Road trip anyone?

This summer we  are making on annual pilgrimage to Michigan. But we have decided to be a little braver this year and not take the usual day and half route. Instead, it will take us a mere seven days to get to Michigan. Here is the planned route: Dallas to Little Rock ( short stop to see friends and the Peabody ducks), back in the car and off to Horn Lake/Memphis. We will be spending 3 nights at Horn Lake in a cabin. We are planning on seeing some of the highlights of Memphis while visiting with Allen's family. Next stop, Nashville for brunch and then to Bowling Green.  We will spend the day in Bowling Green seeing caves and Dino world. We will spending the next two nights at Mammoth Caves in Cave City. We plan on taking in many more sights before heading out on the last leg of our journey. The plan from there gets a little fuzzy, thanks to a website I stumbled across called www.roadsideamerica.com. They have each state listed with tons ( I mean tons!) of unique, wacky tourist traps sights.  I really excited because Allen is indulging this whim of mine ( partly because most of the stops are free). So we may or may not make it to Michigan on Tuesday but really who cares??? Well maybe the kids?  What counts is that they are only young once and we are going to take advantage of the saying " Because we say so!" Really they are very excited about the trip besides Jake's firm believe that he will not be swimming in the lake this summer. We will see about that!  Well I am off to plan some more and see what other crazy sights I can find.

New Year

So its the end of a decade. I had to stop and think about it and how much has changed. We started out this decade with me still in school and childless. We have ended this decade with me still in school but teaching and with two sweet little boys ( well sweet most of the time). I have gained a sister in law along the way and become much closer to my mom as well. We are proud homeowners something I did not think we would be. We have started spending our summers in Michigan and reconnecting with family and friends. My boys are getting to know the joy of having an extended family something I am so happy I had growing up.
This year alone so much has changed. A lot of it for the better. My mom and dad are returning to Texas!!! YAY! I can't wait. I have taken up running and really enjoy it. I have about 10-15 lbs to go on my weight lose goal but for right now I am OK with where I am at. Alex entered 1st grade and is doing so good. Jake is starting to mellow out with age but its obvious that he is a lot like me and we will be butting heads through the years. I would like to say that I am mellowing out but I still have a long way to go :) We have made many new friends as Alex's social life has expanded. Isn't it funny how that happens? We are looking forward to the new year and all of the new adventures that are sure to come!

Memories of the summer so far.......

This has been such a great summer! We have had so many fun adventures. Here are some of my fave highlight moments so far.

• The car ride to MI. We had such a good time and laughed so much (mainly at Allen but don't tell him).









• Just spending that precious time with no outside distractions on the way here.









• Alex's face at Lego land.









• Long walks in the State park with Jake in his jogging stroller.









• Spending time with my cousin Kathleen. It has been so much fun sharing some mommy moments.









• Watching Jake interact with Jonah and Issy.









• Watching Alex make memories with his cousins. He will treasure this time forever. I know I did.









• Tubing with the boys. I never laughed as hard as I did when Alex and I were on the tube and Papa was trying to know us off.









• Spending time with my mom. I really miss her during the year.









• Spending time with Ninny.









• roasting marshmallows in the new outside fireplace









• watching Alex catch fireflies









• Night swimming with Alex and cousins









• Watching my dad bond with the boys









• Having Jake wipe my face with his shirt because I had ice cream on it.









• Watching my baby go off to camp for the first time.

In the words of Alex, this is the best summer ever! I know we have many more adventures ahead of us.

Farmer Allen

Allen has decided this year to plant a "real' garden. I say really because he has planted things in planters before but has never officially had a garden. Last year we tried and some unwelcome guests ate all of our seeds. This year, Alex and Allen used a sprouter and have been growing seeds in it. Today, they started work on the "real" garden. I say they but I mean Alex. You will see by the pictures that Alex is not really working but he loves his garden gloves!! I hope for sake of all three boys that something grows but I can not help hearing "Green Acres" theme song in my head every time I see "garden" !

Spring Brak day 6

So we did not make it to old city park. I can say with all honesty that we did not make it out of our PJ's until 4:30 pm. Instead we did nothing at all. Alex's request. The boys played outside but that was about it. At 4:30, Alex and I scrambled to get dressed because we had a play to go to. We saw Peter Rabbit at the DCT. Sweet aunt Alicia got us the tickets. We went with another mother and son. We went to dinner beforehand and afterwards we went to their house where the boys rough housed and we had a nice chat. It was nice to talk to someone over the age of 6. Not that I don't love talking to Allen but it was nice all in the same. However it was a late night and everyone is having trouble getting going and Alex has soccer. I will try and post pictures later today. We are gong to hang out and start thinking about school.(sigh)

Spring Break day2,3,4, and 5

So I have gotten a little behind. Day 2- We went to the Wiggles Play center in Frisco. We went with Alex's best bud Ford. We had a good time but I thought that it was not worth the price. Maybe if Jake was as big of a wiggles fan as Alex was but I am not even sure than. Jake spent most of his time in a toy car (big surprise, not) and Alex in the slides/ jump house.
Somewhere around this time I got sick. So Day 3 and 4 were spent at home. My sweet hubby took the boys to the park and rough housed with the boys as soon as he got home. Today, we went to the science place. Alex LOVED it. Jake liked it. Alex loved the children's area where he could play dress up and make up stories in his head. Jake just wanted to drive the firetruck. The other big hit was the huge nose that sneezed. Jake thought that was the bomb and did not want to leave. Alex also, liked the Dino digger area, he pretended to be Indiana Jones. Outside, we walked the trails and Alex rode in the boats. Jake showed his temper because he was not able to ride in the boat. Poor guy. All in all a great day. Tomorrow, we may head to Old City park.

Spring Break day 1

OK, so spring break officially started at 3:00 on Friday but Mr. Alex had other plans. He came down with croup. I did not think 6 years old could get it but my kids have always been original. So yesterday was counted as a rest day. Even through we did have one major milestone. Jake is sleeping in a big boy bed( crib with the rail taken off). He chose by himself Mo Mo ( Elmo) sheet set. Alex's was the wiggles and I mean everything the wiggles! He proudly slept in his bed all night but has not ( thank goodness) figured out that he can get out of it by himself. So today we went to the Fort Worth zoo. Another milestone for Jake ( his first trip). We had a wonderful time. Alex's favorite part was the snakes(yuck) and the gorilla. Jake loved the jaguar and the bear. He was terrified of the gorilla and elephant. Go figure! All and All it was a great trip. Tomorrow, we are off to the Wiggle World in Plano with Alex's best bud Ford and his little sister Mason.