Wilderness vacation

We just got back from our big wilderness vacation at Toledo Bend Lake--I don't think we can call it a real camping trip, since we stayed in an air-conditioned cabin followed by a golf resort. But we were in the woods and there was some outdoor fun.

We started on Tuesday with a group of 22--12 adults and 10 children. No, that wasn't the family reunion. That's just Shannon's brothers and sisters and their spouses and kids. The kids were ages 8, two almost 5, one almost 4, two 3, three 1, and one 8 weeks. We stayed in a large cabin that was just made for us. It had five bedrooms with eleven beds, so we could all be together but not on top of each other. The kids played all over the place and made as much noise as they wanted and the adults enjoyed talking and watching the kids play and napping. The perfect vacation, I say. Rebekah was thrilled to be with her cousins. Annabelle was less thrilled, I think, mostly because she seemed to suspect that every time another toddler approached her it was with the intent to take her toy/book/food/sippy cup. But the toddlers got along fine, as did the big kids. And we got to meet baby Kalyn for the first time.



Rebekah went fishing and caught her first fish. Make that her first FIVE fishes! She wasn't afraid to touch it and she threw several back in the water herself. All the big kids caught fish, and of course, the grown-up kids did, too. Kyra, Grace, and Annabelle kept trying to jump in the lake while their older siblings fished.


On Friday, we all moved to the Cypress Bend Golf Resort for the family reunion. That was quite a change from the cabin, so we got two vacations in one. Shannon and his brothers went golfing Friday afternoon and then we went to see a less-than-spectacular fireworks show. But it was Rebekah's first time to see fireworks, so she was happy with it.

On Saturday Rebekah and I walked on their nature trail so that she could collect things in her pouch. She came home with a few sticks, some rocks, some hickory nuts, a tiny pine cone, and two snail shells, with the help of her new favorite person, Aunt Betty. (Rebekah says, "That Miss Betty sure is a sweet lady" And that little Rebekah sure has mastered the Southern vernacular in her short life.)



Saturday evening we met met at the lake for a picnic, and then all converged on the hotel swimming pool. Rebekah discovered "Safety Floats," which we always called Water Wings, and she was happy to be able to swim all over the pool without feeling scared. Annabelle is afraid of nothing, and she jumped into the pool at least a dozen times before eating her weight in watermelon, seeds included. After swimming, we put the kids to bed and those adults who weren't watching sleeping children when to the hotel lounge for Karaoke. By the end of the night, even Shannon got up to sing the theme song to "Smokey and the Bandit."

Happy Mother's Day

I had a nice Mother's Day and I hope all of the mothers out there did, too.

We finally had Annabelle's baby dedication at church yesterday. She and Rebekah wore matching pink rose dresses with pink sashes--they were beautiful. Annabelle did very well when the pastor held her, and Rebekah stood beside us and spoke when the pastor asked her about her sister. We were proud of them. After church we had lunch with our friends Courtney and Tom and their girls Eliza and Hannah, who had come to church with us.

Rebekah signed her own name on the card that she picked out herself. I also got wine, chocolate, and flowers. Instead of buying a pre-made bouquet, Shannon and Rebekah chose the flowers individually to create a bouquet just for me. They had fun on their pre-Mother's Day outing.

For Rebekah and Annabelle's grandmothers and great-grandmothers I made a CD of Rebekah singing (we got Annabelle on there a little, too). She made up most of the songs herself, and I know it will have them laughing.

Spring Break Adventures

We had a great family vacation over Spring Break. We started out on Friday night, March 10, but we got out a little later than planned. Annabelle had to have a bath after she decided to turn herself into Miss Tomato Head at dinner. The girls slept almost the whole way to Arlington, and when we got there Mom and Dad were there to meet us. Annabelle didn't need any time to warm up--she went straight to her Granmommy and Papaw.

