Sunday I was able to take a bike ride by myself....Shawn and I were going to go running since Joel was down but we got a late start and he had his Fantasy Baseball draft which lasted most of the day....So I biked about 5-6 miles around the hood....nothing crazy, I could have kept going but could feel my shoulders getting warm (I of course totally forgot sunblock)....but thankfully no burn just a tan....Other then that Sunday was pretty uneventful....we BBQed some dinner and said good by to Uncle Joel.....we were able to get our kiddos to bed at 8.00pm....trying to get them back on their usual schedule......

Shawn finishes up Jury duty today....he had to go back for sentencing today. They convicted they guy and will determine his fate today....it was a pretty nasty case so I am sure he will be in jail for a long time.....anyway hope everyone has a great week....I am looking forward to a few playdates and girls night in on Wed with my MOPS Discussion Group! Yay! Even better that it is at Sarah's house so I just have to cross the street! Love it!

Maybe we should start a B&B.....Totally Kidding....

2009-03-18T15:26:00.007-05:00

Well we had a wonderful two weeks with my mother and Carol.....The girls absolutely loved having Grandma here and really soaked up their time with her.....They were very sad to see her go last night......Before they left we manage to have loads of fun!.....

Friday we headed up in the rain to the outlets in San Marcos.....I LOVE them....So many good deals I found an already discounted Coach Purse that I liked and got an extra 50% off of it....made it totally affordable....Plus they have every outlet store you can think of.....After shopping it was off to lunch in Austin. We went to Shady Grove, a great place to eat with good food. We even saw Thomas Haden Church eating while we were there.....My Mom and I actually had to move out of his way so he could walk by.....I was so oblivious that it was someone famous.....so funny! We spent the afternoon at Joel's new place, so cute! The girls were able to unwind and run around....Then it was off to Hoovers for dessert......SO good! The girls got chicken strips and the gravy it came with was simply amazing, probably not good for you but oh well....I see chicken fried steak or chicken in my future the next time we go there!!!!

We laid low over the weekend......Headed down to the market on Saturday morning and then to La Fogata for an early dinner and Margaritas (still one of my favorite places to grub on some Mexican Food)....we relaxed the rest of the day at our house with our neighbors....we love having them over!....Sunday Shawn and I went for a run, just the two of us, and then cleaned up and went shopping and to lunch....it was so nice to sneak in a date on a Sunday afternoon!.....

Here are a few pics from our last few day with Grandma.....

Austin & Market March 09

...and a video of Kiara "Doing her Serious Dancing"....She really FEELS the music!

So tonight G-Dad will be rolling into town.....he will be staying for a few days....We are excited to see him since it has been a little bit and it is so good for the kids to spend time with the grandparents.....plus it will be nice to have G-Dad here for the first few days of the NCAA Tourney.....

Riverwalk and out and about.....

2009-03-11T21:29:00.003-05:00

So we have not been up to too much around here.....Monday we headed down to the Riverwalk for Lunch and a little bit of shopping.....we also headed over to La Villita, which is a pretty cool historic part of SA with lots of cute quirky shops and art galleries.....Carol got to see the "Little Church of La Villita".....which was something that she wanted to see since she knows someone that got married there.....

Yesterday Lila had her doctors appt at 9.30a.....but after waiting in the exam room until 11.15a and no doctor yet we got her dressed and headed out to reschedule, since the girls had a picture appointment at 12.00p.....Pictures went well and we ordered a bunch....as soon as I have the smiles by wire I will post the link for all to check out......As for Lila's 2 year appointment, I rescheduled it for this morning @ 8.30am......Our Dr actually called us back to the exam room and got us started, her nurses were running late, anyway she apologized for running extremely late the day before and did let me know that they are hiring another doctor so we will now have 3 doctors at our office.....so no more crazy late waiting......Lila's appt went well, she weighs 21.8lbs (3 Percentile), so we have to keep her on whole milk and start her on a good "high" fat diet.....she isn't too concerned but would like to see Lila put on some weight. Part of it is that Lila is SUPER active.....and she isn't the best eater.....some days she is really good and others she barely eats....so we have supplements for those days now....Her height was almost 34 inches (55 percentile).....so she is sort of tall and skinny......Our doctor did get a kick out of how much Lila talks.....She is talking at a 3 year old level, already putting together complete sentences....blew the doctor away.....I know it has a lot to do with her big sisters.....So not sure if many of you know but Lila sort of walks with a limp so I had the doctor take a closer look and she ended up referring us to an orthopedic clinic that only works with children......So I will be calling to make and appointment....and see where that goes......All in all she is totally healthy and happy!!!!

Tonight we ended out night with a good dinner at the Original Alamo Cafe on Hwy 281.....I swear they have the best homemade tortillas.....Warm and soooo good! We all had a great dinner, this was my first time at this location and it was pretty cool as they have the crazy sky ceiling that tries to get you to feel like you are outside.....The girls LOVED it!

Lila's 2nd Birthday and Neighborhood fun.......

2009-03-08T11:08:00.004-05:00

Wow, we have been having a lot of fun around here. We have been enjoying the company of my mom and Carol. On Friday we celebrated Lila's 2nd Birthday.....She had picked Tinkerbell for her theme.....She LOVES "Bee-er-Bell"......So cute. She also picked Cupcakes for her "Cake" and for dinner we snacked on Capt N Crunch Chicken Tenders and a TON of Fruit....We kept her party small this year and had just us and the Garcia's at the party.....Lila loves Miss Heather (one of our awesome neighbors)!.....Lila enjoyed getting totally spoiled by all her family and friends.....Lots of adorable clothes, Mariners Princess Hat, wooden birthday cake kit (SHE LOVED IT & I love Melissa & Doug products! Thanks Kieren!), 4-5 Awesome Kid Books (8 Silly Monkeys is a new house favorite), Princess Mega Blocks, Tinkerbell Doll, a Ballerina Dance w/Me doll, and a Mini Baby Grand Piano! I am sure I am forgetting some stuff, oh yeah she is getting The TAG Junior by Leapfrog, but it doesn't come out until May.....She loves all her gifts and it well on her way to becoming a musician! On a side note she has been peeing and pooping in the potty pretty regularly now....she is in pull-ups and does it all pretty much herself, it has pretty much been all her....(I haven't started "Potty Training" yet)....So she may be easy...Here is an over kill of pictures....We had 3 cameras going so I went a little overboard!

Lila's 2nd Birthday

Here is a cute video of Lila learning to dance with her new Dolly from Uncle Joel! (sorry it is a little blurry but you get the idea)

Saturday we were out and about shopping with the kiddos and just having a relaxing day. We BBQ'ed with a bunch of the neighbors and celebrated Carol's Birthday. As with most parties we had SOOOO much yummy food and Margaritas were flowing.....we could have fed an army of people.....So much fun! I of course couldn't resist making more Red Velvet Cake Ball and Oreo Truffles......So Tasty!....I can not say it enough, we have the best neighborhood and the coolest neighbors around! We were up late too....I think the Lila fell asleep in my arms outside around 11 or so.....and then twins stayed past midnight.....I was so happy that mom and Carol got to experience what we get to most weekends! Of course we slept in pretty late today thanks to day light savings and springing forward......But the later sunlight will be nice!

BBQ & Carol's B-Day......

The bunk is up and so much more....

2009-03-05T22:49:00.002-06:00

I have been having a hard time getting to posts....I suppose between work, email and facebook, I just have nothing left when it comes time to blog.....I must catch you all up.....for those that didn't know Grandma Paula and Carol arrived on Tuesday night....We are so happy to have them here again and still can not believe it has been a year since we last saw them. The girls love having Grandma and Carol here and today they treated the girls to a mini clothing shopping spree, each girl getting 3-4 outfits.....so spoiled I must say! And when we got home I think Kiara and MJ switched clothes at least 3 times.....So funny! We do not have too much planned while grandma is in town....but I will do better about posting while she is down here.....

The twins bunk beds finally arrived today. Shawn and I put them together with out too much trouble....Lila was the real trouble because all she wanted to do was help.....So funny....The girls finally picked out some bedding and now that we have the beds up and the new bedding we will finally be able to finish painting their room (it is just TOO white right now).....I must say they love their new beds.....and I will post some pics to prove it! TOO CUTE!

Twins Bunk Beds

Well tomorrow will be a down day as I have a ton of baking to do for Lila's Birthday tomorrow and Carol's Birthday on Saturday.....I can not believe Miss Lila will be two....so crazy....

Whirl Wind of a Week........

2009-02-22T08:58:00.004-06:00

Well it has been a bit since my last post....I am trying to remember all that has been going on.....Shawn left on Monday for a Sales Meeting in Vegas....he was gone from Mon-Wed Night...while he was gone the girls and I just had fun hanging out and cooking food daddy doesn't like!

Uncle Joel came down from Austin on Tuesday night so that I could get up at 2am and get in line to sign the twins up for Preschool.....and yes I said 2am....I got there around 1.45am and 20 people were ahead of me.....it was a pretty crazy experience and I know that most preschools down here you do not have to get up in the middle of the night, but the program we chose is a wonderful program and very affordable...that combo is cause for early lines....plus I was looking for a 2 day a week program that are 1/2 days.....most of the 2 day a week programs down here I found were full day.....and pretty expensive......But I am happy to report that getting in line at 2 am paid off and the twins will be attending!! The two girls behind me in line took the last two spots for 4 year old....so I am super happy that Uncle Joel could be here for the kiddos....since I was gone from 1.30am to 8.45am......The good news is that next Feb I will not have to stand in line for Lila (we are going to start her at 3) since the twins will already be enrolled!......Yeah....

Shawn got home Wed night.....just in time for my B-Day on Thursday....yes another has already passed....the dreaded 32.....Ugh, I feel so old.....My b-day was awesome....the girls and I made little tastes instead of a big cake this year.....I loved it, we had Red Velvet Cake Balls coated in DARK chocolate, Oreo Truffles dipped in White Chocolate and Madeline Cookies dipped in Dark Chocolate....it was so fun to have a variety! I got wonderful gifts for my b-day, beautiful flowers delivered, a fabulous pedicure (thanks Heather & Carlos!), an electronic meat thermometer (I Love it, thanks J & A!)...One of my favorite movies 'Love Actually'.....and a new bike/helmet....which I picked out today....(Thanks MOM!!)......I love it! I have to admit it was a bit strange riding today, but after a few minutes it was like being 5 years old again! Ahhh I love riding! I beats me trying to run to keep up with Kiara these days!

