Random Things

20 random things about me:

1. I could eat Tex-Mex every single day

2. I grew up as an only child. Although technically I have 3 half-sisters from my Dad's previous marriage.

3. Fruit flies make me nuts

4. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day - bring on the french toast!

5. I'm constantly amazed at how much garbage two adults and two children can produce!

6. I'm constantly amazed at how much LAUNDRY two adults and two children can produce!

7. Spiders and I do not get along - at all! Although, I always end up having to be the one to kill them in the house because JL feels like they "are good to have around to eat the other bugs." Please.

8. I own every season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on DVD

9. Walking through Model Homes is one of my favorite pastimes

10. If I could, I'd own multiple dogs and a couple of horses

11. I have out-fished my husband AND my Dad - in one trip!

12. I always want to go dancing

13. I wish I was more creative

14. I love to swim - but I'm afraid to be on lakes

15. I can kill even the most hardy of plants

16. People constantly ask me if my dog is really a wolf

17. My Grandma was born in Italy

18. Chocolate is my weakness!

19. I love cookie dough

20. When I was young, I wanted to live at Cinderella's castle at Disneyland

Team David.....COOK!

I admit the first time I saw David Cook my thoughts were "who is this dude with the wacked out hair?" But it didn't take long for me to become a fan. I think the final hook for me was his performance of "Billy Jean." I went from "eh" to "wow this dude is really an artist!" Ever since then - Cook could do no wrong!

I am extremely happy that he won this season on Idol. After watching Tuesday night's performances and listening to the judges, I was sure that Archuleta was going to nail the prize. I usually agree with Simon and his take on performances but I thought he was way out of line on Tuesday with his remarks towards Cook! I mean, telling him he should have performed Billy Jean again instead of going out on a limb and trying something new??? Simon! What are you thinking man! Can you hear yourself??

I LOVED the Collective Soul song that Cook performed as his last song Tuesday night. If I wasn't such a DVR nut and had actually watched the competition live - I would have been voting (for the first time) in Cook's honor. I was SURE he was going to lose it after hearing the judges come down on him. I kept thinking "why are they being so skewed?"

I went into last night's competition with the "Well, Cook's going to lose but at least Archuleta isn't horrible" attitude. I mean, I have to like Archuleta a little bit. The guy DOES attend the high school I graduated from (GO SPARTANS!!!) :-) And I'll admit he has a nice voice. But it's not a voice I'm all that crazy about. He'll do great singing hits for FM 100 or Light FM 95.5. It's just not a sound I'm all that crazy about.

I look forward to hearing more from Cook! I'm going to have to download a few songs from iTunes until he releases something new! Until then, I'm not sure what I'm going to watch now that Idol is over until January!!!

My Family Visits

This past weekend we were lucky enough to have my parents in town to visit. The kids and I were glad to have the change up in our daily routine. James loves to play cars and baseball with Grandpa while Isabel and I enjoy relaxing and visiting with Nana.

While visiting, we had an Express game come up. JL had gone to St. Louis to see his sister graduate from law school so Grandpa joined us at the ballgame. It was so much fun to see James sitting on Grandpa's lap listening as he explained the game. I don't think James took his eyes off the field once! Well, except when Spike came dangerously close to our seats and he had to wave and say "hi!"

JL was back in town by Saturday. He treated us to some ribs and sausage he smoked up. They were delicious!!

Mother's Day

I had a great Mothers Day this year. How fun to celebrate my day with TWO children this year.

JL taught James how to say "Happy Mothers Day" so it was a treat for me to hear that first thing in the morning.

I think things got a tad confusing for James when it came time to open the gifts. After his present rampage the day before, he pretty much figured that if it's in wrapping paper - it's fair game. :-)

After church JL cooked chicken on the grill for us. James enjoyed tossing his new baseball around while Izzy and I chilled on the patio. It was relaxing and enjoyable to just be around my family.

James got me a beautiful Round Rock Express blanket while Isabel graced me with a new skirt and shirt. She's already such a good shopper!

James' 2nd Birthday!!

My little baby boy turned 2 this past Saturday! I think I'm still in a state of shock! Was it really 2 years ago that he joined our family? It seems like just yesterday JL and I were going through the woe's that are infertility and now we have two beautiful children in our lives! How blessed we truly are! Sigh.

We started the day with a little breakfast followed by presents, presents and more presents. Hey, why waste time? James figured we outta just get to the good stuff. :-) If the pictures don't do it justice - the boy is spoiled! And there was a definate theme to the gifts: baseball!

We decided to get the Fireworks Season Pkg to the Round Rock Express games for a second year in a row. Last year James went to every game and we only had to leave early twice! That's amazing considering there's about 20 games in the package.

This year we've been to 3 games so far. Izzy and I have been to two of those. She has seemed to enjoy them also. Well, as much as someone can enjoy them through their eye lids! James has just loved them! He sits on his daddy's lap and watches every pitch, run, out, you name it. He is fascinated with the whole thing. He's also expanded his vocabulary to include words like "pitch" "strike" "out" "too bad" "home run" and "fireworks."

Last year the fireworks were the thing to see. This year - not soo much. They are too loud for him and possibly a bit scary. He holds his ears and tells the fireworks they are naughty! :-) I'm curious to see how another year changes things. For now, we usually bail out before the fireworks start.

He's also a big fan of the mascot for the Express: Spike the dog. Last year he wanted to just see Spike from a safe distance. This year - it's all about touching him. He was so proud that at the last game he had given him five. :-) He had to tell EVERYONE that he gave "spike the dog five." It was too cute.

So his presents included baseballs, baseball gloves, a spike stuffed animal and of course, cars. He's still holding on to that passion as well.

After opening presents, we took the whole crew out to Perdenales Falls State Park. It was so pretty - but SOOOOOO HOT! The reading in our car was 104! And believe me, it felt like it. I was melting! But James and Izzy (and of course JL) didn't seem to mind at all.

From there we went to KFC, picked up our dinner and headed to the park over by our house. It gave James a chance to throw around his baseball and practice with his new mitt. * As a random note: JL was stung by a bee at this park! He was walking through a clover field on our way to the picnic table and the little bugger just climbed in his sandal and that was that.

By the time we got home James was exhausted but a happy boy!

Rose & James Turn 2

As if we haven't partied enough - Friday Stephanie and I planned a combined birthday party for James and Rose. We invited a few of the kids' buddies over to Old Settlers Park to play and enjoy a little lunch and treats.

We all met at the lake pavillion at 11. Stephanie had brought subway sandwiches for our dining enjoyment. There's just something about a sandwich at a park that makes it taste so good! James enjoyed a turkey and cheese sandwich. Although, truth be told, I think he ate more cheeto's than anything else. By the time he was done he was covered in cheese finger marks and capri sun. :-) Apparently the concept of not squeezing the drink escaped him.

Aside from the weather (which went from pleasant earlier in the week to scorching hot) everyone had a great time. The kids played on the slides and the swings while the mommies tried to share what little shade there was.

James and his ever eternal need to throw a ball made friends with a few people at the park I didn't know. They had a nerf football the kids were tossing around and apparently James just couldn't resist himself. Several of the ladies commented on how strong his arm is for such a little guy! He was chucking that football around like it was nothing. I've never known a little boy to be SUCH a good shot at SUCH a young age. His aim is deadly and his launch is long! I see a possible little league career in this boy's future!

After the kids played for a bit and us mommies decided we were melting in the heat, we went back to the pavillion for cup cakes! I made this fantastic recipie Jennifer had given me. It's basically a cup cake with a yummy cheesecake like treat in the center!

Unfortunately for us the pavillion was being taken over by some kind of "group function" and they made no secret in telling us to get lost. So we gathered up our gear and sought shade under a couple of trees which thankfully also had a picnic table. We were just in time for the cup cakes too. The heat had started to take its toll on the frosting. The kids didn't seem to mind though. After a brief round of "Happy Birthday" it was time to dig in. I'm not sure who was more excited about the crumbly, chocolaty cake - the kids or the ants!

Brushy Creek Water Park

And the party-fest continues!

Thursday the three of us went to our first ward playgroup. I was feeling so confident after our successful trip to the Zephyr, I decided to load everyone up and get outdoors (again)!

It was hot so a water park sounded just right! And James has always been a water lover. Since the day he was born he has delighted in baths and running through the sprinklers. This park is great because it's basically a giant cement pad with water fountains shooting up from the ground.

I was a little bit surprised that James wasn't more into it. He ran around briefly, but he kept telling me he was cold. I admit, the water was a bit chilly, but the air temp was in the 80's! I suppose he's just my little Texan Boy. 80's in Utah would be perfect for sprinklers, but apparently the natives like it in the 90 to 100 range!

Izzy and I hung out soaking up the shade. She's just getting to the point where she's coming alive. Her feedings are spreading out and she's more and more aware of her surroundings. She's become quite fond of our outtings. It was a fantastic opportunity to meet some of the ladies in our new ward. I'm glad to be getting out among the adults again!

Zilker Zephyr

Last Wednesday started our "James is turning 2" party-fest. I took him and Izzy down to Zilker Park to ride the Zilker Zephyr. Having lived here in this area for nearly 7 years now, I am surprised this is something I had never done before. Especially after James arrived. So when my friend Jennifer suggested we take the kids there I jumped at the chance.

James had a blast! He's so obsessed with trucks and cars and trains that this was right up his ally. I was a little worried as this was our first outting as a trio. Normally JL is around to provide crowd control for James while I lug around Izzy. But, James was a perfect angel and I had no trouble at all.

The ride was about 20 minutes long. It winds around the park, goes under a bridge, and skirts the lake. James saw turtles, frogs, fish, birds and a squirrell. I don't think he blinked the whole time we were on the ride!

Afterwards we took the kids over to the playscapes to burn off some of their excitement. James had a great time climbing on the fire engine and going down the slide. When it was all said and done and we were ready to go I had two exhausted kiddo's on my hands. Just the way I like them!

Test Run

Well I did it. I joined the blogging revolution. And here I thought it was just a fad - like DVD's and e-mail. :-)

Why "Click Clack Quack" you ask? Well - one of James' all time favorite books at the moment is "Click Clack Moo - Cows that Type." If you haven't read this book to your little ones - you should! It's a great one!