On Saturday morning, we went to the Dallas Arboretum for the Dallas Blooms festival. We had to stop Rebekah from climbing right into the flower beds. They had an artisans' show where we bought a glass ladybug necklace for Rebekah, and the gardens gave us some ideas for our own flower beds. We especially liked the Women's Garden, which had beautiful statues and water features. There was a Texas frontier town set up, and Rebekah enjoyed exploring the little houses. They had a display of bonsai trees, and three of us voted for Best in Show. Rebekah chose a tiny one with no leaves for Best in Show--I guess she thought it needed some encouragement.


We left the gardens to meet Mom and Dad back in Arlington for lunch at Spaghetti Warehouse, but we had a little trouble getting there. We had just bought a Tom-Tom GPS to help us get around, and we used the restaurant location that was already programmed in. Well, instead of Spaghetti Warehouse, Tom-Tom took us to an ACTUAL WAREHOUSE. So much for Tom-Tom.
After lunch, we went swimming in the indoor pool, which was our main reason for choosing that hotel. We walked to Joe's Crab Shack for dinner that night, and Rebekah got up and danced with all the waiters.

On Sunday, on the suggestion of Dad and Shannon, we went shopping at Cosco--only they would think of Cosco as a vacation destination--and then Mom and Dad went home. The four of us then went to the Dallas Zoo. Rebekah's favorite part of the zoo was the parrots, the carousel, and the giant tortoises. Annabelle was more interested in the french fries from the snack bar. That evening we went to Dealy Plaza so Shannon could see where Kennedy was assassinated. Shannon was awed by the historical significance of the place while the girls were happy to frolic on the grassy knoll.

On Monday we went to the Dallas Museum of Nature and Science. They had a dinosaur exhibit that included a simulated fossil dig for the kids. It was actually the first time that Shannon had ever seen real dinosaur bones, too. Rebekah was impressed with the giant prehistoric sea turtle that was suspended from the ceiling. Comparing it to the tortoises she had seen at the zoo, she said, "Mommy! That biggest turtle can fly!" After the museum, we spent the night at Derek's house and visited his church. We drove home on Tuesday.

Wednesday, to extend our vacation even further, we went to the Aggie baseball game. Before the game, we went shopping to outfit ourselves in Aggie shirts, and Rebekah picked out hats for the two of us. We all had a good time watching the game and cheering for the Ags.

By Thursday, Annabelle had another ear infection, so we didn't make it to the art museum as planned. On Saturday, Rebekah and I went to Michael's for a kids' craft day where she made a collection of ladybugs and a magic wand. Speaking of making stuff, here are the invitations to Annabelle's birthday party (with our address covered for the sake of the internet).

first sleepover and first theater experience

Rebekah had her first sleepover last weekend. Her sleepover friend Hannah, who is nine years old, brought along her baby sister Eliza for a few hours while their parents went out to eat, and all four of the girls played dress-up together for a long time. The favorite game of the big girls, though, was getting inside the collapsible cooler and rolling each other around the room. The next morning Tom and Courtney came to pick up Hannah, and we all had breakfast together. My culinary skills impressed all, and I was officially named Waffle Queen.

Later on Saturday night, Rebekah and I joined my friend Rochelle and her children Nicolas and Sophia, also favorite playmates of Rebekah, to see a production of "The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley." The kids liked the play, but the two girls were concerned about how flat poor Stanley was, and they very much wanted him to round back out again. They were also strangely concerned about a puppet show that came on before the play--it caused more worry than entertainment, I think. You never can predict how a child will react to new things.

On Sunday, Shannon and Tom went to see Arkansas play Ohio State at the Aggie baseball field as part of a tournament that A&M hosts every year. We plan on taking the kids to an Aggie game next week, another first for both of them.
When Shannon got back, he took Rebekah shopping and got her some rain boots. To say she is excited about those is a real understatement. She jumped around outside begging the sky to rain, and sure enough, the next day she got her rain. She was a happy little puddle jumper.