So we have a sick household right now.....Kiara has been waking up the past few nights 7-8 times a night (totally out of character)....she finally told me Friday night that her ear hurt....so Saturday morning her and I headed out to urgent care....turns out she has her 1st ear infection....and it is a bad one.....both ears I guess.....so she is now on antibiotics for the first time....but today she seemed much better......hopefully tonight she will sleep all night....Lila and Mikiah have picked up colds to go with Kiara's ear infection.....lets just say last night Shawn ended up in the guest bed with MJ and Lila, Kiara and I slept in my bed.....ahhh, the wonderful things we do to comfort our kiddos!.....Everyone seems a bit better, but Lila has picked up a super nasty cough.....so we will be watching that.....UGH, poor girl!.......

So here are some pics over the last week or soo......enjoy!

Feb 2009

Love our Valentine's Day Tradition.....

2009-02-14T21:33:00.004-06:00

Ahhh, so Happy Valentine's Day! Hope everybody had a great one.....We have had a great weekend so far.....today we got up and headed out to go see Danielle's volleyball game....she is almost 10 and lives across the street from us. The girls just adore her and follow her around and are pretty much glued to her when they see her.....I always have to remind the girls to give Danielle some personal space....Anyway, the girls LOVED watching her play volleyball....you know me planting the seed early, Volleyball was probably my favorite sport to play growing up so I really hope one of the twins pick it up.....After volleyball we played at the park at the elementary where the V-ball games were...so fun just running around playing and swinging with the girls and the neighbors....

Then it was off to lunch, I swear haven't cooked all weekend...which means we ate out lunch....MJ picked Chick-Fil-A.....It is her favorite place....and I have to admit the food is good for fast food....after lunch we relaxed around the house for a bit and then headed out through the neighborhood to drop off Valentine's Cookies to some of our neighbors....it was so fun, the girls loved ringing the doorbells and wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day......they were so proud of the cookies they made yesterday with Tim and Danielle (our neighbors kiddos)....Sugar Cookies of course, cut out in heart shape with icing and v-tines day colored sprinkles....The girls also received cookies today from Naomi (another neighbor kiddo) and they all got a single flower from Chance (another neighbor).....he was so cute when he rang the door bell and delivered the girls their flowers....Just Too Cute! After the flower delivery MJ crashed out on the couch and Lila fell asleep standing up and leaning on me.....I didn't know she was sleeping until she leaned back and fell on a pillow....Here is a few shots of that....

So as most of you know our usual V-Tines day tradition is for Shawn to take his "Ladies" out for burgers....we had been looking around at a few places and hadn't decided on a place....then Heather (Danielle's mom) caught me on-line on Facebook and said that they were going to try some new gourmet burger place and wanted to know if we wanted to join them.....(they too liked the idea of heading out to burgers on V-tines day)....anyway....we said we would love to join them....So we all went out together to Gourmet Burger Grill......My word my burger was soooo good and the onion rings were probably some of the best I have ever had.....Every ones food looked and tasted so great...This place is a winner in my book and I know we will be back....Shoot kids eat free on Wednesday (ALL DAY)...plus there are so many tasty items left to try on their menu and not to mention their specials....So great!.....It was so fun going out as a group with Heather & Carlos and kiddos....we had such a good time, it was hard to leave the restaurant......we really love our neighbors....they are so fun and I believe we have many more Friday Night Driveway Happy Hours ahead of ourselves with them and all of Woodthorn North (our part of the 'hood)...........

I think she will train herself.....

2009-02-08T13:17:00.003-06:00

Sunday, Lunchtime @ our kitchen table....

Lila: Mommy I go potty.
Me: Oh, you went potty?
Lila: Mommy I go potty.
Me: Ok, lets go change your diaper.
Lila: NO Mommy, I go potty.
Me: Oh, you want to go potty.
Lila: Yes Mommy (as she is pushing her chair back and getting down from the table)

So we go to her potty chair, I have had it out but just so she can get use to sitting on it when she wants (she has gone in it about 3 times total)....anyway......So I take her diaper of (it is totally dry)....she sits down and asks for toilet paper.....and I leave the bathroom.....about a minute or so later she comes out carrying the bowl part of her potty chair..."See Mommy, I go potty".....and sure enough there was potty in there.....so I dump it out and clean it up and put it back in her potty chair.....I ask her "Lila are you all done?"........"NO mommy, I not done!!"......Ok, so I leave again.....she comes and finds me in the kitchen about 3-4min later, carrying the bowl once again....."Mommy look, poo-poo!'.....Oh my word, she seriously carried the bowl with a small amount of poop in it to show me...........It was pretty cute and she was soooo proud of herself....she had it written all over her face......of course no pressure from me, I learned that the hard way with the twins.....anyway just had to share....

Superbowl Fun....

2009-02-02T09:09:00.007-06:00

Ah, so another weekend as gone and passed. I can not believe it is already February??? Seriously, where does the time go.....We have just been doing the usual.....I did finally get our taxes done....we had been waiting for Shawn's W2 which of course came on the last day of Jan...Typical I suppose.....I am looking forward to getting our return so we can FINALLY get the girls their bunk beds and bedding......Yep, bunk beds, the cool thing is they look the same when they are separated so if they do not like them bunked then they can have matching beds....I think the beds and new tires for the Suburban (well we had a buy a new tire last week, Shawn ran over a screw, so we only need to buy 3 more) will be our only splurges this tax season, if you could call it that.....the rest of the money will go towards bills and the usual........Since I am only working 7 hours (instead of 80) in March due to budget cuts at WSU....but that will be nice since my mom will be here from March 3rd-17th!....Yeah for Grandma!

This past weekend we had a little Superbowl get together. We got to meet Uncle Joel's lady friend, Jessica. She is awesome and so fun. The girls pretty much smothered her the whole time she was here!.....Dragging her up to the playroom and then back downstairs......it was pretty cute....I would say she passed the girls tests! ;) We also got to meet his friend Edge, super cool guy! "Light Up Carlos" as the girls call him, came over too for the big game.....the rest of his family was sick....Poor guys....Hopefully they are all feeling better today! On a high note for Carlos he did win the Harper Texas Superbowl II....nothing like taking home $50 cold, hard, cash!...

Superbowl was fun, the game was good....and boy did we have a spread of food....Veggies & Ranch, Fruit Kabobs with Fluff Dip, Wings, Capt n Crunch Chicken, Jalapeno Sliders, Homemade Black Bean dip, Jalapeno Crab Dip, Fruit Salad, Salami+Cheese+Crackers, Choc Chip Cookie Cake, M&M Cookie Bars, and Peanut Butter Swirl Chocolate Brownies (1st time I have made homemade brownies, SOOO GOOD!)......I am sure I am forgetting something....oh well....It was good....I think I ate WAY to much! Good thing I made it to the gym this morning and also took a jog around the 'hood with the girls.....Cause we have tons of leftovers that are calling my name!.....I might even have to do a bedtime jog!

Hope everyone is doing well and also had good weekends and all has a great week ahead ! I will leave you with a pic of MJ.....

This is what happens when you play hard....You literally fall asleep where you are playing!

Turner Syndrome......

2009-01-28T18:40:00.004-06:00

This is a sort of difficult post for me today, not exactly sure why, but here goes. We have decided to bring you all up to date since y'all are a part of our support system. Most of you do not know but Mikiah was diagnosed with Turner Syndrome about 4 days after birth. We had a few indicators at birth to have the genetic testing done, one being edema (swelling) in the hands & feet and her slightly wide spaced nipples. Turner syndrome (TS) is a chromosomal condition that describes girls and women with common features that are caused by complete or partial absence of the second sex chromosome. TS occurs in approximately 1 of 2,000 female's born and in as many as 10% of all miscarriages. For more in depth info here are the basics.

Mikiah has a few of the physical characteristics but for the most part her case is fairly mild (if you could call it that). She is missing her second sex chromosome on all of her genes which could lead to her being of smaller stature, average girl with TS is 4'7'', and she will have premature ovarian failure/infertility. Estrogen replacement therapy is necessary for breast development, feminine body contours, menstruation and proper bone development & Fertility without assisted reproduction therapy is rare (less than 1%). So MJ will most likely not be able to bare children with out medical intervention. We will also need to continue to keep a close eye on her Heart, Thyroid, Kidneys and will be testing for diabetes.

The reason I am catching you all up on this today is we just had her first Endocrinologist appointment. We drove to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston and learned a bit more about the next course of action. We had a good appointment with our new Endo Doctor. We will be going to see her every six months for the time being. The main thing we are watching for is her growth pattern, she is currently in the 33% for height, so she is still plotting on the normal growth chart. Once she begins to fall off that growth chart we will begin discussing growth hormone therapy with our Endo doctor. Most TS girls start growth hormone therapy around age 4 (we would like to avoid it if we can but also want the best for MJ and if it's a few more inches then we will choose to do it). Before we head back in August we will be running a few baseline labs for Diabetes including glucose levels and Insulin testing. She will also be doing a few more labs and blood work. We will be going over the results of these labs in August. So more to come later.

MJ was great today and enjoyed her appointment, although I think she was a little nervous as Texas Children's is HUGE, but super colorful and fun! She's a trooper!!

Busy, Busy Thursday......

2009-01-23T07:38:00.003-06:00

My Thursday was a active one.....We got took dad to work and then got ready to head to HEB Plus! (a grocery store similar to Fred Meyer)....Down here there are H-E-B grocery stores and SuperWalMart/Super Target no other chains exist down here, no Kroger, Albertsons, Safeway/Randall's or QFC.....took some getting use too but I LOVE H-E-B......So anyway the girls had a Moppets Play date at the H-E-B Plus! store (Grocery and Home Goods all in one).....They got to tour around, learn about Produce, Cheese and Milk....they even got to touch a Lobster....it was super fun. I think all the kids favorite part was seeing HEBuddy and tasting the Mootopia Chocolate Milk (and HEB milk that is lactose free and boosted with protein)!!!

After the play date we headed home so I could get my work done and then it was time to get ready to head out for the night for me. I put on a little black dress and headed out to COCO Chocolate Lounge and Bistro w/Sarah for her birthday party with the girls. It was super fun all of Sarah's friends are really nice and very sweet. The food (well I didn't eat dinner) look good, their desserts were amazing and the Chocolate Martinis were good. I had the Bliss Martini Flight which included 3 small tasting martinis: Chocolate Dipped Strawberry, Macaroon, Chocolate Sin.....So yummy! The atmosphere and decor were pretty cool.....Very cool place especially for chocolate lovers like myself.....I will be honest I was a skeptic of the martinis....but man they were pretty good....So good that I may have to hit the gym once this weekend!!!

First Full Day....

2009-01-21T07:16:00.002-06:00

So today is President Obama's first full day in office. Whether you like him or not yesterday was an amazing day for our Country!!! I was glued to the TV coverage yesterday, hence the lack of blogging.....I am so positive and looking forward to where Obama is going to lead us.....It isn't going to be easy but I have never felt so emotional and inspired for us as a nation as I was yesterday....What a historic day!.....I love the Obama's! Loved that the girls wore J Crew and that Michelle always picks for the most part little known American Fashion Designers......They are so normal.....True American Family......

