BIG Tyeson!

Big Tyeson turned 4 last week...

WORD!!

This was the picture Tanya sent in the email invite.  She showed it to Tyeson who thought his red eyes looked really cool.  Hey, who needs red eye correction anyway?

This boy has some of the longest eyelashes around.  And some charming blue eyes to go with them - when they aren't red. And cool. Just can't believe he is already four.

What a goof.  He has two big brothers to keep up with and lets just say he can definitely hold his own.

See, there's Jackson in the background, almost ready to lightsaber his head off.  We had the party at Mom and Dad's so that Dad could join the insanity fun.  Doesn't he look good?  Prayer is powerful stuff.

Well, Nate and Tanya have their hands full.  Full of crazy, whacky, all-boy-all-the-time fun.  And a lot of love too.

May the force be with them. 

Naked

Harry got a haircut.  I think he looks much better.  He, on the other hand, is not sure what to think about all this.  He looks like he feels naked and exposed.  He looks a little uncomfortable and embarassed.

 

Sometimes he looks at me like, "Mom, where did you put my hair?"  Maybe I just have an over active sense of guilt. 

But he drags his little sheepskin blanket out of his kennel and takes it along with him wherever he goes. He won't even lay on the rug anymore - he needs his blanket.  Just pitiful.

Maybe guilt looks better in sepia. Have I really become one of those people who take endless pictures of their dog?

Maybe.  It's OK, Honey, it will grow back.  It's just hair.  That's what my mom always told me after she took one last whack at my crooked bangs.  Maybe that's where all this guilt is coming from. Or maybe it was the Barbies.  None of my Barbies survived long with their full head of hair.

Signing off,

Guilty, Cold and Naked in Iowa

Hang a Right at the Moon

I had a hard time with Barney. Sir Topham Hat was a little stern.  The Backyardigans, well, they rock! So for the last 6-8  weeks that Sweet Marissa and her team has been preparing for Marsville and infamous link-up day, I have been humming "We're Going to Mars" by the Backyardigans. Just call me Uniqua.

The kids in the 4th grade class were divided into teams and each team was given a system that would need to be addressed if they were to actually live on Mars.  Marissa was part of the communications group, aka the "Cool Communicators". 

They came up with RoBob, a little robot communication pet that would shoot the messages off to earth and then show the return messages on his screen.  A cute and effective use of duct tape I might add.

Sweet Marissa then had to give a presentation to their class about RoBob, and she did a fine job.  So did Kyler.  Marissa and Kyler did a great job presenting - TOGETHER. (wink, wink, cough, cough).

But before any of that could happen, each team had to construct their "pod" or Mars habitat with 6X8 sheets of plastic, a whole lot of duct tape, a couple of box fans, and some furious praying by their parent volunteers.

And, by gump, it worked.  All six of them worked and were successfully linked together with a series of tunnels and doors and a whole lot of hot air.

It was so cool!!  What a great hands-on way to learn! Not only did they learn about Mars, but also time management, public speaking, and working together as a team. 

After each group had given their presentations, they had lunch.  Each team of five could only have 9 ounces of waste.  Let's just say everyone ate their crusts off their PB & J's that day. Then they got to go in this little jobby up above and check out the constellations.

Really, how fun is that?  The Captain was home and loved every minute of it.  He happily crawled into one of the pods and hung out with the kids as they gave their presentations.  Once again, great job 4th grade teachers! Thanks for all your hard work!

Now, I am going to secretly listen to my Backyardigans CD and jam out with Tasha, Uniqua, Tyrone and Pablo and Austin.

We're going to Mars

It's millions of miles away

But if you leave real soon

The shuttle will shuttle you there today.

Just hang a right at the moon.

We're going to Mars

We're going to Mars

Out in space the gravity's gone

So please keep your seat belts on

We're going to Mars...

Pefect Pairings Psalm 51:7

Psalm 51:7

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;

wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

We're having a hard time keeping Harry "clean" these days.  Spring is here and so is the mud.  Anybody got any hyssop?

Check out Baloney for some more pairings and feel free to leave your own.  Happy Spring!

What is the Most Wrong with this Picture?

A) The fact that I am about to be strangled by the pastel yellow baby seat and my mom chose to take a picture instead.  I was a colicky baby. Maybe she thought I had it coming.

B) As an adult, my cheeks are still that big.  I should have grown into them by now.

C) What on earth possessed my mom to buy and then go on to actually display those fake "blue" grapes on her table as a centerpiece.  Seriously? I know it was the seventies, but those have to go.

I am going with C. Those grapes disturb me. 

This That and the Other

Even though we haven't had so much on the "official" schedule, it still seems like we have been running around like the proverbial chickens lately.  I just think we are starting to feel the ramp up to Spring and the end of the school year. Unless Spring never really does come this year.  See point number three.

