Snow Day

Widespread arctic storm + no school = SLEDDING!

Inflatable shivering bear in a pile on the porch

"Sledding" on an almost flat driveway

Taking "The Hill" with Isaac and Aaron

Deck the Halls

After much debate, we decided to buy a real Christmas tree this year.

 

This is the tree we found at a tree farm, but it was twice as much as we wanted to spend. So we found a close second - slightly less-perfect tree - at Lowe's. We brought it home, spent hours figuring out how to steady it, feed it, and string lights on it (after stringing them backwards the first time and unwinding all six strands). The boys hung ornaments (and I rearranged every single one when they weren't looking).

 

Ta Da!

Except for the branch that needs to be trimmed on the bottom, I think it looks pretty good. The boys are happy with it, anyway, and that's all the matters, right?

 







Adventures in Lice Killing

I managed to live almost 40 years without having to deal with lice...even after teaching 17 years and having two kids in public school. Now that these disgusting little creatures have made their way from Carter's classroom our heads (don't get me started on the insane privacy policy that prevents schools from warning parents about lice in their children's classrooms) I've learned a thing or two about lice extermination.

• There are very few facts and a million opinions that may or may not help.
• Everyone agrees that constant combing and picking is essential. Nice.
• You have to kill the live bugs first, then wait a week for their eggs to hatch before the second treatment.
• Pesticide treatments like Rid are creating a resistant breed, making it harder to kill them.
• Coconut oil and tea tree oil treatments might work just as well, but you have to sleep with it on your head ever night with a shower cap. Good luck getting my boys to do that!
• Washing bedding is important, but carpets are safe because the bugs die after a few hours without a head to feed on. Lovely.
• I washed everything that would fit in the washer and dried everything else...or put it in big bags. I'm not taking any chances.
• After our first Rid shampoo treatment, I combed and picked everyone's hair for HOURS. I kept them home from school to comb and pick a second day. The third and fourth days I only found a few nits. I plan to do the second Rid treatment on the 7th day. Like I said...I'm not taking any chances!
• I will wash everyone's hair with tea tree oil everyday for the rest of my life...or until I forget what a nightmare this lice event has been.

Goodbye Summer

I'm not sure where summer break has gone, but it's just that...gone! I start back to school tomorrow, and the kids hit the school busses on Wednesday. We had a fun, relaxing, productive summer break, so I really can't complain. Jas and I tackled several little home projects that we've wanted to complete since moving to this house two years ago. We took a few family vacations, celebrated Mason's 11th birthday, and went to Lowe's to pick out new garage storage for our 17th wedding anniversary. Add in a few trips to the pool and several outings for frozen yogurt, and you have one fantastic summer! Is it too early to start the countdown to next summer?



Last day at the pool...until next June!

You might be a mom of boys if...

...your throw pillows are always thrown on the floor...never on the couch.
...every day brings a new joke that involves the word underwear.
...you utter the phrase "quit picking your nose" regularly.
...you hose down the bathroom with bleach water weekly.
...despite constant sanitizing, the bathroom still smells like pee.
...you have a rapidly growing collection of sports paraphernalia.
...you find yourself spending more money on a baseball bat than your last car.
...you gave up the battle against burping and farting a long time ago.
...one minute you're crying about fast they're growing up, and the next you're counting the days until you can boot them out the door.
...you cherish hugs from chubby little arms that get longer and skinnier every day.
...you wonder why you ever hoped you'd have a little girl someday.

My two boys floating down the Illinois River today

Disney World

We've been back from Disney for a couple of weeks, but I forgot to blog about it. Here are the highlights from Disney World with Gigi and Grandad:

1. The airplane bouncing up and down on our approach to Orlando. Shouldn't it be illegal for pilots to land a plane in a thunderstorm??

2. Carter crying and declaring he's NEVER flying again. I chose not to remind him that we still had to fly back home.

3. A beautiful condo with pools and lazy river at Bonnet Creek, just outside all the Disney parks.

4. Day 1 at Magic Kingdom, where we further traumatized Carter on Space Mountain. He loved the teacups and Dumbo ride, though! We spent most of this day in line for Under the Sea (yes...we know about Fast Passes...we should've used them on this one).

5. Day 2 at Animal Kingdom. We all loved the Lion King show and African safari. Jas rode the big roller coaster, Expedition Everest and swears we would've LOVED speeding backwards down the track in the dark. I don't think so.

 

 

Gigi and Grandad with the boys...Animal Kingdom

6. Day 3 EPCOT...my favorite park! I wanted to spend another day or two exploring the "countries" of the world showcase. The rides were very tame, but I got a little panicky when we had "technical difficulties" on Spaceship Earth inside the big EPCOT ball. Sitting in a giant metal ball during a lightning storm is a little nerve wracking. OH...and we loved Test Track...except for being a little freaked out by their technical difficulties, too.

7. Day 4 Hollywood Studios. We hit the gate running straight to get Fast Passes for Toy Story Mania...good thing because they ran out within the hour. It was WELL worth the wait, shooting virtual darts and pellets at virtual, 3D arcade objects as we spun from screen to screen. Disney needs to make more interactive rides like this!

Walking to the Great Movie Ride...Hollywood Studios

8. After a morning of pool time, we headed back to the airport...much to Carter's dismay. Wish we could've stayed longer - we had an amazing time!

9. I forgot to mention our matching, fluorescent Disney shirts...yes, we were that family. We wore them every day so we could find each other, which isn't always easy at Disney.

Gigi, Carter, Minnie, Mason

Pray for Oklahoma

I've lived in Tornado Alley my whole life - first in the Texas Panhandle and now in Oklahoma. Tornadoes are what we do in the spring. But yesterday's tornado in Moore was a different kind of storm. They're still digging through the rubble, looking for people. It's unimaginable and truly tragic. Here's my Facebook post from yesterday, our district's last day of school:

I was helping with the bus kids in the cafeteria after school, and for just a minute we thought we were in a tornado warning. I considered what would happen if I had to stay at my school during a tornado while my own children were in another location. Luckily, I didn't have to face that nightmare. My heart goes out to all of those who lived out that scenario today. Prayers for them.

Spring WAS Here

Springtime in Oklahoma = 79 sunny degrees yesterday + 34 rainy degrees today. The boys' baseball games have been postponed over and over because of rain....which means double header make-up games for the next few weeks. Woohoo!

Mason took his CRT state reading test today. Poor kid has a teacher for a mom - he got all kinds of tips and reminders this morning. McDonald's offered free breakfast for kids who were testing, so I gave in and let the boys do egg McMuffins before school. We were in line with half the town and almost didn't make it to school on time. Note to McD's...if you invite the whole to over for free breakfast, you MIGHT want to schedule more than one cashier the morning of. I'm available for consultations on future promotions if you need me...just let me know.