Beside watching the coverage yesterday, I also babysat the neighbor girls from down the street. It was fun for all the girls....a bit crazy having 6 girls under one roof, running around, girly screaming and having a good time.....It was great the twins loved having their friends over.....

Well I just got back from the gym, I think I am finally on track with being back there everyday....Hopefully I can shed the fat and continue to build my muscles again.....I am off to get the morning going!....

Sunday, Sunday......

2009-01-18T15:13:00.002-06:00

Ahhh so it is Sunday night....I am always amazed at how fast the weekends truly go by. We didn't do much this weekend, stayed home mostly. Saturday we cleaned the whole upstairs, including cleaning out all the girls old clothes and stuff that they do not use anymore. We also watched Danielle (9) and Tim (6), our neighbor kids while their parents attended a wedding. The girls loved having them over, they pretty much smothered poor Danielle, I have learned that I need to teach the girls a little more about personal space......but they will get there. We did bbq burgers and ice cream sundaes, always a big hit with the kiddos....So fun! I think Tim played his DS pretty much the whole time, poor guy, its hard being the only boy sometimes.....I was surprised that we were able to get all the girls down pretty much on time, while Tim and Danielle stayed up until their parents came over........and it was nice to have Danielle read some Fancy Nancy to the girls!

Today we walked the 'hood, and washed the car.....it was so nice a sunny/breezy 76 degree day.....the girls helped with the car which was fun and wet!!! As it should be I suppose.

Washing the Car Jan 2009

We are looking forward to the week ahead and Barack Obama's Inauguration! As you know we are big supporters and can not wait to see what the future holds for all of us! We watched the concert on HBO today, so awesome and amazing to see so many different artists and actors and everyday people all in one place.....I Love America!

Bloggers Block....

2009-01-15T18:36:00.001-06:00

I suppose you could call it that....I hope to be back, revived and inspired soon!.....With pics of course.....Sorry to all the faithful!

She's a free spirit.....

2009-01-04T08:09:00.004-06:00

So Miss Lila has taken to taking her clothes off and staying nude as long as she can.....it started with me bringing out the potty chair, it has been out for a month or so.......Now when we change her diaper she asks to go potty (we are not training yet, just letting her experiment).....she has gone a handful of times.....Anyway she has learned how to take off most of her clothes......and even her diaper on occasion.....she probably gets nude at least once sometimes twice a day.....she LOVES it.....I suppose I can not blame her......she is hilarious too, lounging or dancing or singing....all in the buff.....she certainly keeps us laughing....

Back to an empty house.....

2009-01-03T12:30:00.004-06:00

Well of course not empty....But the Harper's headed out early this morning. We enjoyed having them here and all had a wonderful time! Our last few days with them were spent on kids projects, house projects, card games, and GREAT food! I must tell you the BBQ is worth its weight in gold! Everything we have cooked on it has been 'Spectacular' as MJ would say (thanks to Fancy Nancy and her fancy words). Last night we did pizza's on my stone on the grill and they were so goooood! Direct on the grill would have been good too....

So Shawn got a Home Depot gift card for Christmas (Thanks Joe/Victoria!!) and took advantage of after Christmas sales to get us a new light fixture for the upstairs sort of hallway and a new outdoor light for above our garage doors....it matches our light outside our front door. Good thing Grandpa Harper was here to help install the outdoor light it was definitely a two manly person project mounting on the brick plus we wanted to make sure we did the wiring correct and to code.....It looks awesome and they were so good that they connected it up to my front door light so the both go on together and off together! Love it. First shots are of the upstairs and the last ones are the outdoor project....

We managed to get the tree and all the holiday decorations down including the outdoor lights. So sad to see Christmas be put away, but I am sure it will be back here before we know it. I guess I now get to look forward to our Valentine's Date with the girls, burgers and shakes....Suppose I better get looking for a place to try......

Anyway I hope everyone had a Happy New Year. Shawn, the girls and I did. We went to our neighbors house and rang in the new year with the twins and our wonderful neighbors and friends. I am surprised that the twins made it that long.....I did have to take Lila home around 11.15pm and put her to bed. She rang in the new year sleeping as did Nanna and Grandpa! Too cute!! The New Years Angel came sometime after new year.....We all awoke to stuffed stockings...an ol' family tradition on my side. It was fun for all....and we all got stuff we needed!.....

A loungy day at home...

2008-12-29T15:04:00.003-06:00

So with the Harper's in Austin for another day the girls and I decided to take it easy. I even got a full night of sleep (caused me to miss my workout I was sleeping so good)....which has been rare the last few weeks, as one of the girls has been waking up in the middle of the night, they do trade off on which girls.....but some nights I feel like I am up and down the stairs all night....Oh well what is a mother to do....

Today I got caught up on my work and I am staring the process of taking down the Christmas decor and cleaning up the house.....Well, I should be clear.....I am thinking about getting started....The girls and I played some V-Motion in the playroom as a distraction or procrastination.....and yes they are still in their PJ's.....

.....this was of course after we cleaned the playroom (a reward)....I am always amazed at how messy it can get when the girls forget (or choose not too) to put away their toys.....We are hoping to go through their toys and purge toys that are now too young for Lila....I tell you it is sometimes hard to keep two different age group of toys around.....I will go to donate something and then remember that Lila would probably like to play with it in a few months....it will still be nice to donate some though.....

Now I am just being lazy and trying to think about something to type so I do not have to get up and actually get something done....does one load in the dishwasher count as doing something???? I do have that running.....

A Trip up to Austin....

2008-12-28T17:25:00.004-06:00

Today we headed up to Austin for some lunch and a visit to the Texas State History Museum......It was a good time had by all.....Nanna and Grandpa are staying up there for two nights to see some sights and hang out with Uncle Joel.....The museum was pretty awesome.....I would have loved to have gone there sans the kids, especially Lila, I think I would have learned a bit more....(I was chasing her around most of the time).....but still a great time!!!

Merry Christmas Y'all......

2008-12-25T19:19:00.003-06:00

So today was our 2nd Christmas in Southern Texas.....and what a great one it was.....The men got up early 6.45ish to start the BBQ......the Brisket was on by 7.30am and done around 2-2.30pm.....(It was 16lbs).......The girls were excited to see that Santa did come after tracking him all day on the Norad website.....they loved knowing where he was......The twins each got spoiled by Santa and all our relatives.....Thanks to all for making this Christmas so special for us and our children!.....I could try to list the loot the kiddos and we got but I am sure I would leave something out.....

Our dinner was wonderful, Homemade Texas BBQ......The brisket was perfect, the potato salad I made using County Line's recipe tasted exactly like theirs so good, the creamy cheesy corn turned out as yummy as always, the Pinto Druken Beans were great and the Pumpkin Dessert was awesome.....I am so full!

So instead of rambling on, I will leave you with some pictures over the last few days, there are a lot so I do apologize!

Christmas 08

A little early Christmas Present for All....

2008-12-20T19:59:00.004-06:00

So Christmas came a little early for the WHOLE Harper Family......Grandpa, Daddy and Uncle Joel headed out to do some Christmas shopping and here is what they brought home.....

It is a 20" Trailblazer Smoker w/Fire box on Cart w/Wheels....made in Texas and finished in SA....We are talking top of the line....this is what happens when men are left up to their own devices.....Needless to say, I LOVE it and they are seasoning it as I type this......We are so looking forward to our Christmas Brisket and have planned on Smoking some Salmon, Ribs and possible a Turkey....We might have to add a ham to that list......Oh man!

Today we also wished Grandpa Harper a "VERY Happy Birthday!".....The girls and I made him a Red Velvet Princess Cake....we even used his mom's recipe (Great Grandma Harper is the best cook!).....

We like Surprises....

2008-12-15T17:13:00.002-06:00

So here is what was delivered to us today......

Thanks Mom, now our house truly feels like Christmas now.....It even smells like Christmas! We love it.....

Back to square one......

2008-12-14T16:30:00.004-06:00

So after having the Library, Parlor, Red Room.....(Whatever you want to call it) painted now for almost a year, I finally decided to move the Hutch out of there.....it was just too big for the square room.....of course now the walls look a bit DULL, but artwork will come later and I still need a good floor lamp too.....Shawn and I are both pleased with the results and think we may actually sit out there now.....I think we just wanted it to feel more spacious.....So my lovely antique like hutch is now in the garage and I think I will be creating a crafting center out of it and maybe even add some lighting under the top part.....maybe that will help me get my crafty ways back.....well that and actually having time to do it.....

This weekend has been a low keyed one for us.....We took the kids on a nighttime walk around the 'hood w/ hot cocoa to look at Christmas lights.....They liked it so much I think we are going again tonight! The twins went to a snowflake birthday party yesterday morning down the street and had a really good time.....they were so excited to give their friend her present.....So cute! We spent the rest of the weekend cleaning, organizing, pruning, trimming and just anything and everything to get ready for the Harper's on Friday!! We are looking forward to the week to fly by as I know it will.....since I have a bunch of work to do and still more cleaning.....Oh well. Hope everyone had a great weekend! I have included some pics of daddy and the girls gathering some rocks for momma, which seems to be a monthly trip for daddy and the twins....They love it!

Dec 08

Sometimes I forget about me........

2008-12-10T14:31:00.004-06:00

Well I have spent the last few days on me, I wish I could say I spent the last two days at the spa or getting my nails done or shopping but it was more for health maintenance.....I get so wound up with all the scheduling of appointments for my kids that I have been leaving myself out.....SO yesterday I went to the dentist.....it was my first time going in a long time....note to all of you try to get to the dentist every 6 months and floss everyday! It actually wasn't that bad, I just had to have a deeper then normal cleaning....I must say my hygienist was great.....I will going back for a normal cleaning in a few months and also get lovely enjoyment of having REALLY OLD fillings replaced.....can not wait to see what all that is going to cost......We have dental insurance but you know how that goes they usually only cover at 80% for most stuff.....and 50% for some stuff.....blah blah.....I am getting my treatment plan today so we shall see....

Today I went to my new Doctors office and met my new Doctor....She is awesome, I knew from the moment I met her that I was going to like her....She is similar to me in a few ways, she has 5 year old twin girls, she also has a 3rd daughter who is two and they even have a female dog....Too funny! Anyway I had a good check up and so far so good. I have to go back when I fast to do blood work (which is standard) but other then that a clean bill of health.....I did weigh more then I thought I would....I now I have renewed drive to hit the gym daily....since lately I have been averaging 1-2 times week...

So finally after being down here a year I have found a great dentist and a wonderful doctor for me and Shawn (he goes to the same dentist and I think he is going to join my Dr's practice, not to mention, the girls excellent doctor and dentist....This is all we have been up to this week....Boring I know...

