Monday, October 6, 2008

MOPS Convention

I went to the MOPS convention in Dallas this weekend. It was great fun. I went with my two church besties.

We had a false start, when I went to pick up M Brokeback called and said H-Dubya's teacher called to say that the stitch or loop in his tear duct was COMING OUT! So we rushed to meet Brokeback at school, picked up both the kids and went to the doctor. The dr. pulled it out and cut it. The issue is he somehow popped the stitch in his nose. His nose bled a little bit the day after the surgery, so it most likely popped then. So now the chance of the tear duct surgery working is only 50-50. Brokeback nor I are up for doing it again, so please pray that it works.

We booked a room at the Gaylord Texan with two double beds in April. There were 4,000 women at the conference. I personally met a woman from Alaska, there were also women from Japan and Switzerland. We got there around 7 and ALL the double bed rooms had been taken since 5. So, the three of us enjoyed sleeping in a king together. We would have felt more sorry for ourselves if we didn't witness the arrival of about 8 women who drove their church van down from Washington State get put into two rooms with king beds, also. They were totally out of roll out beds, so I assume someone was sleeping on the floor. So disappointing. The next day they comped us half the room and got us the same rate at the Wolf Lodge across the street. Talk about a family hotel! That place is awesome. But that is a post for another day.

I learned a TON from the seminars and did a great deal of shopping in the HUGE shopping area. My mind is swimming with all of the information and how I can put it into process in our daily lives.

We went to a general session that lasted about 2 hours every day. They were great. Here is how far we always were from the stage because we refused to ever get there early:



We got to see great Christian singers like Plum and Jacie Velasquez. The speakers were very inspirational. The last session we went to included an interview with this person. See the woman in the middle? Can you tell who she is?



Or now:



OR NOW??




It is LYNN SPEARS!! Mother of Brittany, Brian, and Jamie Lynn. She has recently written a book that she is promoting. I can't remember the name but I feel sure you can find it on Amazon.

I actually learned something from her interview! Lynn is a Christian woman whose children have made some poor choices, as we all have. Unfortunately it has cost them more than some. She has done the best she can as a mother, like we all do. You cannot be with your children every minute, you cannot control their every move. My kids are still very young and hold such promise. But just because they aren't old enough to make some big mistakes yet doesn't mean they never will. And I work very hard to help them live and grow as Christians and make good choices. But who knows what will happen once they are out of my house?

Ruby's New Home

Brokeback can be a creative father, and he came up with the project of making a house for Ruby. They painted a beer box, cut out a door, and decorated it. Sadly, Ruby doesn't enjoy spending much time IN the house, but she definitely enjoys sitting outside of it. Sometimes Syd forces her into the box and she doesn't appreciate that one bit.



Sunday, October 5, 2008

Books on tape

This is Syd's new favorite activity. She got a Magic Tree House book on CD in her kid's meal from Wendy's. Didn't have a book with it or anything. She would sit on her bed and listen to the WHOLE thing. It is a short chapter book. We couldn't believe it.

Next time we were at the library we wanted to check some books with a tape or CD out, but the selection at our closest library had a sad selection. We went last week to the big library downtown and checked out about 5. Unfortunately two of the tapes have sound issues. She really enjoys the other three. It is so funny to watch, each time the chime goes off for her to turn the page she gasps and turns it as fast as she can so as not to miss anything. It isn't like she can read along at this point. So cute.

The Corn Maize

I chaperoned Syd's latest and greatest field trip. We went to the corn maize. With 4 parents and 2 teachers for our group of 8 children, it wasn't too hectic. We had a fine time and I highly recommended going on out with your family. We enjoyed many a photo opportunity, an abridged version of the maze, a quick tutorial on the parts of a corn stalk, animals, a hay ride, and a ride on the cow train. I know you are hoping for pictures.





Hilarious Example of Media Bias

I had to link this. Um, what? I guess Brokeback has a point about CNN.

Media Bias

Monday, September 29, 2008

H-Dub's Words

So, H-Dubya is talking! More and more everyday. Not full sentences, but talking just the same. Here is a list of his words, I don't expect anyone to be overly interested in this but I want to keep the info for him so he can read all about it when he grows up.

Come on
Help! Run!
Jump this way
Come in
Milk
Please
Get me some milk
Sydney
Hayden
Gigi
Poppy
Momo
Trixie
Buzz (as in lightyear)
Ice (as in ice age)
Dance
Me
Aw, man
My turn
Light
Juice
Cookie
Down
No
Little Mermaid
Speed (as in Lightening McQueen)
Sit
Stop
Duck
Eye, ear, mouth, hand
Yellow
Red
All done

That is all I can think of for now.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

South Plains Fair!

We go as one big happy family to the SPF every year. The four Lowes, Poppy, Gigi, Aunt Morgan, and now that she lives here, Granny. We look at the animals, eat (of course), and ride a few rides. I say a few because we can't afford more than that. It was $16 for the four of us to ride the ferris wheel. H-Dubya wasn't as pleasant as I would have hoped. Definitely in a sour mood. When we left he wasn't strapped in the wagon and threw his large body over the side with a dramatic wail. Not so fun for Brokeback and I but a random patron or two seemed to guffaw and enjoy it. Here are some of the happier pictures: