"Everybody Wants A Rock To Wind A Piece Of String Around"

Yes, we are still here, just busy as usual. Here are some random happenings in Youngsville.

1. Happy Memorial Day, late. For some odd reason, the schools here are always open for Memorial Day. It's the craziest thing. They started school on a Friday back in August, and then had the kids go on Memorial Day and Tuesday and half a day on Wednesday. Why didn't they just have school start on Monday back in August and be done by Memorial Day? Maybe I should be on the school board. HA! Maybe I just need to get to know someone on the school board.

2. Katie, however, continued her tradition (that she started in Kindergarten) of skipping school on Memorial Day. We planned to go to Lafayette to do some fun things over there, but as the day went on, our list kept shrinking and so did the time, until we just ended up going to Chuck E Cheese in Lake Charles. Nothing says Happy Memorial Day like a big ugly rat and overpriced pizza and prizes. Ugg.

3. I had my first (and hopefully last) root canal last week. I have been having trouble with that tooth since last October. I went in January and had it filled and the dentist said then that it really needed a root canal, but we could try the filling to see if it would work. So of course I went with the filling, only to have it flare up again just three months later, in April. So, I just dealt with the pain, trying to pretend like it would go away, until I couldn't pretend anymore. I woke up two weeks ago to find the left side of my jaw swollen, and it just kept getting bigger and bigger, until it looked like Aaron had smacked me with a bat. It was pretty horrible. So I finally gave up and went to the dentist. After being on antibiotics for a week to get the swelling to go down, I was able to have a root canal. There goes our trip to Disney World. Can you believe we can go to Disney World for the same price as a root canal? Is that insane or what? We were seriously talking about going, but not anymore. Oh well, maybe next year when my root canal is paid for. Okay, back to the subject. So, I am feeling lots better, but this whole situation has got me thinking about why I don't take better care of myself to prevent things like this. It is seriously time for some changes. BIG changes.

4. I finally found my cell phone charger. It was on top of the refrigerator, right where it was supposed to be. But I promise it wasn't there the ten or more times that I looked before. Or maybe I'm losing it. Probably losing it.

5. Sarah is trying to bring back the 80s. I gave her an old compact with some eyeshadow and she is in love with the blue eyeshadow. She seriously wants to put some on everyday--as thick as it can possibly be. The thicker the better. I don't mind her wearing it around the house, but she always want to put it on when we are going out to run errands or something. And the funniest part is that she likes for Aaron to put it on because he really piles it on, while I just try to do it as light as possible.



She's also really into side pony tails these days. Katie fixed her hair the other day and put a side pony tail in her hair and she loved it! Now, she wants one everyday.



She reminds me of that girl in "Napoleon Dynamite". Heaven help us if she decides to put the blue eyeshadow and the side pony tail together.

6. School is finally out! Wahoo! I love summer and hanging out with my kiddos. We have already had our first sleepover, first trip to the water park, first trip to the library for the summer reading program, first morning to sleep in (Ahhh! So nice!), and several nights of staying up way too late already. John David did really well at the water park. He didn't fuss at all, but he didn't seem too crazy about the water. I think it was too bright for him, but he sure was stinkin' cute. He did enjoy just being outside, and even took a good nap while we were there. So, we will be at the water park this summer, just probably not quite as much as last summer, and the girls are very understanding of that. Thank goodness. Such sweet sisters.



Happy summer!

Saturday Fun

It's seems like it's getting harder and harder for us to find time on the weekends to do something together as a family, but this Saturday was completely open. Aaron gave the girls a choice of several things to go do, and they chose to go four wheelin'. Katie wanted to go so we could get some pictures of the sun going down on the beach. So we loaded up the four wheelers, dropped John David off at Maw Maw and Paw Paw's, and headed down to Holly Beach.



As you can see, they were pretty excited.



Katie started out riding with me, but then wanted to ride with Daddy.



After a few minutes of riding with me, Sarah was ready to go back to Daddy. I just don't drive fast enough for these girls.



About 20 minutes into our ride home, we remembered that we forgot to take a picture of the sun going down. So this was our attempt to get a picture as we were driving.





The girls doing the "Hoedown Throwdown" as we were going home.



I think their soda must have been spiked. They were seriously cracking us up on the drive home. We all had a great time and decided that we have to go riding more often.

The Brainwashing Begins!

Sarah Funnies

Yesterday John David was sitting in his bouncy seat and was starting to get a little fussy. Sarah went over to rescue him, and as she was picking him up out of the seat, she said, "John David, it's okay. Do you want to pull sissy's hair?"

Today we were outside watching the girls play when a young, hyper, college age girl came by trying way too hard to sell us some magazines. Luckily, we had a great excuse to tell her "it's not a good time" when some friends showed up. After she left, Aaron and I were talking about how strange she was, when Sarah said, "Yeah, she had a beard and she was weird."

Tonight Sarah walked into the living room, and realizing her own cuteness, said, "I know yal just want to eat me up."

It's That Time of Year Again

Although it is late in the crawfish season, we just barely had our first crawfish boil tonight. With our weekends pretty busy these days, we just haven't been able to have a free weekend to do one, so we decided to do one tonight. And there are perks to waiting until Monday, as we just discovered that they discount the crawfish that weren't sold over the weekend. Wahoo! The trick is being able to find them on Monday. I think we got lucky.



It was John David's first ever crawfish boil. Unfortunately for him, he didn't get to eat any. Maybe next year. He did, however, enjoy hanging out on the swing with Maw Maw.



We invited the missionaries over since Aaron said he owed them for bailing him out on Sunday when there were no speakers.



Both of the girls LOVE crawfish and could eat their weight in them, which is still a mystery to me since they are both picky eaters. Katie was hiding from the camera because she is way too cool for picture taking. I love that little kool-aid mustache.



Check out this nice ensemble that Sarah has going on here. I love this look with the boots, but the pearls are what really sets this outfit apart from others. Pretty unique.



Then the girls were having some fun with the sidewalk chalk.........



............and the missionaries joined in. Casualties from eating too much crawfish, maybe? It sure was delicious!

It Ain't So Bad

It ain't so bad having the chicken pox when you get to miss school................



.............and have a camp out in the living room.............



.........and get extra computer time............................



...........and make some of your favorite treats................



............and have a blast playing with your sister! And of course, the most fun thing to do when you have chicken pox--squirrel hunting with Dad and shooting your pink rifle! Sorry, no picture available. Sure hope those squirrels don't come down with the pox! However, it is back to reality today for the last full week of school. Hooray!

We've Got the Pox!

Chicken Pox, that is. Katie came to me last night just before she got in the bathtub and said, "Mom, look at all of these red spots on me." I looked at her and saw that she had quite a few spots on her torso and a few on her legs. I didn't think it looked like chicken pox, but since it has been over twenty years since I had them, I looked online for pictures to see if that's what it was. I thought I had had a bad case of chicken pox, but after looking at the pictures on the Internet, I realized that I didn't. There are some pretty seriously bad and gross pictures of chicken pox out there. But the pictures weren't much help because they were all advanced stages. So, I decided to just keep Katie home today and make an appointment for her to see the doctor. And it's a good thing that I did because he took one look and said, "You have the chicken pox." She got the most pitiful look on her face, because for once, she actually wanted to go to school to turn in the permission slip to go to the water slide party at school tomorrow. He said since she has been vaccinated, it should clear up in 2 to 3 days, and that she should be able to return to school by Monday. So since she's been quarantined, we're going to try to make it fun for her. We're going to go rent some movies, get some of her favorite snacks, play some games, make some crafts, etc, etc, etc. Bring on the POX PARTY!

The All Clear.....Finally!

John David had an appointment today to follow up on his ear infections. The doctor came in and said, "So how has he been? Is he acting like he's feeling better?" I said, "Well, he's been a little fussy and not sleeping well the last couple of days, so he's probably all better." I was kinda joking and kinda serious, because last time when he had the ear infections I had no clue because he had been acting fine. And wouldn't you know it? The little booger is fine. Both ears are all better. I am so glad they're better, but I just can't figure this little guy out!

My Mother's Day

After waking up to the traditional Mother's Day pancake breakfast, I was presented with a beautiful jeweled crown and flower from my sweet Katie.



And then Sarah gave me this beautiful emerald ring, which she insisted that I wear all day. It's a little small, but isn't it gorgeous?! And she has a one just like it, except hers is blue, so it must be a sapphire. Mother/Daughter rings. Don't you just love that kool-aid mustache?



And John David said, "Ga, ga, ga, ga. Ahhhh." When translated means, "Thanks for being my mom and feeding me and changing my diapers!" I'm sure of it. After a delicious dinner grilled by my sweet husband, he gave me some gifts, but the best was the card that he gave me. It said, "The best things in life aren't things.......they're people like you." Awww! How sweet. But that wasn't the best part. When we first started dating, Aaron used to make up crazy funny poems and songs and sing them to me. He would even call and sing to me on my answering machine. They were sooooo funny and would totally make my day after a long stressful day at work. But he hasn't 'written' anything for me in forever. So I've been asking him for a while to start again, and he finally delivered. He wrote the most hilarious poem. He asked me to read it out loud, but I could hardly make it through because it was so funny! We were all laughing pretty hard by the end. Oh how I love him and my sweet babies! (He also wrote one for his mom that was equally entertaining.) It was my best Mother's Day ever! Not only because I got to spend it with my sweet little family, but also because (thanks to the beautiful quote I found and posted already), I didn't allow myself to feel the guilt that I normally do on Mother's Day for not being the perfect mom. I am doing the best that I can, and it is enough for today. Tomorrow I will try to be a little bit better. And the next day even better. And so on. I am so thankful for the wonderful women in my life--my mom, my mother-in-law, grandmothers, sisters, sisters-in-law, and friends who are great examples to me of women of faith!

Happy Mother's Day!

Three Months

Our sweet little man is three months old today. When he was at the doctor last Friday, he weighed 15 lbs. and 14 ozs, so I am sure he is over 16 lbs. by now. He is such a sweet and happy little guy. He is smiling and cooing all the time now, which we all just love!