Next week is Spring Break, and we have many more adventures planned. Annabelle's first trip to the zoo (Rebekah's third), and for both of them, their first science museum and first art museum.

pictures to go with the last post

Here are the pictures that I promised in my last post.


Rebekah in her fancy dress setting out the break-and-bake cookies.

Rebekah making valentines for the home-bound church members.

A card I made for my grandmother out of candy boxes.

Rebekah and Shannon working in the yard.

Rebekah's poison oak on her chin and her cheek (you might have to click on the picture to see it).

Shannon's poison oak on his arm.

And because it would be criminal to let this post go up with no picture of Annabelle, here is her first ice cream experience. She stole my cone and smushed her little face right into it. She thought it was especially funny when I took a bite while she was holding it.

ear infections and poison oak--oh, and Valentine's Day

I'm blogging at work because I've been too busy and tired to do this at home. That also means I don't have all my pictures with me. I'll have to add them later to illustrate this post.

Illnesses
We all seem to have recovered from our various ailments. Annabelle had it worst because she had an ear infection that lasted almost a month. It took three rounds of antibiotics to finally get it better. Now she is well and back to her joyful little self.

Valentine's Day
Rebekah loved Valentine's Day. We went to the church party again, where she passed out valentines to the other children and also made cards for the people who can't get out of their homes to go to church. On Valentine's Day, she came home from preschool and put on her fanciest dress to celebrate the occasion. She wasn't quite ready when Shannon got home, and she actually started crying because she wanted to look just right for her daddy. He had to wait outside until she was dressed and then we let him in with the flowers he brought for all of us. I cooked shrimp scampi, at which Rebekah initially turned up her nose. When I told her it was a special Valentine's dinner, she changed her mind and dug in, exclaiming "This is the best Valentine's dinner I ever had!" After dinner we made some "Break and Bake" cookies.

Yard Work
Shannon and Rebekah spent some time working in the yard over the weekend. She swept the porch, and they both raked and bagged leaves. The result was a nice, clean yard and two cases of poison oak. It's always something, right? Not to worry--they are healing and not too itchy anymore. I had no problems because, as much as I love raking and sweeping and bagging dirty scratchy leaves, I had to stay in the house with the baby.

Walking?
Annabelle has taken seven steps in a row, but we have not yet convinced her to repeat the performance. She doesn't fall down when she tries to walk; she simply refuses to walk. She takes a few steps, then changes her mind and crawls. But no hurry. She's only ten months old, so we're impressed with her mobility as it is. And finally, after months of only two teeth, she has a third, with a fourth soon to follow.

That wraps up our adventures over the past few weeks. Except I should add that I absolutely love the class I'm teaching right now. My students are fantastic. Hopefully we'll have more reports of good health and no rashes over the coming weeks.

the plague

We've had it rough the past few weeks. Annabelle had an ear infection, followed by another cold, followed by another ear infection, and just when we thought we were out of the woods, she caught a stomach virus. Yesterday Annabelle was doing well, so I was expecting to get back to work, but at 3:00 a.m. Rebekah came into my room to tell me that she was sick. She spent the wee hours of the morning sick and is home now with the stomach virus. Shannon got the flu, which caused him to get bronchitis, and he is just now feeling better. Since he had to take several sick days for himself, he hasn't been able to stay home with the kids, so I've missed two full weeks of work. I've had a bad cold, but I'm starting to feel better. I just hope I don't get the stomach bug, too. So that's what's going on in our lives--sick, sick, sick.

sick day sewing projects

Annabelle is sick today, so I'm staying home with her. I can't get too much school work done while also watching her, but I did throw together a couple of quick sewing projects. I took a pair of pants Shannon was getting rid of and made stuff out of the legs. I made a laptop sleeve to protect my laptop while it's in my school bag and a tote bag out of the other leg. I like piecing things together out of already existing items because part of the structure is already there. It's not quite as hard or tedious as cutting something from a pattern. I also like making bags because they are very forgiving--they don't have to fit, and if the stitches are sloppy, it's less important than if it were on your clothes. Even with stopping several times for Annabelle, these pieces only took me an hour to make. Here's another view:

