Pumpkin Patch

I took the kids to Sunny Hearts this past Saturday to get some pictures of them in the pumpkin patch.  It was a quick photo shoot because we had a parade to get to.  I had intended on going earlier in the day but Isabella took an extra long nap and I didn't want to wake her.  When we got there, my beautiful daughter was more interested in the grass and hay and pumpkins than looking at Mommy and smiling. I went with it and tried to get some pictures of her and Christopher interacting with each other. 

Christopher loves his sister which is evident in this picture of him giving her kisses... 

And I just love this picture.  I think you can see why....

After the photo shoot we went to my Dad's house to watch the neighborhood Halloween parade.  The kids in the neighborhood dress in their costumes and rides their bikes or walk or get pulled in a wagon to collect treats from their neighbors sitting out by the road.  Here we are waiting for the parade to start...

I didn't get pictures of the kids when they came by because I was busy helping Christopher pass out candy to them.  They came in a herd and in about 2 minutes, they were gone!  Afterward we sat and talked for a while, Christopher rode his bike and Daddy put Isabella on the tricylce for a ride around the driveway....

Aren't they cute?  As you can see, Bella still has some growing to do but she liked holding on and riding around with Pop...and I think Pop had fun too.  It was a good beautiful day. 

Fair

Last week was our annual Brazoria County Fair.  We didn't make it out there as much as we usually do but did manage to get out to the BBQ Cook-Off...mainly because my brothers had a team and food and a place to park our hiney's when we needed a break.  We didn't make it to the petting zoo with Bella or any of the other stuff.  I only took her out there for a few hours on Saturday because it had warmed up and the wind had died down a little.  She's had an ear infection so we were very cautious about it.  While we were there, Jeff stopped by to grab something to eat, take a break and see his girls--Chris was gone at the time spinning himself silly on all the rides.  I took this picture of Jeff and Bella--oh I think my hubby looks so handsome in his Sheriff's uniform.  I do miss seeing him in it all the time, but I don't miss the time he spent working for them.  Anyway, here's the beautiful picture I snapped of them...

Then it was Mommy's turn....

Later, Chris returned ready to dig into Uncle Tony's ribs. Obviously Chris and the judges think otherwise on these ribs....

And this picture I took prior to the Fair.  This is Chris and his Lego entry.  For about 4 years now he's been building something and entering it in the Fair.  This year was a Kingdom.  He was very proud as you can but again, the judges didn't agree as much--he won 3rd Place.  He was disappointed but is gonna give it a go again next year.  In fact he's already thinking about what he's going to build.

Happy Birthday Jace Andrew

Last Thursday was what would have been my baby boy Jace's 7th birthday.  I miss my son every day and think of him every day.  Jace was born October 15, 2002 at 12:03 p.m. (just in time for lunch).  He weighed in 6 lbs. 12 oz.  He was a good baby, a happy baby...and he left us much too soon.  I will always treasure the time we had with him.  Jace has taught me so much these last 7 years.  One thing in particular is that I try very hard to never put things off for a better time or for the perfect moment because that chance may be taken away forever.  I tell my family how much they mean to me everyday.  I stop to take time for my kids.  The aggravations that once seemed like a big deal no longer are.  Life can change in an instant so live it today.  You don't have as much control as you think you do so go with the flow, its much easier on you and everyone else.  I could go on but I think you understand what I'm trying to say.  Its hard to imagine that Jace would be 7 because I still think of him as a baby...but at the same time I try to imagine what he would like?  He was born 6 months after my niece Makenna and 9 months before my nephew Brandon so he would be running around with both of them.  Would he be into Transformers with Brandon...love the Cars movie?  Into Legos with his brother?  Would they still be inseparable?  Would he have turned his nose to potatoes like his brother or not been able to refuse them like his mommy?  No tomatoes like daddy?  Salads like his mommy?  These and so many other things I often think about.  I miss him every day and I wish he were here every day.  I'd like to share some pictures of my sweet boy the day he was born. 

Hello world...

We call this the kool-aid smile picture.  This was Christopher and Jace's first meeting.  That smile you see on little 3 year old Christopher's face is a genuine unforced smile.  This is out most favorite picture of these two...

This is the next day when I finally got to really hold him and check him out...10 fingers....10 toes....

And with big brother....

And home...

Forever in our hearts sweet boy....Mommy loves you.