1 Year and 1 day......

2008-12-06T22:29:00.002-06:00

Yup....it has been 1 year and 1 day since I arrived down here in San Antonio with the girls....So much to reflect on that has happened this past year....and so many new great memories....I must say I feel at home in my new city....it has been great exploring the ins and outs of this new great place to live, the shopping, the restaurants, the neighborhoods....So much culture for us to experience....Shawn and I celebrated tonight with a good bottle of WA wine....Yummy....

Tag I'm it......

2008-12-03T08:08:00.004-06:00

So I was tagged by MaryCatherine at Peaches and Posh, so now I must list 6 things about myself and then tag 6 other people.....I am going to list Random things....it's is always more fun...

1. High Heels are my favorite shoe choice especially when worn with jeans and a tank, although working at home I do not wear them as much as I use too...my girls dress up in them more then me...

2. I want to start a non-profit company, something to benefit and help children in the USA; I am still brainstorming but have lots of ideas...

3. I love music; I could listen to it night and day and am pondering guitar lessons….I would love to learn how to play....

4. I was a tomboy & athlete growing up, I hated skirts/dresses….Now I would rather where a skirt then shorts (I hate shorts)……

5. I went to college to major in Chemistry and ended up getting a Business Degree instead, I am thinking now I should have stayed with Chem.....

6. When I am sick, I like to watch Pride & Prejudice (the BBC Mini Series Version) I am easily sucked in to good romance stories....

Tagged.....any and all of my girlfriends that blog....Erin, Molly, Jill, Lorrie, Charity, Miranda.....

We've been Elf-ed

2008-11-30T18:10:00.001-06:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

So Tired.....

2008-11-29T21:30:00.002-06:00

Man after a quick trip to Costco and Wal-Mart this morning we spend most of the day outside....and I mean most of the day.....today we put up the lights on the house and man when you do it right (with clips) it sure does take a long time. I am pretty sure that Shawn was on the roof for 5-6 hours or so.....But it is so worth it. Our house looks great, it has 15 strands of LED White lights (25 bulbs to a strand) we have them going from the back of the house down the side around the front and part way down that side....Then we decided since you can see the back roof line when you come into the neighborhood we also put them along the back of the house.....so all but one side....it looks pretty sweet.....plus most of our neighbors have put theirs up too....I love Christmastime......While we were putting up the lights Lila napped (for a part of it) and the twins played with the neighbors.....I simply LOVE our neighbors....they our little corner of the 'hood totally rocks!.....Heather even took the girls on a bike ride around the 'hood with her kids.....So awesome and Carlos came and helped out a bit with the lower lights when he was taking a break from their lights.....Carlos and Heather's house looks so great too....they have so many cool light structures in their lawn.....Anyway here are some pics of our house....and the tree.....oh and few of Lila climbing the ladder....I swear she would have climbed onto the house if I let her.....

Christmas Lights 08

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all.......

2008-11-27T17:56:00.004-06:00

Ahhh so I am finally sitting on my bum.....we had a wonderful day filled with family, food, fun and football......and now we are resting watching the end of the Seahawks.....we had dinner at 4.00pm, our usual Turkey Day time....I cooked another 21lb bird.....my usual size of choice.....We LOVE leftover turkey...so much you can do.....we did go with less sides this year since it was just us and Joel.....Juicy Roasted Turkey basted in wine and butter, Cornbread Sausage Stuffing, Cauliflower Gratin, Gravy and Rolls....Simple but sooooo good.....the usuals we didnt make, Steamed Green beans w/Balsamic, Corn Bread Pudding, and Mashed potatoes.....I must say I didn't miss any.....I did love the new Cauliflower dish....soo tasty, it had panko bread crumbs and Gruyere Cheese......So good....I plan on posted the Recipes up on the Breezy later this week.....We hope everyone had a great holiday....Love and miss all.......Here is a glance at our dinner.....and dessert....(homemade pumpkin pie)......

Old Friends.....a random post......

2008-11-25T18:30:00.003-06:00

I have been thinking about old friends as of late.....Probably due to Facebook as I have been able to catch up with so many......There are people that have come and gone in my life that I may or may not have kept in contact with, shared great times with and now for me am missing their steady friendship....I could being feeling this way because we are heading into the holiday season.....the time for being thankful and the time for giving, the happy time of family and friends.....or maybe its because I am in Texas and have not made as many close connections with my friends down here......do not get me wrong I have met some wonderful friends down here.....and I know I will continue to find those gems.......So anyway if you are an old friend of mine....just wait I will find you and start a dialog again.....Here is to all those old friends.....

Apple Cup Saturday....

2008-11-22T22:15:00.003-06:00

Woot Woot! So the Cougs pulled out a win in double OT, so we are no longer at the top of the list for the bottom 10 teams in College Football.....The Dawgs 0-11 record should put them at the top of that list......Ahhh, Sweet Victory!.....

We have not been up to too much as of late.....same old, same old....this morning I managed to slip away and get the grocery shopping done for Thanksgiving....I am so glad it is done and it was nice to go by myself......but boy what a zoo......I was surprised to learn how much more Turkeys are down here compared to Seattle....I remember spending 100.00 and getting a free turkey or finding them for 49/59 cents a pound.......Today I paid 84 cents a pound....there were some for 77 cents but I didn't find the size I wanted......Go big or go home I say....We will be cooking another 21lb bird....I think this will be my 5th or 6th year cooking a bird that big....and I think I have it down.....

Today, we also got to watch the Coug game...So nice that we were able to get it down here....and nice to see the Cougs win.....but man just two crappy teams on the field today....and here I am sitting on my computer at 10.00pm blogging and facebooking (can we say addicting)......so funny how Saturdays have changed as we get older....

Yesterday the girls and I went to the Texas Air Museum for our MOPS play date. It was pretty cool, lots of old planes and war paraphernalia.......The girls loved the big old war planes outside....I thought the old wooden planes were pretty cool.....We didn't stay too long as the hanger was pretty cold....it has actually felt like fall around here lately.....I am loving the colder weather....It is so nice to finally be COLD!....

Empty House :(

2008-11-15T16:02:00.003-06:00

We just said good bye to the Coffer's......We had such a great week with them. All of the girls got along famously, no fighting, no yelling, no nothing.....just a whole lot of playing, playing, playing.....and they even included Lila most of the time....it was fun to watch Lila chase after them and try to do what they were doing....too cute...We loved having a boy in the house....so fun, especially since Shawn and I were showered with girls.....Brodie is such a good baby, so adorable....I just love his BLUE eyes and his happy smile! Natalie and Kiara traded off on being the ring leader.....one day it would be Nat and the other day it would be Kiara....while MJ just tried to keep up with them.....I am still pleased at how well they all played together.....They are all really going to miss each other.....It is really making me think that the girls and I will need to head to WA this summer, hopefully for the whole month of July if we can swing it.....great month since its SUPER hot down here and just perfect up west.....

So Friday Shawn got a day off and we headed out to the SA Zoo......So much fun, the zoo was bigger then I thought it would be.....it will be nice when they are done with phase 2 of the Africa Live exhibit, but we were still able to see all the animals....I really think the girls favorite part was the Butterfly Exhibit. They loved trying to get them to land on them and just overall really enjoyed it...The best part was the butterflies LOVED Todd, they landed on him the whole time we were in there......before leaving the zoo we took a trip on the Eagle Train around Brackenridge Park......It was pretty funny the Coffer kids took a rest on the train while the Harper Girls took it all in.....it was fun for all.....a nice little 20 min loop.....After the zoo it was back to the house to figure out dinner plans.....we ended up going out for some steak...and had a pretty good meal until the check came....whoa....talk about fiasco......but the boys got it squared away....

This morning we got up and headed out for some Breakfast Tacos....Todd really wanted to hit this place he heard about on the Food Network and we had been trying to figure out when we were going to go there as they are only open from 7am-2pm....So we finally decided on Breakfast Tacos, which I have to admit is probably my favorite thing to eat for breakfast.....So after about 15-20 min wait outside (brrr it is cold today) we were seated at separate tables (we broke up to get seated quicker) and were ordering food at Taco Taco Cafe.....The place is small but I must tell you I really enjoyed my breakfast tacos as did the kiddos....I can see us going there again as it is good and super cheap.....just need to be prepared for it to be a little bit crowded on the weekends.....I just love their homemade tortillas...as do the girls.....They really enjoy their breakfast tacos....probably as much as they enjoy pancakes......So we had another good meal with the Coffer's......I am sad to say it is tooooo quite in the house right now....no girls running around screaming having fun.....no Lila trying to stick Brodie's binki in his mouth.....no Brodie chatting away......we already miss Melissa, Todd, Natalie and Brodie......it's strange, I knew I missed seeing them every week (in WA we had weekly playdates) but I didn't realize how much I truly miss being with the Coffer's until after they left today.....Good Friends are sure hard to find......Sure hope they had as much fun as we did......

Coffer Trip SA

Enjoying our friends too much to blog.....

2008-11-13T19:50:00.002-06:00

So Melissa, Todd, Natalie and Brodie arrived on Sunday afternoon and we have been having so much fun that I just have not had the time to sit down and put a post together.....Melissa and I have been great friends since we were in junior high.....and I must say it is so nice having them all down here. We have had a good mix of getting out and doing stuff to Monday the girls played all day....dress up was the choice of the day as was bike riding, the girls did great sharing.....that night we headed down to the Riverwalk and did the boat tour ride and dinner....it was fun to go down at night which I do not think Shawn and I had done before......Tuesday we headed up to La Cantera and did a bit of shopping.....I swear I just love that mall, must be because it is outdoors and has so many nice shops...and the extension they added is pretty sweet....with another good mix of stores we finished the night with some Texas BBQ and Pizza.....Wednesday the Coffer's headed up to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Park......it is a drive through place where the animals come up to the car.....sounds like they had a great time.....it allowed me to get some much needed work done....when they got back we let the girls do some swimming in the backyard.....and some playing & bike riding.......Today we headed back downtown to see the Alamo and do more riverwalk activities....it was nice to be down there on a Thurs morning when it was pretty empty and easy to maneuver....we were downtown most of the morning and ended up having a lunch too and got some shopping done....then we did some chalk drawing and beauty salon (Melissa painted all the girls toenails...so fun!), we finished up tonight with an Ice Cream Sundae party......the girls loved it......all and all a good fun time.....Tomorrow we are off to the zoo and dinner and I am sure we will find more adventurous things to do.....for now enjoy some pics....

Coffer Visit 1

Harper Twins Tagged by Jackson.....

2008-11-12T09:11:00.011-06:00

Then........and........Now

Kiara:

Mikiah:

Name/Meaning:

Kiara- (kee AHR ah) in Latin is means: Clear; bright; famous and in Irish it means Dark

Mikiah-Our orignal spelling was MIKAIA until Nanna made a quilt with her name on it misspelled (Its ok Nanna I like the new spelling), American not really sure the meaning...We liked Kia....but it was becoming too popular to we found a twist on it.