His first Easter. I can hardly stand the cuteness!



With Paw Paw at his 60th birthday party.



Catching some Zzzzzzzzzz's with Daddy.



He is a really good sleeper, and sleeps anywhere from 5 to 7 hours at night. He has slept in his car seat in his room for the last six weeks because of his ear infections. The doctor suggested we do that because when he lies flat is puts pressure on his ears and causes him to wake up. And it must be true because it has worked well for him.



He loves to lie on the floor and play. He will lay there and be happy for an hour or so, and even longer if someone is down there with him.



The newness has not worn off--his sisters are still crazy about him and love to hold and play with him.



We're trying to give him some tummy time to encourage rolling over.



But he is only happy for about 5 minutes like this.



When he lies on his back, this is what he does with his feet. He holds them up and kicks them around. They hardly ever touch the floor, so it might be a while longer before he starts rolling. I LOVE this picture of his little legs and feet. His thighs are so cute and squishy. Pure sugar!

"Whistling in the Dark" (aka Randomness)

1. I found my old "They Might Be Giants" tape and listened to it the other day. It's pretty funny how insanely happy it made me to hear that completely random and utterly hilarious music again. It reminded me of days long ago at BYU with my awesome roommates. Good times!

2. My little Sarah cracks me up. I can't remember what she did the other day that caused me to warn her not to do it again or she was going to have to go sit in the corner, but her response was, "I don't think we have any corners in our house." I told her that we certainly do and that I could quickly find one for her if she didn't listen. Then later I asked her to take John David's bottle to the kitchen and she said, "But I don't know where the kitchen is." I told her I could find a corner for her to sit in until she remembered. Funny thing.....her memory suddenly came back.

3. My cell phone is dead and I've lost my cell phone charger. I have no idea where it could be. After I charge my cell phone on the kitchen counter, I usually put the charger right back on top of the refrigerator and there it stays until I need it again. But, it is no where to be found. I am completely baffled.

4. If you haven't yet tried KFC's new Kentucky Grilled Chicken, then you must go get some right now! I got a coupon for a free 2 piece dinner from Oprah's website the other day and went and got some and it was dee-licious!

5. We are now the proud owners (HA!) of the Hannah Montana movie soundtrack, and it's not too bad actually. Every afternoon the girls turn it on and start dancing around the living room. They love to dance to the "Hoedown Throwdown", which if you haven't seen, I'm sure you could find it on youtube. I love it when they turn off the TV and turn on music and dance around the living room. They like for us to get up and dance with them, which I'm sure if our neighbors saw, they would have a really good laugh. Fun times.

6. We went to 'Contraband Days' for the first time this year. Well, it was the first time for me and the girls. Aaron of course has been before and has never wanted to take us. I finally talked him into going tonight because it was "Family Night". I have to confess that I was pretty disappointed. It was just like the Cal-Cam fair, but even more ridiculously over priced. We stayed for about an hour and we were done. Our first and last 'Contraband Days' experience.

I Learned Something New!

This past Friday my wonderful friend Wendy came over and showed me how to turn the huge box of strawberries I bought into............................



..............strawberry jam and preserves. I've wanted to learn to make jam and preserves for a while, and now I know. It was however, a little more work (okay, alot more work) than the strawberry freezer jam that I love so much. But the good news is that I even had enough strawberries to make a batch of freezer jam too! So with all of this jam sitting around, I had to make some of these babies.



HOMEMADE BISCUITS--Just last weekend I had mentioned to Johnice that I wanted to learn to make biscuits and she told me that she had a copy of Mrs. Alice's biscuit recipe, which is not only delicious, but very simple too. This recipe is not only easy enough for even me to make, but just the perfect size for my little family. Now I just have to make sure I have all of the ingredients in my year supply for these yummy biscuits and we'll be set!

Round Four

I took John David to the doctor this morning to have his ear checked out to make sure the infection had cleared up since he finished his antibiotics yesterday. I was positive his ear was better because he hasn't been fussy or shown any other signs of an infection. But, I was wrong. Not only was the right ear not cleared up, but the left is now infected as well. The doctor put him on another round of antibiotics and we have yet another follow up in 10 days. He said that they don't put tubes in baby's ears until they are six months old, so we'll just keep watching him and if things keep going the same, he'll send us to an ENT when John David is five months old and that way they can be all set to put the tubes in when he is six months old. The doctor couldn't get over how John David hasn't been fussy or running a fever or anything to indicate that his ears are infected. Now that I think about it, he has not been sleeping well during the day (he's still doing great at night--only waking up once and sometimes even sleeping until 5am). Every time I lay him down, if his little eyes don't open up immediately upon contact with the bassinet, then it's only a few minutes before he wakes right up. I just thought he was spoiled and was even complaining to Aaron about it last night. Now I feel bad for complaining. Poor little man. I should count my blessings that he isn't screaming all the time. And if all he wants to do while he isn't feeling well is be held by his mama, then I will indulge him. My productivity level is about to take an even more severe nose dive.