More of our Texas Spring Break

We did a lot of stuff but only took a few pictures. We were just having too much fun to mess with the camera. We drove to Texas on Friday afternoon. Saturday we went to Six Flags Over Texas all day - too much fun! Sunday we went to the Stockyards - an old-style cowboy area of town where they still have a cattle drive every day right down the middle of the street. From there, we went to an art museum where they were showing a really great collection of Biblical art from the early Christian times. It was so interesting! Then we saw Horton Hears a Who! On Monday (we thought it was going to rain) we went to a neat bakery/cafe for breakfast then the Dallas Museum of Science & Natural History, and an I-max show (I fell asleep) and a planetarium show (I fell asleep again). Then we gave into the boys whining and went back to the hotel so they could swim. Tuesday it really was raining so we went to the Federal Bureau of Engraving and Printing and saw BILLIONS of dollars! (They don't let you get very close to it though!) Then we went to the Dallas World Aquarium - along with everyone else in Texas who wanted to stay out of the rain - it was packed! Wednesday we drove back home and just enjoyed the quiet. It sounds like we did a lot of things, but our days weren't so crammed that we couldn't relax. We like taking trips together but it's always nice to come back home and have a little more space to move around, "real" not restaurant food, and sleep in our own beds.

Texas Spring Break Slide Show

My Piano Men

I love that my boys are taking piano lessons! They had a recital on Sunday & I'm so proud of them! This was Justin's first performance and he was so relaxed and comfortable. He's a ham. Ryan doesn't like to play in front of other people, but he had practiced his song to death so he did great. Tyler picks up new songs very easily, then he likes to move on to another one, but he spent a long time perfecting and polishing his piece.
AAAAAAAARRRHRHHRHRGGGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!
That is the sound of me screaming in frustration at this marvel of modern life (my computer)! I've tried and tried and the video won't upload - don't know what I'm doing wrong.
So, if you call our house when the kids are practicing, you can hear them making beautiful music!

Pinewood Derby Day!

Friday was Justin's very first Pinewood Derby in Cub Scouts. After watching his big brothers build and race cars, he was so excited to have the chance to do it himself, he could hardly stand it. He designed the car, helped shape it with the Dremel, sanded it smooth, painted it green with a black lightning bolt on top, sanded the wheels and advised me on grinding the axels smooth, lubed the wheels, and glued on the weights! I am proud of how much of the actual work he really did! I only helped some and nailed in the axels for him (which I did wrong). But Justin's car did great! He got 3rd place in a group of about 10 although there were some kids there who had very spiffy cars - there's no way the kids did all that work! I was worried that Justin would be upset about not winning 1st since that's all he talked about, but he is a good sport and is already planning improvements to his design for next year. Watch out, scouts!

Trying Something New

So I've been trying to get a blog layout that fits all the stuff I want. This works, but I'm still working on the details. Tell me what you think!

All Better! (mostly)

After my last post so many people called to see how the boys & I are now. Thanks everybody! We are better. Ryan's dog bite is healing, but he's still very careful with his arm. Ryan & Justin both stayed home from school sick yesterday & I had a sore throat. Today Ryan went to school, Justin stayed home one more day, and I'm fine. I'm so thankful - I hate to be sick. Tyler's been taking good care of us and hopefully he'll stay healthy.

So I thought I should post something more cheerful today. I started some projects when my mom was here and I got them done so I want to show off! They're both Valentinesy but I'm going to celebrate all month so I can leave them out. The table runner is my take on a pattern that I saw a picture of.

Tyler just came home from school very excited about band. He got 1st chair trumpet in band!! He's been 2nd for awhile but working hard so he's really heppy that he made it! I'm so proud of him! Yaaayy Tyler!!

President's Day Trauma

The boys had today off school and Todd is in China again so I thought we'd have a pretty calm day at home. Wrong. Justin woke up with a sore throat, head ache and stomach ache. As I was reminding him to throw up in the toilet, not on the floor, bed, or couch, he ran to the bathroom and threw up (barely making it). He was in and out of sickyness all day.

Ryan went to his friend's house and I think they had a good time together until the mom called to tell me that one of their big dogs had just bitten Ryan! I ran over and got him and took him to the "urgent" care clinic where we waited 2 HOURS for the Dr. who basically put on a band-aid and gave him a prescription for some antibiotics. Ryan is OK. He has 1 deep puncture and a few smaller ones on his left wrist but he will be fine. It was just really scary for him. The friend and his mom feel really bad about it and I know accidents happen, but I'm sad that it happened to Ryan. He didn't want me to take pictures or blog about it, but tonight he wrapped his arm in a 6" ace bandage and has hardly moved it. He's a tough kid, but he sure knows how to milk it when he's hurt! Tyler thought we should just use Grandpa Ashby's medicine - pour hydrogen peroxide over Ryan's wounds and watch them fizz.