Age: 4

Nicknames:
Kiara- Kiara Bear, KB
Mikiah- MJ

Activities:

Kiara-Riding Bikes, Playing Tag, Playing Outside

Mikiah-Riding Bikes, Reading, Puzzles

Favorite Foods:

Kiara-Mac n Cheese, Hot Dogs, Broccoli, Apples, White Chicken Lasagna, Mandarins

Mikiah- Mac n Cheese, Breakfast Sausage, Creamy Pasta, Pizza, Apples, Bananas, Mandarins,

Favorite Music: Both-Anything from a Disney Movie or Barbie Movie, ABC Song, Wheels on the Bus, Kid music CD ANY (They sing along with most songs)

Favorite toys:

Kiara-Board Games (Candy Lane, Memory, Chutes & Ladders), Kitchen Toys

Mikiah-Princess Dolls, Barbies, Princess Dresses for Dress up, Books, Kitchen Toys

What Makes You Happy:

Kiara-Friends & Family Visiting, play dates, Chocolate Milk

Mikiah- Friends & Family Visiting, going places, Play Dates, Dressing up like Princess

What Makes You Sad:

Kiara-Shots (her answer, just had 4 year boosters)

Mikiah-When her sister falls asleep before her at bedtime

She is a climber.....

2008-11-08T07:53:00.002-06:00

Ok, so just a brief post about my middle of the night craziness......So last night Lila woke up around 3am crying pretty loud.....So I go up to get her and I open the door and who is standing on the other side Lila, standing and crying and wanting Mommy.....I was in total shock.....I looked at her crib all the sides were up.....I looked at her no bumps or bruises.....Lets just say I was totally thrown off guard as neither of the twins ever tried to climb out of their crib.....Since I was sleeping I didn't hear a thump or her fall.....But after a Mommy hug and cuddle in my bed she seemed to be ok......I suppose her jump in height has helped her to climb a bit higher.....Just crazy.....I am still baffled....Oh well....

So today will be spent finishing up cleaning the house, laundry and yard work.....We are getting everything ready for the Coffer's arrival tomorrow....We are looking forward to their visit and are super excited to have them here for the week!!! Well I better go make some B-Fast and get moving!

Ahhh, so great!....

2008-11-05T20:43:00.002-06:00

So we of course stayed up like most and watched our candidate win the election. Obama's speech was moving and presidential......of course the panning camera's catching teary eyes caused tears in our household. The waterworks of Jesse Jackson and Oprah were priceless.....What an amazing moment in history. So fortunate that Shawn and I were alive and well to see it.....And we look forward to the years ahead under Obama's leadership.....definitely time for us all to unite.....

Today we had a low key but busy day......the twins had a doctors appointment the poor girls each got 5 shots (would have been 4 but down here they get Hep A shots) and Flu Mist (since they were getting 5 shots I decided 6 was way over the top)......I felt so bad for them......MJ went first and boy she was so strong, no crying just a grimace look on her face......Poor Kiara she did great through the first 3 but those last two she yelled out and screamed.....on top of that she is my bleeder.....I had to put on two extra band aides....So both girls are doing well....growing great and progressing well.....All good news, but we knew that!...... Afterwards I felt so bad that I called Shawn to tell him I was taking the girls to get some shakes and then realized it was already 5.00pm so we picked up some dinner too.....nice to have a night off from cooking.......I feel like posting a few pics....So you are in luck.....gotta love the bruise on Kiara's forehead.....

Random Nov 08

Vote, Vote, Vote......

2008-11-04T07:06:00.002-06:00

If you do not do anything else today or if you haven't already....You need to get out and VOTE! Shawn and I early voted as you all know.....and "What a feeling"..........We will be at home to tonight tuned into NBC and MSNBC for our election coverage.....I will be sporting my Obama Tank while the girls run around in my Obama tees!!! Hopefully we will wake up on Wed with our first African American President!......

Halloween Madness.....

2008-11-01T09:38:00.000-05:00

Ahhh, so yesterday was super fun, the girls are at such a great age for Halloween. They went trick or treating with daddy and walked the whole 'hood, it took about an hour and half.....I counted our trick or treaters at home and we had and average amount of 40-45 plus or minus a few I am sure I missed....we had a little bit of candy left but oh well....it's the good stuff, peanut butter cups!!.......One of our neighbors had a Haunted garage and it was pretty sweet.....they are already talking about how to make it better next year....So fun.....After trick or treating around 9pm we headed out to the our neighbors houses for a little block party, brawts, dogs and beer.....the girls ran around with all the other kids and had a great time, they ended their night with a bowl of mac n cheese and the Bee Movie....while all of us adults hung out and chatted. We had such a good time....Lila feel asleep on me, but was still up pretty late......We finally headed back across the street around midnight....YES, the twins were up until then.....Late, Late, Late, but hey it was Halloween on a Friday!.....They had such a good time playing with their friends.....they went straight to bed when we got home and woke up this morning around 9.30am.....So nice to sleep in....Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Pumpkin Carving time.....and a check up....

2008-10-30T16:08:00.004-05:00

So today I took Lila to our pediatrician for a check up on her Collarbone, it is still bent pretty well, looks a bit strange and sore to touch, although Lila has not been acting in any pain and she still climbs on EVERYTHING.....Lila is doing well and it will take about 4 more weeks to heal.....so she is still has to wear her sling, but now she likes it, so it must help....We did learn she is a skinny girl who just shot up a few inches in a short amount of time....She is 33 inches tall while weighing in at 20lbs 9oz (3%)....Our doctor is not concerned about her weight because of how active Lila is, I just need to keep giving her instant breakfast in her milk and yadah, yadah, yadah.....She seriously only gained 1 lb in 6 months....but she is getting to the age of growing a bit slower.....

Tonight we finally carved our pumpkins.....we have been busy around here, Shawn went the Spurs game last night, and so today was the only chance we had to do it. I must say I totally have "GIRLY" girls.....I was assuming they would love cleaning out the pumpkins, boy was I wrong....I asked MJ to clean out the inside of her pumpkin and her response was "But Mommy, I will get my hands all dirty".....Holy Cow did she just say that....Get her hands dirty....Wow.....So I did manage to get them both to clean them out, but it took some coercion......Last year we let them draw faces to cut out on the pumpkins and planned on doing the same this year, but I bought a pumpkin carving kit that had patterns on in it and they liked them so much that they picked out what they wanted carved......It was fun....and they love the end results......Some pics for your viewing....Lila is not wearing her sling cause she dipped it in the Homemade Tomato soup at dinner and in some of the pics you can see that we didn't even wipe their faces after dinner.....too funny...Hope everyone has a great Halloween!

Pumpkin Carving Fun...

My Precious Things......

2008-10-25T20:06:00.003-05:00

So on Shawn's trip they had an afternoon at Universal Studios (Orlando) and he picked these up for the kids. Dr Seuss is a family favorite at our house.....

Learning about Fire Trucks and Safety....

2008-10-24T20:29:00.003-05:00

Today we had a play date with MOPS, we have one every month and they are great....Kim, our Moppets Coordinator does such an amazing job! Today we got to meet some local fire fighters and learn about fire safety with the kids. The girls had a really good time seeing the fire trucks up close, they were a little frightened of the fire fighters when they were all dressed up in their gear, but were able to get over their initial fear and high five the them....All 3 girls enjoyed watching the ladder go up with one of the firefighters on it. I too thought that was pretty cool.....All in all it was a great experience for all.....and of course on our way home from picking up daddy tonight (yes his is home from his trip, YEAH!) we got to pull over so a Fire Truck could go by......The girls of course pointed out to daddy that they got to see one today and that the ladder was really high!.....So funny! Here are some pics from today.....MJ had no desire to stand in front of the truck but Kiara was totally into it.....So funny.....

And yes, those are sweaters on the girls. We have been having some cool nights. I must say it has been nice opening the windows again and not having the A/C turn on all the time. I suppose I will enjoy it while I can!

Her Daredevil ways caught up with her......

2008-10-22T13:08:00.005-05:00

So I just got back from spending the morning at Urgent care....our Pediatrician was booked for the day......Lila took a fall from one of the dinning room chairs and landed directly on her shoulder....She actually let out a really loud scream (out of character for Lila).....So I cuddle with her and checked her from broken bones......couldn't find any and off to play she went......off and on she would let out little cries but nothing too crazy, it was close to bed time so to bed she went......So this morning when she couldn't get up from sitting and couldn't climb up onto the couch I realized she was in more pain then she was leading on.....So off to Urgent Care we went.....After paying our $50 dollar co-pay (Love that we have insurance and co-pays are still ridiculous) and some arm exercises and an X-ray we learned that Miss Lila landed hard enough to almost, I say almost fracture her Clavicle (collar bone).....From the x-ray you can see how bent it is.....Ick! It looks totally painful and totally bent the wrong way.....I was hoping to put up her x-ray but my computer is not reading the disc, bummer......Ok after playing with the disc I figured it out....So if you look below at her left side (by the L) you can see how bent her collarbone is.....it certainly does not look like the other one....ICKY and OUCH!..Anyway so she is wearing a sling for the next week and taking Motrin and just waiting for it to heal on its own.....Fun for me.....Especially with Shawn away until Friday on business........Here are some shots of her today....

Crazy Impressed...

2008-10-19T20:05:00.004-05:00

So we just got back from a trip around the neighborhood and I must say I am absolutely impressed with all the Halloween decor out and about. It seems they go all out down here.....from giant fake spiders, to orange lights, to full window decor, to spooky yards, to scarecrows to you name it we have it here in the 'hood. I LOVE it, it is so festive! We of course have not done much (yes, we are one of the loser houses) but we will have our pumpkins out and what not before Halloween....and we are planning to go all out at Christmas....So I am already excited for Halloween, we have the perfect size neighborhood for Trick or Treating!.......Ok, just had to share how spirited our neighborhood is.....Spoooky!

Finally finding some time...

2008-10-18T18:57:00.003-05:00

So with Nanna and Sindy here the past week or so I really hadn't found time to blog, most of my computer time was spent working...but now all the house guests have gone and I have some free time to sit down and let you all know what we have been up too.....

We had a great visit with Nanna and Sindy, we tried a new Mexican place.....La Hacienda de Los Barrios.......Sindy has seen it on an episode of Bobby Flay's Throwdown so we had to check it out....The atmosphere was so awesome, the weather has been so great lately that we sat outside....They had live music outside (on a Tuesday) the girls loved it.....the food was pretty good too.....

This morning Shawn headed up to Austin with Joel to fly Ol' Crimson for ESPN College Gameday. It was the second week for Joel to fly it and so great that he asked Shawn to go help him since they are both lifelong Cougars....Here are a few pics from that...

Ol' Crimson CGD Austin, TX

So now that the girls have bikes and scooters that is about all we do when we go outside.....our nightly walks have become nightly bike rids....except that mom and dad need to invest in some bikes too and a buggie or something for Lila.....Kiara goes so fast that I need to start wearing my running shoes to keep up with her....it would be a nice jog and good exercise.....We are a bit out numbered in the sense that Lila HAS to WALK.....but MJ bikes at a slow pace so for the most part it works out....Kiara usually finishes with enough time to bike back to MJ.....Today I actually got her to stop and wait.....But she didn't like being slowed down.....Here are some pics of late.....Hope everyone is having a great weekend....

Fun around the 'Hood

4th Birthday Part 1 and 2.....

2008-10-08T21:16:00.002-05:00

So we made it home today....and made good time almost 11 hours....We did have one minor problem.....we lost our A/C in our car about an hour from our house....Lets just say I am not looking forward to that car maintenance bill....Ugh!....Oh well....we are happy to be home but man we had a great time with my dad and Ri....When we got home we were greeted with a Princess Decorated house for the girls....I like to call it part 2 of their birthday....Part one was at G-Dad and Ri's actually on the girls birthday...and did they have an awesome part 1....they had pancakes for breakfast...their favorite....they told me and G-Dad how they wanted their cake decorated....they received lots of wonderful gifts from family....and they even got to do a DORA like map to find their present from G-Dad and Ri.....which was hidden out in the shed....lets just say there were super surprised to find brand new bikes....they also got mini video cameras from Uncle Joe & Auntie Victoria & Kieren....along with some super cool outfits....and some games from mom and dad for family game night.......and Part 2 was equally as cool....the girls were surprised to see the house decorated and a Disney Princess cake....they also received some more really nice gifts both got different Razor Scooters from Grandma....and beautiful necklaces and jewelry boxes and an awesome homemade glass hot air balloon picture from Nana and Grandpa...and Barbie Diamond Castle dolls that sing from Uncle Joel......new dress up princess outfit and boots.....all of which they love....they also had a nice treat, Uncle Joel's friend Devin was here and played his violin for the girls....they LOVED IT.......All in all it was a great 4th birthday for both.....So here is some overkill of pics from party 1 and 2 and some New Mexico pics.....

Kiara and Mikiah's 4th Birthday Part 1-2

10,678 feet up.....

2008-10-06T20:47:00.005-05:00

Today we headed up to Sandia Crest. It is only about 20 min from my dads house.....It was a super pretty drive up to the top....they had a viewing area up there, snack bar and gift shop as well as trails, picnic areas and what not. It was very cool....you could see all of Albuqueque, NM below, there is also a tram that you can ride on from below on the ABQ side of the mountains......We actually went up there twice today because this morning there was cloud cover.....here are a few pics from today.....

This is from the morning.....

And here is the afternoon pic.....

And here are a few more pics....

Balloon Fiesta Time.....

2008-10-04T21:13:00.003-05:00

It was an early morning today.......we were up at 3.30am getting ready to head to the park and ride.....We actually made it out of the house by 4.30am and arrived to a park and ride filled with a sea of people and school buses.....it was totally organized and the line was moving pretty good...we got there at a great time and good thing we didn't get there any later....the girls were thrilled to take their first ride on a school bus.....they LOVED it....and were so excited when we got to the Balloon Fiesta....they were a little confused that it was still dark out but as soon as the sun came up they were greeted by a field of balloons and people.....We got to watch about 600 balloons take off and fly away.....the girls had such a great time.....they especially liked watching the Cow Balloon take off, we were actually right next to it and watched from laying it out to filling it up to it taking off.....It was just a fun filled atmosphere and great experience for all......I am still amazed at how great the girls were....they were wired, excited and good.....Sure are growing up......So I have overloaded the picture album......but there are just so many great shots.....We spent the rest of the day at G-Dad & Ri's relaxing and napping and what not.....looks like we may get some rain tonight and some good winds....

October 08

We finally made it to G-Dads.....

2008-10-03T17:54:00.003-05:00

Ahhh, so we rolled into my dads today around 3.00pm.....We left SA last night and stayed in West Texas.....finished the trip today......which beat doing it in one day.....although we will do that on the way home.....We are excited to be able to spend some quality time with G-Dad and Ri.....and also see the hot air balloons at the Balloon Fiesta.........The girls were pretty good in the car.....eyes glued to the DVD player.....we had a few potty break craziness and one of our children may have had to poop on the side of the road....sort of traumatic for MJ....but she did great.....(I totally meant to bring a travel potty and forgot).....Oh well....they are slowly learning that they have to go when we stop.......I must say it is nice for us to be on vacation!!! The girls of course can not wait until Tuesday, their 4th birthday......but are very excited for the balloons tomorrow.....I will hopefully be taking some pics soon to post.....

Don't Vote.......

2008-10-01T20:08:00.001-05:00

Get registered so you have a voice.....Texas deadline to register and be eligible to vote in the November 4, 2008 General Election is October 6, 2008.....most states are similar....do not miss your chance for change....

Ahhh, relaxing Sunday at home....

2008-09-28T12:23:00.006-05:00

I have mixed feelings about Sunday's.......Love relaxing but know that Monday is lurking around the corner and it is back to our weekly routines....we did not do much this weekend, which seems to be the way it has been lately....but that usually equals good family time at home.....I managed to sneak away yesterday and purchased the girls B-Day gifts, we ended up getting them a bunch of little stuff since the grandparents all purchased big stuff.......I am really excited...I even wrapped it all last night and got it ready to take to G-Dad's house...it will be fun, we are doing a Hot Air Balloon Family Party at my dads and then when we get back we are doing a Princess Party with Nanna and Uncle Joel.....The girls sure do love the Disney Princesses....they are so much more "Girly" then I was....Too Fun....

So a funny thing happened today....the girls found their wrapped presents in our bedroom closet.....and I was like "Yup, those are them, do not open them".....the girls were cool with that and left the closet......well probably about 4-5 hours later, I am making dinner, Shawn and Uncle Joel are watching football, and the girls were supposed to be resting and watching one of their shows in mom and dads room....Well, Kiara comes out to the kitchen and says "I told Mikiah not to open it mommy but she didn't listen.".......Mom responds with "Open what? One of her presents?".......Kiara, "Yeah, she opened one"......So I go into my bedroom, through the bathroom to our walk in closet with MJ screaming and crying while holding one of her presents......and yes she did open 2 and Kiara admitted to opening one......You could tell by the look on Mikiah's face and the sounds of her cries that she was very upset and totally knew she did something she wasn't supposed too.....Well in the end they both got time outs, to cool off and both apologized to Mommy and Daddy.....So now I have to find boxes to put the stuff in and re-wrap it....I am kind of kicking myself as I should have put them up a bit higher, oh well.....it made for an interesting afternoon.....

After a yummy Sunday Spaghetti dinner with homemade bread and a little post dinner rest.....we took a walk around the 'hood, I must say it is nice to have it a little cooler out, but the day light is getting shorter......it was dark by the time we got back to the house and it wasn't even 7.45pm....I suppose it is that time of year.....Well I am off to watch some TV and wind down before bed.....It's back to the gym in the early AM for me.....

A Day at the SA Children's Museum.....

2008-09-26T12:51:00.003-05:00

So what great a morning we have had.....The girls awoke to find their daddy home....lets just say all were elated and soooo glad he was back. The twins are totally daddy's girls.....so cute...it was a busy morning of getting up and getting us all out of the house to take daddy to work and head downtown to the Children's Museum.....we made it just in time.....so glad the girls are liking Cereal Bars again, as they were able to eat in the car on the way down....I must tell you my girls can it a box of cereal bars in a day.....8 bars gone like that! I was glad to see many of my MOPS Moms there as I was not sure who all was going to be there....Always fun to get to know each of them better and learn names....although trying to remember kids names and parents names can be challenging.....

The Museum was fun for the kids, worth the price we paid, which was cheaper then the rates cause of the group rate......I was disappointed that the HEB Kids Market was not opened yet, but just another excuse to head back down......I think it will be pretty cool for the girls, with as much as they are into cooking and grocery shopping.....but even without it the girls had a great time playing and learning.....we only had 1-2 instances of listening problems.....but what can you do when there is soooooo much to play with....and so much to see....Lila did great to, my little walker, she did NOT want to get in the stroller on our way from the car there, but nothing a little cereal bar couldn't change.....Yes, I bribed her with food to ride in the stroller.....I know I know....it won't last long....So here is an album from today and some pics of late.......not my best pics, but you get the general idea....Afterwards we headed to McD's for lunch and playtime in the big huge tubes....Kiara had a hard time going through the netted areas but was so proud of herself when she made it through....She knew she could do it....

Children's Museum Sept 08

I hope everyone has great weekends.....I will be out and about shopping for the twins birthday gifts and decor (I am so excited for it, I know I am crazy) and what not and getting the house picked up and cleaned.....We head out to ABQ on Thurs for the Hot Air Balloon Festival...and when we get back Miss Nanna will be here....man I can not wait, 3 crazy weeks ahead and maybe even an overnight downtown with Nanna and Sindy!!! Lastly.....Grandma Paula, just want you to know we are thinking about you today....all is going to be great! Wish we could be there with you........

Random Post about Antiperspirant.....

2008-09-24T13:24:00.002-05:00

So after 16+ years or so of being a Secret Deodorant user I have been forced to switch to another brand....Why do you ask....Well, because I can not find my deodorant down here anymore......Secret has switched the formula or something and the new stuff replacing my ol'favorite is just crap!...

I use to use Secret Conditioning Solid Powder Fresh, you know the soft solid that after 2 clicks it comes up through the hundreds of holes on top and dries to invisible....good for tank tops and all.......Well the replacement at least down here seems to be Secret Flawless Touch w/Olay Smooth Powder......So where should I start....the scent, is different....but I was getting use to it....The size was the same, but for some reason didn't last nearly as long as the old one....the hundreds of holes were gone and replaced by 10 leaf shaped bigger holes....at first I was like ok, seems like a a lot of deodorant, hence less clicking.....but then after using it a couple times I noticed the deodorant on the top of the huge holes would crust and form sharp crusty deodorant flakes, let me tell you, doesn't feel good on the underarms when you are applying deodorant....let alone all the crap falling onto the floor......So I sucked it up, picked off the top of the holes a few times until it was gone and went to find my old favorite......I couldn't find it anywhere.....UGH....the only other secret I like and that works for me is original, but down here with the tanks I wear ALL the time.....I really need something that goes on smooth and invisible......(Secrets Invisible Solid doesn't work for me neither does their clear)...So I am not going to reveal what I switched too, but if it works like crap then it probably too will be blogged about........I just miss my Secret.....

Another week has started.....

