The Texas Bluebonnet June 2, 2009

So, I’ve been told a lot about Texas, and learned a lot about the culture first-hand; although I’m sure I still have a lot to learn. Since the bluebonnet is the state flower and you’re not allowed to pick them, I’ve been told the only thing to do with them is get your picture taken in them.  It wasn’t too hard either.  There is a large field in our community that I often saw people doing just that.  Trevor said he even saw some people with a large yellow couch -I think it was yellow- in the middle of the field to add to their photo shoot.

This was an experience I wanted to have, as I have seen many and liked how it looked, but wasn’t certain I would get complete cooperation from my other half .  Luckily, Kevin and Kristy came to visit one weekend in April and Kristy had the same plan and thought the same of her other half.  So, after church Kristy went and took her girls in their dresses, and then took some of Eliot and I, and then we allowed the kids to get into more comfortable clothes and we took just a couple for fun.  Here they are:

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, I think it’s pretty evident in Eliot’s crumpled eyebrows that she wasn’t quite into this experience.  She kept talking about the fire ants and didn’t want to get bitten.  In this second one she was asking to be done.  I don’t remember specifically what she said, but I must have thought it was funny.

 

I wanted a few of Eliot by herself, but you can see that the chances of that were probably less than those when she was sitting on my lap.

 

 

 

 

Enter cousins, and wardrobe change!  Look at the difference it made to our little girl!  I’m not certain of the details, but she sure was enjoying it more with them.  Oh well, it’s still a great picture, even if it’s not one of mother and daughter.

 

 

 

I really enjoyed this next little sequence of cooperation.  She did her best to pose as we asked, but wasn’t quite comfortable smelling the flowers so she kept watching us for the “you can stop” que.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall, it was a great experience.  We decided we would hit the field much earlier next year as a lot of the flowers were already starting to wilt.  Maybe with one year under her belt, Eliot will do better with her fright of the fire ants.  Thanks to Kristy for her great picture-taking!

Next post: our San Antonio trip!  I’ll set my goal to have it done before two months pass

Happy Easter! April 22, 2009

Shocking, I know.  Who would have thought I could publish two posts so close together?  I must be mismanaging my time again .  Oh well!

I wanted to get this picture up and show off this great cake Eliot and I were so proud of.  I was mostly impressed with it because it was so last-minute and not very well planned out, but it turned out WONDERFUL!  We spent the day with our friends Seth and Marsha, and had a great time.

While Easter has always been an enjoyable holiday for me -I think mostly because of the memories of being on Grandpa’s farm- the past couple of years have taken on a deeper appreciation and celebration.  Our family loves to talk about the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the opportunities we have as a family because of it, and how we look so forward to being with Morgen again.  We haven’t specifically created traditions for Easter since Morgen’s passing, but the day just feels different than Easters passed.

Most times when we go to the cemetery we put new flowers on Morgen’s grave and bring home the old ones.  Eliot enjoys “planting” the plastic flowers in the back yard and recently Trevor made a “flower box” in the corner so there’s a designated place for them:

Along with the flowers you’ll probably notice a wooden one.  That’s a “Build and Grow” project from Lowe’s that Eliot made.  It’s a rain gauge and she LOVES to see the container fill with water.  Also, you’ll see a CD.  That’s the top of the a wind chime Eric and Leah’s family sent us on the one-year anniversary of Morgen’s passing.  It’s on a shepherd’s hook that they gave us and we take it to the cemetery for a while to hang stuff, and then bring it back home when we switch stuff out.

Here’s a little picture of Eliot’s dance performance this month.  From left to right is Brinley, Faith, and Eliot.

A short update, Baby3 April 20, 2009

Here’s a couple pics from the latest ultrasound:

 

We really enjoyed the visit when we got these pics because we were able to “record” a DVD to bring home and show Eliot.  She is so anxious to go to the doctor with me and see the ultrasound.  I mentioned it to the doctor and he suggested this as an option.  During the time we were recording, the baby did what the lady described as drinking.  The baby would cock its head back and open it’s mouth wide, then stick its tongue out a few times and swallow.  It was so interesting to see the movement so defined and exaggerated.  It was a new experience for us.  When we watched the DVD with Eliot she really enjoyed hearing the heart “beeping, because that means you’re alive.”