366

This year I'm doing a 366 project. That means that I'm taking one picture every day for a year (this year has 366 days). I take pictures almost every day anyway, so this is an easy project for me. I'm posting them as a set on Flickr. You can see them at this address:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/slynne78/sets/72157603687437391/

You can also see it any time by clicking on the picture collage in the sidebar.

Weird Things Meme

LeLe tagged me for the weird things meme. I'm not going to tag anyone else because I can't keep track of who has already done one like this. But since she requested, here are some weird things about me.

1. One of my comfort foods is a concoction someone showed me when I was in elementary school, and I have made it for myself since I was a little girl. You take white bread, spread ketchup on it, top that with pickle relish and then a slice of cheese, and then microwave it until the cheese melts. It sort of reminds me of a McDonald's cheeseburger without the meat. I only eat that when I'm alone because it's weird, but it still tastes as good to me now as it did when I was 8.

2. I don't think my mother has ever called me Sarah. She calls me Sarah Lynne or Sister, but never just Sarah. (I'm not complaining--I like it)

3. I use a hundred different pet names for my kids. My most common ones are Snookie-boo, Lovey Bovey, Honey Baby, Bookie-choo, Hunny Bunny Wunny, and Baby Jaby. I try to only do it at home because I'm sure some people would find it annoying.

4. I look up my students on Facebook.

5. I get really involved with the novels I read, to the point of having a physical response--shaking, racing pulse, nausea--and sometimes I have to put the book away for a while to recover. I never read thrillers because I don't think I could handle them. Once I had a full-on panic attack because of a book. I often talk out loud to my books while I'm reading. Sometimes I hide them because they upset me so much (like that episode of Friends when Joey put The Shining--and later Little Women--in the freezer).

6. On the subject of books, I won't buy a book that has a movie picture on it or the words "Now a Major Motion Picture." A movie and a book are two different things, even if one was based on the other, so I don't like the conflation of the two. But also I'm sort of a book snob, and I don't want to appear as if I buy books just because there are movies based on them. I also don't buy books with Oprah's Book Club on the cover because I don't want to appear as if I buy books just because Oprah told me to.

7. I never ever sleep through the night. I wake up at least once, usually twice every night.

8. I miss my kids when they go to bed.

For good measure, here are some weird things about the other members of my household:

Shannon always has to be making some kind of noise, like clapping, tapping, flicking a pop top on a Coke can. He also has an amazing talent for tuning out everything around him. I can be sitting right next to him talking and he doesn't even know I'm there. He absolutely LOVES break-and-bake cookie dough and frequently makes a special trip to the grocery store just to buy it--we call it "Cookie Night." He bakes the whole package as soon as he gets home and eats them hot out of the oven, but he never eats them the next day. Only the night they are baked.

Rebekah does something I called "rebooting." If she is having a bad morning, sometimes she will lie back down in her bed and get up and start over again. One time when we came home from preschool, she got upset between the car and the house and got back in the car, buckled up, and then got out again. After that she was fine.

Annabelle loves the bathroom. We have to keep the door closed all the time because as soon as she sees it open, she crawls as fast as she can (and she's really fast!) to the bathtub and tries to get in. Once she stuck her hands in the toilet and played in the water. She almost knocked over her high chair once when Shannon started running her bath water while she was still in her chair.

on the lake

This week I began my last year as a twenty- something. Shannon gave me a cake and a balloon, both of which Rebekah has enjoyed immensely, and he also gave me a bouquet of sunflowers. Those made me smile because he gave me sunflowers for my birthday the year we were dating. Last weekend we rented a pontoon boat for a couple of hours and spent the afternoon on the lake. It was such a nice, relaxing time. Poor Annabelle didn't know what to think of her little life jacket, but she eventually snuggled down into it and went to sleep. Shannon and Rebekah actually ventured off the boat into the water, but Rebekah wouldn't let go of the ladder. Shannon tried to encourage her to get out into the lake, but to tell the truth, I was glad she was too scared! If you ask her, though, she went swimming and she wasn't afraid because her life jacket kept her up.