2008-09-23T08:29:00.004-05:00

Well here it is already Tuesday morning.....Shawn is gone until Thursday for work, so it's just us ladies here at the house.....We have not been up to too much......We spent most of the morning yesterday completely cleaning out the girls playroom closet...What a chore.....it was a total mess...and getting to the point where when you open the door you had to wonder if something was going fall out on you.....Anyway, the girls did help and did a great job.....and of course found tons of toys they hadn't played with in awhile....They have been wanting to have a play date at our house and I keep telling them that they need to help clean the playroom and their bedroom before we can have anyone over....So this morning we will be heading upstairs to do some more picking up.....I know how boring....But it will feel good to get it all cleaned once again....Now if they could just keep remembering to put things back where they got them....We are getting there....

Its funny, whenever daddy goes out of town I usually plan an ultra kid friendly menu....Not sure why I wait until he leaves....but it's been fun......last night the girls and I made homemade chicken strips, with the Capt-n-Crunch breading, and instead of frying we baked them and man, they turned out good....Kiara ate probably 5 chicken tenders....and I just love the Creole Mustard....They are all looking forward to tonight's dinner 'cause we will be in the kitchen making pizza pockets....its from their Juniors Cookbook, MJ picked it out, so she is even more excited....So funny.....They all, including Lila, love being in the kitchen with mommy....and I love it too......The girls made a cake on Sunday, with a little help from me, but they decided how to decorate it, hence the M&M's on top.....and no frosting on the sides....It turned out pretty good....

Silly Sticker Saturday...

2008-09-20T14:01:00.004-05:00

So the girls have been getting a bunch of stickers lately from Nanna and Grandma Paula. They are usually really good with them and like to stick them to paper or art projects.....Ok, there was this one time when I went into the bathroom and they stickered the whole wall, let me tell you not fun trying to take them all off.....Well today they received more stickers in the mail.....Kiara called them "Smiling Bouncy Ball" Stickers.....They were colorful smiley faces....so instead of sticking on paper they stuck them on themselves.....

The best is after this picture they stuck them all over Shawn's legs....I totally miss the picture opportunity but it was pretty funny....

UPDATED: They have now found the stash of stickers and they are now covered in pumpkin stickers.....Oh Boy!

Smart Cookie, maybe?......

2008-09-18T08:57:00.006-05:00

So I am sure most other moms have noticed this with your second/third born. But Lila seems so much more advanced then when the twins were her age. I supposed this is accredited to the fact that she has two older siblings who I must say are great teachers. I just feel that Lila talks more, knows more, figures things out better and more advanced then the Kiara and MJ were at 18 months.....

Little example: She has been having a running nose lately and so I hear her say "Ut-oh" and then I watch her climb up the 3 stairs to the landing where she points up to the tissue box and says "This, Mommy".....while still pointing until I come and get her a tissue, which she uses herself to wipe her nose and then continues on to throw the tissue in the garbage.

I wish I could think of more examples, but she is just a talker.....She can point out all her features and say most of them.....Nose, mouth (which is her favorite to say), eyes, ears, hair, fingers......I actually love this game as it usually comes her down when she is upset.....

So it's been a bummer around here with the kids and their colds....I have had to cancel two play dates....I hate not being able to get out of the house when the kids are sick.....but they need their rest.....Hopefully they will be over them soon.....but it has allowed me to get more work done which is nice.....and I made it to the gym this morning (I have slacked the last two, Ugh) which was rewarding as usual......We seriously have not been up to much....I would say we are having a boring week down here.....Colds will do that....

I will tell you one of my new guilty pleasures......Facebook.......Yeah, you heard me right....I thought I would never sign up for a social networking group.....but I caved and have caught up with so many friends from the past....I must say it's been nice too reconnect!.....

So I am with Molly as I do not like to post w/o pics.....So I will leave you with Lila, these are from a few days ago.......She is eating Cheerios with milk.....and I must say she is very good at it....and likes the change in her breakfast......if I give her a bowl with out milk, she will look at me and say "milk".......So funny!

It never fails....

2008-09-15T09:05:00.005-05:00

So all the girls have little colds on this Monday morning....MJ was coming down with one on Saturday, I suppose I should have known that they would all be getting them....I tell you it never fails that my girls catch something when they are out with other kids....I assume they caught this one from Thursday outing/classroom time......Oh well what can you do....

We had a good weekend with Grandpa Harper even though we didn't make it to the game. We also did not receive any bad weather from Ike....which is good. Although I suppose I will have to actually water the lawn this week.....We pretty much stayed in most of the weekend....the boys played some beer die, Joel's friend Travis was in town on his way to Panama....So it was two on too with Gramps playing....Boys will be boys I suppose.....it totally drained them and they all took an afternoon siesta....all that heat and beer.....

Here is pic of Lila stepping up in the kitchen....She is following her sisters lead by wanting to help cook....here she is stirring some pancake batter.....she reminds me of the twins when they were younger, always wanting on the counter to help.....

And here we are with a little Coug spirit......ok, they played terrible!

.....and Grandpa outside (it really wasn't 120 degrees, but it was 101 on Saturday).....

Uncle Joel with Travis.....

Lesson in Watercolor......

2008-09-12T16:02:00.006-05:00

So I took this video about a week ago.....I just downloaded from my camera. MJ is very creative and she actually painted some amazing pics, a few that we will be framing....The best part is that she names all of them....some of the one's she painted this day were "The Storm"....."The Fog"....."A Different Fog"......she was pretty cute! One day I get a video camera...so sorry about the quality....

Kiara LOVES to wear my shoes...I should do a post of her posing in different ones....she even puts on my tall boots....SO funny....Here is Texas Princess Pic.....Miss Lila has become very particular these days and will now only eat bananas out of the peel....She cracks me up daily....She also LOVES to scream.....this is her standing on the table screaming and then laughing...Silly girl....

Let the waterworks and screaming begin.....

2008-09-11T15:34:00.002-05:00

Oh Man....So today was our first MOPS meeting.....I had a great time and love my discussion group and look forward to getting to know the moms in it.....The twins were great when I dropped them off at their classroom, I think I barely got a good bye look.....They are getting so independent.....I love it! Lila on the other hand was not so 'good'......She started screaming from the moment I dropped her off (you have to remember she is my HEADstrong one and most vocal)....I walked away and left her.....about 10 min later I was called back to the room, Lila decided to scream on the floor and not let anyone pick her up....Can I just tell you she was screaming loud enough to disrupt most of the classrooms......So I grabbed her and cuddled for a min, she calmed down and then handed her over to the Classroom Leader and then all 3 of us walked outside for a few min and then I just walked away, with Lila crying and me tearing up, and went inside...I am still not sure why I was tearing up, suppose it was just all the emotion built up......I figured I would get paged at least once, but NOPE, no pages for me.....When I went to pick her up she was playing in the room.....Of course she cried the minute she saw me.....but oh well. I talked to the Classroom Leaders and they said Lila finally did calm down outside and that she took a nap and read some books in the library and finally went and played in the classroom.....Hopefully next time she will be a little more use to it.....I may have to take her to the gym with me over the next month and see how she does at Kids Club.....She is such a Momma's girl....it actually drives me a bit insane!

After our MOPS we headed out to Chick-fil-A for lunch....another good time for the kiddos to play and burn off some energy....and socialize with other mommy's....Can I tell you how nice that is....I think the coffee nights and play dates are going to be so much fun for all.....

So Hurricane Ike had tromped on some of our weekend plans....we will no longer be going to the WSU v Baylor Football game....they have moved it to tomorrow night at 7.30pm, and with Shawn working and trying to get up there and back before the storms is just not a possibility.....Grandpa Harper is still coming in tomorrow, he just may have to stay and extra few days....I am sure he won't mind (Wink! Wink!)......We are looking forward to spending some QT with him......I know the girls can not stop talking about it!.......

Exercise walks no more.....

2008-09-09T11:20:00.004-05:00

So my morning walks with the kiddos are becoming less about me getting a good walk in and more about the kids, which is what it should be.....Miss Lila has become "Miss Independent"......The minute I mention stroller or wagon she is like "NO!".....and its not a polite 'No', it's a scream at the top of her lungs "NO!!"......which I must say has become her new favorite word along with "Hi Daddy" & "Hi Mommy"....what's funny about the last two is she says them in passing, like Hi but I am too busy to talk to you....it's pretty cute....Anyway so the girls and I were on our walk this morning, all 3 actually walking.....and we ran into our friend Rachel and her girls (she also has 3 daughters, one who is 4 one who is 3 and their baby girl is 5 months)...they were playing outside......so we stopped and played at their house for a while.......it was good for all the girls. We all had a great time....and will have to have them over soon to play. Her and her husband are actually building a day care center next to our neighborhood.....so pretty soon she will be a busy lady.....

My other friend in the 'hood Sarah asked me to sign up for a Mother's of Preschoolers group, she is on the steering committee........from talking with her it sounds like a great opportunity to see guest speakers with other moms about motherhood topics and other life stuff......they meet once a month for about 3 hours.....they provide childcare for the kids.....so I signed up and I am looking forward to the first meeting/class on Thursday AM.....The twins are totally thrilled to get to play with their friend Naomi but also are looking forward to meeting a lot of other kids......I guess so far there are 45 moms already signed up.....Should be interesting.....one of the cool things is the stuff they do outside of the once a month meetings.......the do coffee nights and play dates.....I am hoping to meet some other nice moms.....

Well Grandpa will be here on Friday, he is flying in for the WSU v Baylor game....we are heading up to Waco on Saturday morning and staying the night up there (about 3 hours north of here).....We are very excited and the girls can not wait to put on their cheer leading outfits.....Well I am off to watch True Blood, we recorded it and I am curious to see how it is going to be as I usually am not into Vampire stuff, but I really do LOVE Alan Ball, he did Six Feet Under, which is still one of my favorite shows.....

A day to get things done....

2008-09-04T21:37:00.003-05:00

Well, I am finally sitting down in a quiet house....Shawn will be back from his trip in about 2 hours...I usually try to get a lot done while he is gone but not this time.....I could get up right now and straighten the living room but I think I will just enjoy the quiet....

I had a sort of busy day just getting little things done.....I got up and went to the Public Safety office to get a new license...(Thanks Uncle Joel for watching the kiddos!)...there is always a LONG line there and I find it discouraging when I get there, but pleasantly surprised when I was only there for an hour....So my new drivers license will be here in 2-4 weeks....(Hello!!, that is a long time, where do they print them, China?)....So I have a stupid paper ID that has no picture....Lame. I also finally ordered a new cell phone....I hate paying full price for phones so I was putting if off, I usually do the upgrade every 2 years.....I think I only got $20 off the retail price on the phone I ordered, better then nothing off.......oh well, suppose that's what I get for not getting phone maintenance....So my new phone will be here soon, 4 days or so....I can not tell you how strange it is not to have one....and boy, I am not looking forward to inputting all the numbers again, I haven't done that in 6 years.....I also managed to pull out my old Coach purse today, its a bit dirty and old, I have had it since I was pregnant with the twins....I suppose it will do until I can afford to justify buying a new purse....So all in things in my life are pretty much back to normal after last week...