Things seem to be going well so far.  It’s taken me longer to post these pictures than it should have; the ultrasound was 03 April.  My next appointment is this coming Friday so we’ll see if I can post about it sooner than a month late .  In the next couple of weeks I’ll be having the 18-week [I'm used to it being done at 20 weeks, but this practice must be different] ultrasound to check everything, so I’m sure I’ll have more pics soon.

Overall, we’re doing pretty well as a family.  Trevor no longer has an evening job so we’re enjoying more family time together.  Eliot just thinks it’s wonderful that Trevor only works at “2HM Hill” and will be home for dinner.

Eliot’s last dance recital was earlier this month (but I haven’t reviewed the pictures so that will have to wait until next time).  Her teacher will no longer be holding classes, and I’m not sure we’ll look into another location so for now that’s falling to the wayside.  It’s been fun for us both .  She would go to class and I would go to lunch with friends (their daughters were in the same class).

We’ve been spending a lot of time with our friends Seth and Marsha lately, and while it’s enjoyable and a mutually beneficial friendship, it may be causing some problems with Trevor’s list of home improvements.  For the past week or so we have enjoyed several evenings in their enclosed back porch, enjoying the cool quiet air, bug free.  Several times since we’ve lived in this home Trevor has mentioned how he’d like a patio in the backyard to be able to lounge.  However, since he’s “tasted” of this luxury of lounging without the bugs, his mind is starting to plan.  If you know Trevor well enough, I’m sure you know where this is going.  The past few times we’ve gone to Seth and Marsha’s, Trevor has taken measurements of their porch, and looked closely at the door and windows, and asked Seth to see the pictures of it during construction.  He’s looked a little at outdoor furniture, and even more closely at projectors with DVD players and pull-down screens to watch them on, though he says that’s a lot farther off in the future.  He’s looked at the constrution of our covered porch area and tried to decide if that’s large enough to just enclose, or how he would increase the size without needing a building permit to complete this project… and this is only a the things I’m aware of.  I’m sure there’s lots more to his planning mind.

Trevor’s personality is very much focused on finishing things, as well as immediate satisfaction.  Not only does he want this enclosed porch for his enjoyment, I know he wants it because he has a lot of pride in himself and his abilities when he’s able to accomplish something large.  I often observe him to be much like a bull, preparing to charge.  When that bull zeros in on a target, it races full boar until it makes contact and accomplishes what he intends.  Trevor is very much like that with projects.  He must think about it all the time, with little distraction, and runs full-speed and agressively completes the project until it is D-O-N-E.

We’re enjoying the weather warming, but for Eliot it’s still not enough.  She REALLY wants to go swimming although we tell her it will be a little too cold still – mostly the water.  He response is that she’s wearing flip-flops and she’s not too cold.  Kevin and Kristy are coming to spend some time this weekend and I told Eliot we’d see if her cousins want to brave the pool with her.  We’ll see how it goes.

A few things I’ve been meaning to share… March 5, 2009

So, it’s nothing really exciting, but kind of interesting.

Since we’re new to Texas weather, our first contact with ice rain was interesting.  Actually, this first picture isn’t from that main storm; it was just raining and when I went to get the mail that afternoon I found some decent-sized frozen drips on the trees.  I didn’t get the greatest pictures, but my friend did here if you want to see hers.