Some crafty things

Worries over moving have led to insomnia, so what better time to blog? As always, my busy schedule has not prevented me from making little things here and there. Crafting is my favorite means of stress relief.

I've saved all of Rebekah's broken crayons for her whole life, and recently I melted them and made them into new fun shapes. I also made some tractor crayons for James. This is super easy. Just sort the crayons by colors--all the various shades of a color will mix into one shade--and melt them down. I used a pickle jar and set it in a pot of boiling water--they melt fast. Then pour the melted crayons into candy molds that you can get at a craft store for less then $2. Warning--I lost the purple ones because I put too much water in the pot and when it bubbled it knocked over the jar. So not only did I lose all the purple crayons, but I also had to wash them out of my pot.

I have also been saving wine corks for years and I finally did something with them. I painted a plain wooden tray, sliced the corks in half, and glued them down to make a wall decoration for the kitchen. If I were to do it over I wouldn't have cut them--that was tedious--but you'd need a lot more corks.

My favorite crafts lately have been greeting cards. I have found that I spend less time making my own cards than I spend at the store picking one out. I like doing these because if I need to wind down after the kids go to bed, I can just get out my box of supplies and make one. It's nice to be able to have a completed project in one sitting. Here are some I did for Mother's Day. The one with the picture of the girls is my favorite. Click on the picture to see more detail.

Five Year Anniversary

We haven't done anything to celebrate yet, but Shannon brought me some flowers last night. Since we've been married, we've had two kids and moved five times. I'd say it's been a busy five years!

The Singing Bee

That last post calls for a happier story. I mentioned this on my other blog, but I'll elaborate here. The Singing Bee is the best game show ever! We were all stressed out last night over the many things happening in our lives, and then this show came on.

It was about half an hour past Rebekah's bedtime, but she was still up because she had just finished calling all of her grandparents so she could spell her name for them--that's right! Rebekah can spell her name--accurately and consistently! I didn't even know it. I picked her up from school and her teacher told me that she had told her how to spell her name when the teacher was writing it on her art project for the day. Rebekah was so proud of herself and we laughingly bragged that she could spell her name at two years old--she won't be three until tomorrow!

So, we were all still up and started watching the show and singing along and jumping around and dancing. Rebekah thought it was the funniest thing ever to see Mommy and Daddy dancing and singing, and she got all riled up, too. I can't imagine what Annabelle thought of the whole thing! Rebekah didn't get to sleep until almost 11:00 last night, but it was worth it to have an unplanned evening of fun. We've been so stressed out lately that we all needed to relax and be silly. I recommend watching it and playing along--adults and kids.

After Rebekah went to bed, Shannon and I stayed up making and coloring icing for Rebekah's birthday cake. Shannon remembered learning how to make roses when he was a little boy watching his mom decorate cakes, so he tried his hand at that last night. They weren't half bad. I won't be making any roses, but I think the cake will turn out nice. I'll post a picture after I finish it.

big weekend

This weekend we found a place to live! Shannon's new job starts at the end of June, and we'll be moving very close to Houston. We're buying a brand new house--so new it's not even a house yet, just a slab. There are a lot of plans and preparations still to make, so we'll keep everybody updated.