We talked to Todd as we left the pharmacy. He said he had just talked to Tyler & Justin at home. Justin was missing Todd and missing me (gone for 3 hours) so I got McDonald's for dinner and brought it home for the boys. I showed Justin his favorite shake - M&M McFlurry - and he THREW UP all over the floor, the chair, my pants... AAAAAGH!!! He said Todd told him to eat some cheese - that it would help his tummy feel better. NO. (tip: do not medicate or feed sick chilren from the other side of the world!!) So I mopped the floor and did laundry before eating my cold burger and fries. Justin said he felt better and ended up having his shake and I spent the rest of the night waiting for it to come up too. Don't know yet if he's going to school tomorrow.

Tagged - I'm It

Emily tagged me (and Amy did too, way back in 2007) so here's my response:

Two Names You Go By: 1)Teresa 2)Mom

Things You Are Wearing Right Now: 1) brown pants 2) green shirt

Two things you Want (or have) in a Relationship: 1)trust 2)fun

Two of Your Favorite Things to do: 1)hang out with Todd 2)hang out with my boys

Two things you did last night 1)quilted with my Mom 2)made white chili & cornbread

Two people you Last Talked To: 1)Mom 2) Justin

Two Things You're doing tomorrow: 1)get up 2)go to bed

Two Longest Car Rides: 1)Kansas to Utah, Yellowstone, South Dakota, then Home 2) Kansas to California

Two Favorite Holidays:(As an adult) 1) Christmas 2) Fourth of July

Two Favorite Drinks: 1) Water 2) Abuelita Hot Chocolate

Two Things About Me you may not have known: 1)I love pajamas! 2)I hate seafood.

Two jobs I have had in my life: 1) florist 2) Target cashier

Two Movies I would watch over and over: 1) Enchanted 2)Ella Enchanted

Two of my Favorite Foods: 1)chocolate anything 2)pizza

Two places I'd rather be right now: 1)some place warm 2) wherever Todd is

5 people I am tagging now:
1:Tyler
2:Cody
3:Jesse
4:Mom
5:Nicki Young (I know you're watching!)

Let it SNOW!

Mom gave me the kit to make this snowman table runner for my birthday and I finished it! I wanted to use it while it's still cold and wintery here so I worked fast - I could have taken my time because it's going to be really cold for a while still. But it's very cheery and I like the blues that go with the rest of my house. Thanks Mom!

We're still alive and well!

OK. I've heard some complaints that it's been too long since my last post. I just haven't thought there was much to blog about.

But now... MOM's HERE!! She came on Saturday and will be here for 2 whole weeks. I think I have talked non-stop since she arrived and I'm sure she can still hear my voice blabbing in her sleep. She's taking a nap now - I hope we are not wearing her out too fast! We have started a puzzle she brought for the boys, we've sampled 5 or 6 different kinds of Hershey kisses, and we will probably do some shopping and start on a few projects.


Last night was Tyler's band concert. He is the 2nd chair trumpet. He's been playing for 3 years and I didn't hear him make any mistakes. Actually, the whole band sounded pretty good. I am amazed that a bunch of squirrely 7th graders can make music! It was a nice short program that we used for our family night. Then we came home and made ice cream sandwiches with chocolate pizelles and mint cookie ice cream. Yummy.

Today is very cold and very windy, with just a little snow. We went to Target and JoAnns. The wind was blowing and the snow was swirling around on the streets. It looked like dry ice fog and it was very hypnotic to watch. Mom is calling it a blizzard but I hope we get a REAL storm while she's here so she can see what that's like.

Last Friday, Tyler, Ryan, & Todd went to the Boy Scout Klondike Campout. The boys love it. Todd does not love it. They were able to stay warm enough to avoid frostbite and hypothermia, but they were still very cold. They said the hardest part was having to get up and leave the tent to pee in the middle of the night. Justin stayed right here with me - we watched a movie and ate dinner and then slept all night in our own toasty warm beds. Justin can't wait to be old enough to go - I am glad the BSA doesn't let moms go on campouts. That's definitely a boy/man activity.