And, here’s the ice rain.  It’s kind of interesting how the community handles “severe weather” like this.  I’m sure it won’t be long until it’s scarey to me too, but for now it’s still just weather.  The day had been cloudy and overcast most of the day, and the forecasters had been predicting ice rain, but it didn’t hit until later in the evening.  Eliot and I were leaving a friend’s house and it sounded like the sprinklers were on in her yard.  However, when we stepped out, it felt like we were being hit with shaved ice.  It’s so different than hail, but I can’t figure how to explain the difference.  Trevor got home that night almost five hours later than Eliot and I experienced it.  He said as he and his co-workers were leaving work they found their vehicles needed to be scraped to clear the ice; Trevor was the only one with an ice scraper [not that we've used it, but it's just one of those things we've had in our vehicles from our last climate] so he used it and then left it with them to take turns with it.  It seemed that as soon as Trevor pulled in the drive the main bulk of the storm starting pouring.  I heard the increase in sound and stepped onto the porch to see and met him at the front door.  The next morning this is what we found:

We couldn’t believe how thick the ice was.  We saw our neighbors pouring hot water on their cars in order to get inside.  Trevor got out his butane tourch to melt it.  It was kind of funny.  Most of the schools were closed for the day, and if businesses were open at all they were on a delay to open.  Most people I talked to said their spouses were working from home that day.  Luckily, I didn’t have to be anywhere early so by the time I needed to leave, the car was completely accessible.  It was an experience we haven’t had before.  Here’s a few more pics from the morning:

  

 

Look at the ice surrounding the antenna!

      

Enjoy!

February 17, 2009

A holiday evening out January 8, 2009

I heard of a life-size snow globe exhibit themed “The Polar Express” that I wanted to visit.  However, when we got there is was really just the decor for Santa at the mall.  Oh well.  It was fun to be out as a family anyway, and stand in a snow globe with the snow.  However, later I learned fake snow is much LESS fun that real snow.  It’s a neat idea, but the aftermath is a mess because it doesn’t just melt and go away.  I still have “flakes” in my purse.  Here’s a couple pics.

Eliot’s dance performance January 8, 2009

So, here’s a little bit from Eliot’s dance performance; and my first attempt at blogging a movie.  Here goes nothing!

First, a couple pictures of her and her friends Faith (who just moved to California) and the side of Brinley’s head.

And, one of the three of them standing waiting for their turn.

Here’s the video of … er not.  Any suggestions on how to get a video posted?  When I spend more time to figure it out, I’ll add it to this post.

Startin’ ‘em young! December 19, 2008

So, as things have picked up for me, my daughter has found a new interest .

She LOVES to “do vinyl.”  I think it’s pretty funny, but is something we can do together so it’s great.  I cut a little extra specifically for her and she weeds it and uses masking and a squeegee.  Nice.

Boo 2008 November 2, 2008

So, by mutual consent, Trevor took charge of Eliot’s Halloween costume this year.  For weeks she was saying she wanted to be a butterfly.  I had started talking to her about it early in September so a decision could be final without too much grief when “crunch time” came of making a costume.  However, just a couple weeks before Halloween -right about the time Trevor agreed to do it- Eliot said she wanted to be “Boo” from Monsters, Inc.  That’s what she was last year -

 

 

 

 

 

and I thought it would be fun to have some variety.  However, I lost all say when I surrendered to giving Trevor full control. 

 He didn’t do too bad though, do you think?-

 

Last year he REALLY wanted to dye Eliot’s hair and I didn’t see it as necessary in order for Eliot to be recognizable as Boo.

 

 

 

 

He did some dying this year -

and it must have been the trick.  Even without the Happy Meal toy props of Sully and Mike, LOTS of people recognized Eliot as “Boo! from Monsters, Inc.”

So, NICE JOB TREVOR!  I think you win and get costume duty again next year .  Love you.

Just thinking, and crying a little October 9, 2008

I just wanted to share some of my favorite pumpkin pictures.

    

I love the excitement on Eliot’s face, and -despite my friend’s butt in the background (I REALLY need to learn to Photoshop)- I love the contentment on Morgen’s face.  He wasn’t really walking yet, but he could lean on this pile of pumpkins and stay upright.  These were from a pumpkin patch we visited last October with some friends.

Also, here’s a link to some wonderful pumpkin pancakes.  However, I made waffles instead.  I got about a half because Eliot and Trevor love them so much there wasn’t quite enough (it might have been because I completely burned one and one was completely undercooked so I threw them both out).  The only tip I would offer would be to make sure they are thoroughly cooked.  They were a lot more toasted than we usually like our waffles, just so we didn’t have doughy insides.  Enjoy!

Monica