Dad: After some ups and downs and close to 20 days in the hospital, we are planning on getting him home this week.  Granted, this was planned on before, but I think it may actually happen this time.  It has been a long haul, but I can't say enough about the care he has received at the hospital here.  His Dr. has been just great, the nurses more than patient and caring, and someday I will know why my Dad has been dubbed B-Man by Marsha and Shonda.

C25K:  I am on Week 5 and have to jog two miles by the end of this week.  Can you say fear and trepidation? I think I may have to repeat a few workouts.  Although I will say it has gone remarkably well so far and I actually look forward to my time on the treadmill. Good stress reliever from all the above.

Spring:  There are signs, but seeing the sun isn't one of them.  It has been so gloomy and cloudy and foggy, I can hardly stand it. I may have to jump into a tanning bed just replenish my Vitimin D supply.  I am serious about this.  Tommorow they say, might be the day for sun.  Oh please?

Sweet Marissa:  Marissa and I went on a shopping trip - just us - just she and I.  We had a darn good time.  I am vowing to make this a regular occurance.  She is growing up and how.  If there is one benefit to living out in the boondocks and having to drive an hour to the nearest Target, then this is it.  We got alot covered in that drive back and forth.  Fun!

O Husband, Where Art Thou?: Seems like the Captain has been gone a lot lately.  He had his checkride last  week (passed) so that kept him gone a little longer.  He has a week of vacation at Easter, so that will be a nice change of pace.

Insomnia:  Seems like I go through times of sleeping really well and then not.  Right now I am not.  Add the time change on to this and I am feeling a little draggy and sleep deprived.  I should have just gotten up at 3AM and written this post because I sure wasn't sleeping.  Might have to take a little snoozy today.  Should be easy considering number three.

What's going on in your world?  Hopefully sunshine and spring breezes and all that good stuff.  I'm jealous.  But my day will come.

Perfect Pairings Psalms 33:2-3

Psalm 33:2-3

2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre;

make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

3 Sing to him a new song;

play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

 

Ok, so we only have 4 strings, and skillful string playing is still in the works, and often I think the loud shouting while praciticing the skillful string playing comes from me.  I had this picture in mind for a perfect pairing and couldn't seem to find the right verse for it, but after being blessed by a particularly awesome church service this morning, it all came together - perfectly.

 

Check out Baloney for some more perfection. 

A Shot of Testosterone

Every once in awhile we get the distinct privilige of watching my nephews.  It's a good thing.  Sometimes the girl drama is a bit overpowering in this household.  With the Captain gone as much as he is, the estrogen can get pretty thick by the time he comes home.  In the meantime, the boys come over for an afternoon and then get things back in balance real quick like.  And we can usually live on the testosterone fumes for a good month or so. 

This is Mason.

Jackson.

Tyeson.

They look to be full of testosterone, eh?

We have had an ongoing Super Mario Brothers battle with the boys to see who could get to the Princess first.  Have to admit, my girls can hold their own when it comes Super Mario Brothers - Marissa especially.

Victories are that much sweeter when you can all join in the fun.

So after a little yelling, a little wrestling, a little farting and burping, a little jumping on the furniture, a little fierce competion, we are good on the testosterone.

Even Harry is relieved.  Living with us girls can be pretty tough.  No wonder he is so happy when the Captain gets home.

Wogging. And Smirking.

I am on Week 3 of the Couch to 5K training program.  As I am typing this I am smirking just a bit.  I am so not a runner/jogger/ any of that.  I used to HATE. HATE. HATE. running the mile for our physical fitness test in school.  It was pure torture for me.  I have enjoyed taking a good brisk walk in the evenings - preferably in nice summer weather, but to be undertaking any sort of "training" for an organized event does make me smirk.

The Tulip Festival 5K is scheduled for the third Saturday of May.  According to C25K you are supposed to go from a couch potato to a 5K in just 9 short weeks.  That gives me plenty of time - I hope.  The Captain says he'll run it with me.  More smirking on my part.

The Captain has a history of leaving me in the dust.  When we were first dating, he was a big mountain biker.  Me, well I grew up riding my bike down our gravel road to my friends house.  This is Iowa.  Not too many hills and such.  Anyway, he would always say he would stay close, but he'd catch a glimpse of a challenging trail and off he'd go.  Can't say that I blame him and it really didn't bother me too much, until in one park we came across a sign to carry a whistle and blow loudly if you spotted a bear.  WHAT!  I think that was one of our last trail rides together.  I can give him a run for his money of the roller blades though.

I am excited and happy with how it is going so far.  I am not incredibly sore. Not really sore at all come to think of it.  I am hoping it will help me get rid of the last of this weight too.  Plus, it is just something I want to do before I turn 40.  I know a 5K, big woo, but I think I am going for what lies beneath all that.  I want to be a healthy 40 year old.  That may include giving up my Dt. Dr. Pepper - the one whom my soul loves.  This may be more challenging than any 5K - or marathon for that matter. 

So anyone want to come to the OC and run/jog/wog/walk with me?  Got the third weekend of May open?  Here's the plan.  I need a back-up plan if the Captain decides to leave me with the bears again.