Potato Soup

Yes I know its 80 degrees outside here in Southeast Texas and I'm talking potato soup...but at least its not 98.  It was raining off and on today so that made me want to cook something like soup and since I was off and finished my running early, I decided to oblige my hankerings.  You can't beat this recipe...its so dadgum easy.  My boss made this for lunch one day at work about a year ago and we loved it.  I've made it once with a few tweaks of my own and it turned out great.  And shhh, don't tell anyone but the hubby had two bowls of it!  I know!  Can you even believe he ate soup?!!?  I'm afraid to say it out loud, that maybe it won't happen again.  See, I figured I could get away with making a pot of soup on a Monday because generally I don't cook on Mondays.  Mondays are leftovers, sandwiches, frozen pizza, can of soup...I think you get the picture.  So I figured I'd make a pot of soup and the boys would eat something else and I would get the whole pot of deliciousness to myself.  Slurp!  Didn't work.  However, I'm excited the hubby ate two bowls of soup because the hubby never eats soup...unless its really, really, really cold outside because he doesn't particularly care for soup.  I tease him all the time saying he married into the wrong family because my family loves us some soup, especially homemade chicken noodle soup.  Slurp!   Not the hubby...but he's coming around I think.  Today was proof.  So I made this potato soup that's really easy and I'd like to share it with you.  Are you ready?  Cuz if you blink, you might miss it...

Potato Soup

1 bag shredded hash browns (frozen)
6 cups water
7 tsp. Wylers Chicken granules
2 packages cream cheese
1/2 jar Pace Mild Queso
Salt, Pepper, Garlic, 1 tsp. dill

You throw all that into a pot and let her go.

Now when we made this at work, it seemed like it wasn't thick enough for potato soup so when I make it I add a packet of peppered country gravy to help thicken it up--a trick I learned from my brother, thanks Tony, wink.  I also add...are you ready?  Bacon.  Now I cook my bacon, crumble it and put it in there because I don't eat bacon that's still moving and if I'm adding bacon to my soup, I want to be able to enjoy it too.  Plus, the bacon also gives it a nice flavor.  Oh yes, when I'm feeling frisky like I was today I'll add just about all the queso to the mix, and then finish the rest off with a bag of chips.  Ha!  Anyway, here it is and I hope you like it.  Like I said, its easy and its delicious.  Enjoy!   

A Cool Front Is Coming!

Woo Hoo, Yippy-Ky-Yay, Yee-Haw...and now I'm blank!  I was trying to think of all the things I say when I'm excited and I just went blank.  The reason I'm expressing my excitement is because a cool front is coming...today....right now, its coming...for real...seriously!  See...look at the radar...

That's not me in the red box by the way....I'm down in Texas!  But that's it right there barreling straight for us and I'm tickled pink about it!  I am so ready for the humidified sticky icky hot yucky weather to get the heck out of here.  I love the cooler weather and all it brings.  Layers of clothing, boots, sweaters, scarves, hats.  I'm not a hat person but I think they look lovely on everyone else.  Me, I'm the dork trying to be a hat person and I'm not.  I look like a dork!  Hats aside I love just about everything else about cooler weather clothing.  Jeans...you can even wear jeans without them sticking to your everything....those who live in Texas know exactly what I mean by "everything".  So yes, I'm excited about the cool front coming!  And by the way, Happy Friday to everyone!!!  I hope you have a marvelous weekend...in the cooler weather cuz in case you didn't know...a cool front is coming! 

Judy

I'm sad today.  I found out this morning that my dear friend Judy is leaving the Port to go work at the Credit Union (dang Credit Union).  I am very happy and excited for her but I will miss seeing her every day.  She has been such a wonderful friend to me and my family.  She has inspired me, comforted me, encouraged me and been everything a good friend should be...and more.  Its hard to put into words what Judy's friendship has meant to me but I will tell you I feel like I have just received the most horrible news in hearing that she's leaving us.  We have had the best time here at Port Freeport with Judy.  Our lunches and parties will never be the same.  I do believe we will forever stay in touch and she will continue to be a part of my life, every day, because she is a dear friend and I have always treasured our friendship and everything she has brought into my life. 

I feel special because I was with Judy for her first George Strait concert so in honor of that and our friendship, I'm posting pictures of us from the concert...oh we had a good time and George was just awesome!

This is pre-concert, pre-George...waiting, waiting, waiting...we were excited!

Still waiting on George but having a good time!

Thank you Miss Judy for all the great laughs and hugs and encouragement.  You are a treasure.

6,570 Days Ago...

Jeff and I had our first date.  It was at the Fair.  He was in high school.  I was not.  Yes, yes...I am older, I robbed the cradle, blah, blah, blah, blah.  Jeff would say he was smart in getting an older woman, that he was Mr. Macho Man, blah, blah, blah, blah.  Truth is I went after him with a little help from a mutual friend, but Jeff made the call.  If I remember right (and he will correct me if I'm not) we talked for a long time during that first conversation when the date was made.  I really don't remember much about the first date other than I spit Coke in his face.  You see, my sweet hubby is a bit of a jokester when he's nervous.  Its his way to get through those moments.  We had just come off one of those rides where you spin and go in circles really fast and my whole body doesn't handle those rides very well but since I was on a first date and trying to impress, my dumb ass got on the ride.  I know what you're thinking and no, I didn't get sick but we did buy a Coke afterward to try and help settle my tummy down.  So we're walking and talking and Jeff is telling me about his sister Kim.  I don't remember exactly what he was saying that lead to this next part, but I do remember that as I took a drink of my Coke, Jeff said, "you see, my sister, she's not a girl".  My reply to that was Coke spewing out of my mouth.  I didn't know until later that when I did that, it didn't go straight out like I had hoped.  I mean I leaned forward to spit but evidently, according to my now hubby it went everywhere. We were walking side by side and it hit him in the face.  Oops!  That moment has been forever etched in my heart because I like to tell people, that's when we knew it was love.  Yea I know...on our first date?  We know it really wasn't however....I tell it like that because he called me for another date after that night so that's why I tell everyone "it was love".  My Aunt Andie took this picture of us at our first Christmas together (dating that is).  I love this picture--its one of my favorites.  I have it in a frame at work and in a photo album here at the house.  He's just so darn cute.  I am grateful to our friend Jonathan for helping to bring us together and very grateful to my hubby for not running far, far away when I spit Coke all over him.  Happy 18 years my Love...