I want to send a Birthday Wish to Nana....Happy Birthday!!! We sure miss seeing you on your birthday and hope it was wonderful!......Well, I am off.....Hope everyone has a great Friday....

Bigger in Texas.....

2008-08-30T22:33:00.004-05:00

WOW, that's about all I can say about my experience today. I am completely impressed with Longhorn Football.....So we ventured out today to our first UT game...and let me tell you, it was awesome....We were up in the nosebleeds but still, the people, the stadium, the atmosphere, everything about it was just over the top....the stadium is HUGE....not as big as the Rose Bowl, but still HUGE.....it holds 94k or so, not a seat in the house empty.....and it had the biggest jumbo screen I have ever seen...

"The scoreboard is the nation's largest high-definition video display board thanks to DAKtronics. The $8-million Prostar Video Board is 55 feet high by 134 feet wide and will offer complete flexibility, with the capability to show one large single video image, multiple video images, and a combination of live or recorded video with real time scores and stats, out of town game information, sponsors' messages, graphics and animation." (Source)

The twins did great....they even hiked up all those stairs.....and ramps.....and escalators....Lila got to ride on moms back (I am still in love with my Ergo Carrier)......they were all great for the 1st quarter.....Mom and Lila spent most of the 2nd quarter roaming around one of the lower decks as Miss Lila can be an antsy pantsy these days.......we left around 1/2 time and I must say I am proud of the girls for making it that long.....definitely a good warm up game for the Cougar/Baylor game coming up, which of course I hope they can all make it the whole game

Sick to my stomach.....

2008-08-27T15:10:00.006-05:00

So after a morning from hell, due a little bit to my own stupidity....I am trying to think about eating some food and actually parenting my kids instead of sticking them in front of the TV for the last few hours.....So I suppose I should elaborate a bit...

The morning started like any other.....the girls and I got ready to hit the library......We arrived at 9.45am or so....maybe closer to 10am......We got out of the car and I decided to hide my purse in the car, since I was toting 3 kids and 17 library books.....and knew that I really only needed my library card.....well that was my first mistake......and then I locked the doors to the car, double checking that they were locked by hitting it twice to hear the horn....off into the library we went.....about 30 min later we come back get in and get ready to leave, when I realize my purse was missing.....so I look all over the car and its not where I left it.....no windows broken....I run inside to see if anyone turned in a lost purse....Nope....talk to the security lady (who was outside, supposedly watching the parking lot) and nope she didn't see anything....Ugh...so I go back to the car and take a look at the locks on the door and that is when I saw it.....my driver's side door had been jimmied with a screw driver.....So I borrowed the security lady's phone and we called the police....OK, it took them over and hour to get there.....Seriously, 3 screaming kids by the time they arrived.....and what a let down....wrote a report and went on his way....while waiting for his arrival, I called the bank and of course a charge had just been posted for some stereo shop in SA....I told them that wasn't mine, card was stolen around 10 am central time......so we checked a few other charges....and there was only one more that wasn't mine....but anyway got the card canceled and account canceled....and of course will not be responsible for those charges.....After the police report was filed, I headed home an made all the other calls to all my credit cards, cell phone service (can you believe when my mom called my cell phone the guy had the nerve to answer, it has since been turned off), the credit report people to put a fraud alert on my stuff, and of course the bank again to see if there were any more charges to be disputed.....I feel so violated and pissed at myself at the same time.....It was the one time were I was like, "You know its the library and I am only going in for a few mins, my purse will be fine, the doors are locked, we have an alarm....".....I could scream right now......And get this I still have to pay $10 to get a new drivers license.....are you kidding me......I suppose I have learned my lesson of leaving anything of value in the car......I will miss my beautiful Dooney Bourke Purse and Wallet and my iPod shuffle and my Crazer Cell Phone.......but then again its just stuff.....I am thankful that the girls and I did not come out of the library while the act was in progress.....I can't even think about what could have happened....

So I called the Audio place (yeah I am a super sleuth and found the number) where my card was used and the "Shady" Guy on the phone was like, "Oh man they just left, white suv, expedition maybe, they put in a new stereo and got it installed"....He said he was a big guy maybe of Mexican decent with a woman.....and I was like so he really looked like 'Kaelee Harper?'.....you have got to be kidding me....I am guessing the shady clerk is probably in on it anyway.....considering they have camera's but they are "broken".....Oh and I called the police to forward the info and sure enough my officer has not called me back....Shocker! Even if the guy is telling false info he still saw the people.....they could at least check it out....I mean I know I am not going to get anything back but I would just like someone to catch this bastard.....sorry for the bad language.....I am just upset.....(mostly at myself).....

So word the wise.....nothing is ever safe! Here is to a better day tomorrow....hopefully......Shawn did catch and earlier flight home, so that is good.....I am gonna read the kids a book.....

Some of the best lessons....

2008-08-26T18:09:00.004-05:00

I must say some of the best lessons on parenting are taught by our children....as I was reminded by today....So with daddy gone I decided that it would be fun to totally focus on the kids for dinner.....picking things that they would think were fun to eat but also something new....Now, I have to say when I decide to eat "Junk" food we go all out and get it done with and then go back to eating healthy the next day.....On the menu tonight was crescent dogs, tater tots w/3 dipping sauces and brownies....Yup, you read it right, nothing green in there at all, we were totally bad!

So the kiddos helped me assemble everything and here is where a life lesson was taught again to me by Mikiah, we were rolling up the dogs and I was a little frustrated that a few were not perfect (indeed I can be a perfectionist in the kitchen) and so MJ says "Its ok Mommy, they will still cook fine!"......You know she is right, relax mommy, let the kids do it there way and learn hands on, leave your perfection hat at the door!.......She was so sweet, and I do love having them help me in the kitchen, she just reminded me again about patience and perfection.....I need a lot of one and not so much of the other.....Look at these little sous chefs....

The girls loved dinner and we are all full, although we all agreed no cheese next time....but it was still good...I may need to hit the gym a little harder but it was all worth it...So fun! Daddy was well missed at dinner.....but hey more brownies for the rest of us!!! Hee hee!

Take me with you......

2008-08-25T13:23:00.006-05:00

.....Definitely on the minds of Lila and me for different reason I am sure....Shawn headed out this afternoon for Dallas....he will be back on Wednesday afternoon......so just a short trip this week and another one next week.......Sales training......Fun for him to get away for a little bit.....Lila really wanted to go with him.....jelly face and all....

Daddy please take me with you?

Pretty Please.......See I fit.....

I must say I enjoy Shawn's little trips.....it helps me get some much needed me time.....although this trip Joel and Mayday are here....but Mayday is recovering well and pretty much back to his normal self.....so not sure how much longer they will be here.....but its all good cause Shawn will be gone again next week.....like I was saying it will be nice to catch up on my shows that I haven't been able to watch lately....Holy NCAA Football Game and Preseason NFL.....don't get me wrong I like watching the NFL, but could do with out the preseason games....I find them Lame!.....Why do the pros need preseason anyway, I mean they are pros after all, isn't that what the off season is for!........Oh well, I do not have too much planned while daddy is away, library for the kiddos....the gym for me and the kids (gotta love the kids club)....and maybe even the park.....the kids want to paint daddy some pictures while he is gone so I suppose we will do that too....Ahhh well it is Monday and I am off to do some work while the kids are resting.......

For the Grandparents....

2008-08-23T18:45:00.004-05:00

So here is a slightly boring video Miss Lila eating some Spaghetti....some may find quite boring....But as mommy I could watch several times....Nice to know my daughter loves spaghetti as much as I do....I tried to get her to do her 'MMMMMmmm' face, which is really funny.....maybe another time...

Can we please ban these from TV......

2008-08-23T08:59:00.002-05:00

So Kiara asked me today if I needed Levitra? Its 9.00 am, Shawn and I are watching MSNBC catching up on politics and she walks in the room, hears the commercial on TV and then innocently asks me the question......My answer....No honey those pills are not for women....she quickly responds with "Oh, ok mommy, Daddy do you need Levitra?".....Oh man...."No, No Kiara I do not need those either".....Obviously she doesn't know what they are (a drug for ED) but this roots a bigger issue....Do we really need to SEE drug adds on TV......What happened to the days of old when you go to you Doctor talk about your issues and they come up with a solution or medication to treat the ailments......Is TV really the place for these ads?.....I mean I get it, drug companies our out to make money, but seriously the US has banned Hard Alcohol Ads on TV aren't some of these drugs just as dangerous....and not to mention our drugged society.....America is the most medicated country in the world....something we should not be proud of....I would have to think that these ads have a little bit to do with it.......Ok, Ok, I am totally rambling now.....but you see my point?

"American Prayer".....

2008-08-22T12:55:00.005-05:00

Well it's been awhile since I have posted anything that may have to do with Barack Obama's Presidential campaign....but I wanted to share this vid, British artist Dave Stewart co-wrote the song with Bono....With the Democratic National convention next week....I felt this was appropriate to post today.....Here is to Change and restoring Hope in America.....Obama 08!

The shoes are here.....

2008-08-21T16:33:00.003-05:00

As you can see from the new title pic MJ's shoes finally arrived....She loves them....and of course hers are the pink ones....I too ended up ordering a pair....I must say I really like these shoes and they are great for slipping on and running around.......and can I tell you how light they are....wow.....time to retire my old slip-ons......here is the totally cheesy picture I promised....At least we all have different taste!

Gotta Love Texas Rain.....

2008-08-19T18:53:00.009-05:00

Wow, today was a wild one for weather, amidst the upper 80s we had today was down pouring hot rain.....I must say I love it.....it usually lasts 10-15 min and the Poof, blue skies, sunny and muggy....So during one of the rain storms we had a little bit of fun with some rainy day activities......The girls were begging me to get out the finger paints and so we did.....I am always amazed at how fast they do some activities....I think they were done finger painting in 10 minutes top.....So funny....but I must say Lila did well with her first finger painting experience....she only tried to eat the paint once......
Lila's big excitement today was that I moved her from her high chair to a booster seat at the table.....She LOVES it.....No more dumping food or spilling her milk all over the place.....it is nice....she even likes her snacks in her booster.....
Other then my work out early AM, walk around the 'hood with the kids, art projects and work.......we didn't do too much else.....Lila did try to help empty the dishwasher.....Yes, she is standing ON the dishwasher door.......
Mayday is finally out of the Vet Hospital..........He had one of his back legs removed on Friday and since Joel's place is 3 flights up they both will be staying with us for a week or two, living downstairs.......For those that didn't know Mayday has a type of bone cancer and this operation will alleviate 100% of his pain and hopefully help him live a few more years.....We are happy to have Mayday here recouping.....I mean who can resist this face......