Mom and Dad came out to visit this weekend and we had a great visit. We showed them where our new house will be and where Shannon will work, and the girls loved having all the attention. Bekah was so happy to play with Granmommy and Papaw, and of course to get the presents they brought her. She got a great art kit and has played with it every day. The first thing she wants in the morning is her new art box. She is also learning how to use scissors and is obsessed with it. Even Annabelle was full of smiles when her grandparents held her. Annabelle smiles a lot now, and she lights up when she sees her big sister. These girls already have a strong connection, and I am so proud when I see how much they love each other. Rebekah says that she is the best big sister of all. Dad also bought me a cake decorating kit, so I can make cakes for Rebekah's and Shannon's birthdays this summer.

Lots of news

Last week was certainly eventful. Of course, Annabelle's birth was the most important, but I also got some good news from school. I received a $300 teaching award from my department and a $10,000 national scholarship to help with finishing my dissertation. I also found out last month that one of my essays is going to be published in a book next year. I still have some changes to make on that piece, so now that we're getting settled in with the girls I'm getting right back to work (while Annabelle naps, of course). It's a little overwhelming for all of these things to happen at once, but it is great news and I wanted to share it with you.

Texas wildflowers

Sewing for the girls (not just mine!)

Yesterday I took a couple of hours (really, it only took a couple of hours--I'm getting better at this!) to make some things for Rebekah and Annabelle. I found some great fabric for super easy sundresses, and I got carried away. I started these on Saturday, and spent a lot more time trying to get the sizes right--not easy to convince a two-year-old to stand still for a fitting! But once I had a prototype, the rest went smoothly. I actually made SEVEN--three for Rebekah, two for Gracie and Siera so that all three girls can match when we get together this summer, and a top for me so Rebekah and I can match. I also bought some pink gingham for Annabelle, but I won't be making her dress until I see how big she is. I know it's cheesy, but I couldn't resist the mother/daughters ensemble. I'm hoping that I can wear my top before and after the baby is born--it will be a good transition piece until I can wear my regular clothes again.

I also made Annabelle a lovie blanket to play with. I think she will like the high contrast of the white background and bright dots. I hope she'll get attached to it as a security object because I have enough of that fabric to make another one just like it. And I made her a bright red swaddling blanket. I found this fabric around Valentine's Day and loved it--how often do you see a red baby blanket?

Moving along

Annabelle is growing, growing, growing. All the measurements are where they should be and everything seems to be going fine. I had a wonderful baby shower a couple of weeks ago and got some things I wanted and never bought when Rebekah was a baby. We also got lots of adorable baby clothes and bibs, and there seemed to be a theme of yellow giraffes! The best part about it was celebrating with my friends. I've been so busy and I'm not taking any time off work, so it was nice to stop and just do baby things for a while.

Valentine's Day

We celebrated Valentine's Day (a little early) with a special cake that I came up with. I attempted to make a Twix cake because that is Shannon's favorite candy bar. I used my Betty Crocker Bake 'n' Fill pan set and baked a chocolate cake in the dome pan and the filler pan. I put caramel and chopped Twix bars between the layers and topped it with Cool Whip and more chopped Twix. It was muy tasty, and as you can see from the picture, Rebekah was quite pleased.

There were just a couple of elements that I hadn't thought through. I thought of several different kinds of caramel to use and settled on melting caramel candies to make the filling. It was very gooey but it didn't leak out of the cake. But topping it with Cool Whip meant that I had to store it in the refrigerator. The first slices of cake were fine, but the next day, the caramel was really tough to
eat. Next time I'll use a different kind of caramel--and there will be a next time. This cake is yummy!

Rebekah thinks that Valentine's Day is the best thing ever because she had a party at church, cake at home, and a party at school. She has been going through all of her valentines and wishing everyone Happy Valentine's Day all week long. But she also thinks that she got a birthday cake for Valentine's Day. Anything with icing is a birthday cake to her!

Shannon gave me some daisies in a pot (I always like plants rather than cut flowers) and some Hershey's extra dark chocolate. There is a ton of chocolate in our house right now, but I haven't come close to being tired of it yet (especially since Annabelle is helping me eat it!).