No, No, No

No, No, No!  Do you know how hard it is to hear that over and over in your head when you're supposed to be penny pinching and you love to shop?  Well that's what I heard my head telling myself several times today.  I had to run into town to pay a couple bills and run by a couple stores to pick up a few things we needed.  A couple stores turned into four.  As I stated before, I love to shop.  And if I have something on my mind about getting, wanting or needing, I'm gonna do my best to find it.  Today it was bloomers.  I had decided while I was out running these errands I would look for some plain white bloomers--that's what I call them.  They may just be called a diaper cover or something else but I call them bloomers.  I got Isabella this adorable Halloween pillowcase dress and I want some bloomers she can wear over her diaper so its not just her diaper underneath. Simple enough, right?  Wrong.  This task proved to be a difficult one in the great metropolis of Lake Jackson.  Target was my first stopping place, no luck but I did pick up formula, a birthday gift, a sippy cup, a light bulb, a very cute Halloween diaper shirt & another recycle bag.  I stuck to the plan here only picking up the tee and the bag...but in my defense the bag was only my second and with as much stuff you can cram in these bags...two is all I'll need and it was $0.99.  The tee was on $1 so I feel no argument is needed with either of those items.  Ha!  Next I went over to Hobby Lobby to get fabric for a baby blanket and an easel.  Nix nay on the fabric--its all gone which means a trip to Sugarland (poor pitiful me).  I did see some very cute monkey fabric and thought of Chris.  I call him monkey and he loves it and monkey stuff so I thought a blanket would be a good idea for Christmas.  I talked myself out of it (the penny pinching thing) and decided to wait.   I found the easel I needed and picked up a sign that reads "The Princess Sleeps Here Do Not Disturb".  It was half off at $1.50 so I got it.  Made it out of there w/o even perusing the Halloween aisle (Yeah for me!).  I then paid my bills but not before picking up a pair of $30 Levis for myself.  First let me say--if you're a man reading this you need to skip down because this will make no sense to you whatsoever.  So the jeans.  I hemhawed about this for a while.  My problem is baby weight.  I still haven't lost all of it and I'm dang tired of wearing maternity britches and I have refused to purchase any britches in larger sizes.  I know I can drop this weight.  I know I can.  I just haven't put forth the extra little effort I need (walking) to drop this last bit that will put me back in my pre-baby britches.  So I broke down today and found a pair of jeans that I liked and bought them.  But I absolutely refuse to buy anything else!  Do you hear me?  REFUSE!!  Glad we have that straight.  I decided to meander down to The Children's Place to get Chris some jeans.  If I wait too much longer I won't be able to find jeans because it seems like Christmas arrives and stores start moving in bikinis and tank tops! Picked up 3 pair and also picked up some britches and a shirt for Isabella (for a Wildcats FIRST DOWN!).  Yea...I'm hearing the announcer from the game last week in my head right now.  Every single time we got a first down he said it the same way...was always enthusiastic but always managed to say "picked up a Wildcats first down!"  Yea I know I'm weird.  The last place I went to on my escapade was Kohl's.  BTW...there were no bloomers at any of the previous store and no bloomers at Kohl's but they had the cutest little Thanksgiving shirt for Bella.  Oh I wanted it and I totally would have bought it (for $5.00) if they had the size I needed...but they didn't...so I didn't...and I walked out.   Yep, didn't spend one dime...only my time.  Do you know how hard it was?  Seriously...for a bonafide, confirmed and confessed shopaholic to walk out of a store without buying one thing when by the way there were 8 million things yelling at me as I passed by them.  It was hard.  But I did it...because after spending the extra on clothes that weren't in my plan today or in my budget, I felt bad.  The tags are still on the clothes so there's a chance they may go back--that's how bad I feel.  Well the Halloween tee won't because Isabella is wearing it now and she's sleeping.  And Chris's jeans won't because he needs them, but my jeans may go back.  So there you have it...my day spent with voices screaming at me No, No, No!  And for the most part...I obliged.