Rosie's Favorite

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So, I am going to change it up a little here on the good ole' blog and have separate posts about current favs of the members of our family because quite frankly, it is nice to have these memories to reference.

First of all, a definite family favorite is our sweet, Rosie George. What can I say... there just aren't enough posts about our Rosie girl and she is such a quirky dog that there really could be a million posts.

I know everyone loves their dogs (or at least they should) but we really do think that Rosie is the BEST dog for us. Yes, she is a CRAZY, untrained dog that prefers to be held like a baby (cute at 9 lbs but HEAVY at over 40) but she is ours and we love her! She has a freakish love of kid socks, her stuffed monkey that she sleeps with and Kleenex. She can never have enough Kleenex in her diet. She thinks that the cat really wants to play even though his body language says otherwise--- Rosie just won't settle for NO. She often sits on the picnic table to upset the squirrels.

Her real favorites are fluffy spots like the couch and Molly's bed. We are really working on it because let's face it--- she is a couch HOG and leaves us no room. So thus, Rosie has been booted off it for good. She apparently was too dainty for the floor so now she has a new favorite---

Her "pillow"...

This is what she does after Gabriel says, "Rosie! On your pillow!!!"

And then she gives you this look...

Sweetest dog ever. Well, except the days she runs off with all the socks :)

One Hoppin' Holiday!

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This Easter was hoppin' for sure and yet, it really felt like we were moving at our own speed. My kind of holiday for sure. Especially when there is a 2 hour nap squished right in the middle of it all.

Easter morning started a little early but we still managed to make it to church early. Mom, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!!?! We were actually the first in the cry room. We were quickly joined by a million people including Jack and our new friends Peyton and Mallory!

So question here. About how much longer can I manage to have my children in matching clothes? I mean, seriously... it is sooo stinkin' cute! I really think if I had two girls I could get away with it a little longer. I don't know that Gabriel is going to put it up with it forever. SO sadly I will probably have to stop by the time they are teenagers.

I kid I kid.

I'll stop when they are tweens :)

"Seriously Mom. I have some trucks to play with."

Gabe quickly remembered his love of chocolate bunnies.

and then promptly went into a food coma.

Molly was too distracted with her Melody Barbie for some candy... she is in complete Heaven. No way the bunny could forget what she wanted... she told him at the mall and then repeatedly told us EVERY day for the past MONTH.

This is the first holiday ever in the history of my marriage that I am in more pictures than Kelly. Feels a little strange.

We had a yummy breakfast at Nonnie's house in which Molly preceded to empty all the puzzle pieces and flash cards in the closet. Poor Nonnie spent the morning in a Molly sized mess. (and unlike her actual size, it was a HUGE one!)

After we trashed the inside we took to the outdoors! True Easter love right here.

This Easter was also part birthday celebration of a Haji, Aubrey and a Valda. I mean why wouldn't you add a little cake to a sugar infested day?! Makes sense to me. After all, we had some great resting options post sugar high...

and awesome snuggle buddies...

Both of our kiddos were really into the hunt this year. Molly's ballet lessons really served her well.

All Haji wanted for his special day was for the kids to enjoy an Easter egg hunt. Does this not tell you how incredible a grandfather he is?! Haji explained to the kids all about Cascarones...

Molly was initially nervous about breaking them on Uncle Jeff's head...

so she settled for her easy go-to target. The sitting duck.

Confetti was EVERYWHERE. What a day of celebrations! Now, if only the weekend could have lasted one more day...

Time to Dye!

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You can always find our family at Easter morning mass. Our children are the ones with the purple and green hands. EVERY YEAR. Happy almost Easter!

The Hunt

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It was a day unlike any other. Gabriel and I waited under a shady tree nearby with heightened anticipation of the events yet to come. The day was finally here. While we sat fathoming all possibilities, we looked off to the horizon and just like that --- they appeared.

What they lacked in stature they made up for in speed. Their fluid pack-approached mirrored the riders in the tour de France however their passion and speed much rivaled Pamplona…

Okay, so not really...but a pack of three and four years old approaching a field of eggs is a definite force to be reckoned with--they were on a hunt!

Thursday afternoon, Gabriel and I joined Molly and her classmates for their Easter Hunt/Party at school. There were enough eggs for about every child to get 15 eggs in their bucket (little brothers included!) I swear that my ears rang with war music watching this brood storm the hill towards the “hiding grounds”. While there was a limit to the number of eggs to find --- expecting a 3 year old preschool class to stop at the designated number was a bit far fetched and let’s be honest here--- in no way happened. The goal quickly became to cram as MANY eggs in to your basket as possible. Well, that was the goal for MOST of the kids. Gabriel caught on quickly and he was having the time of his life. I looked over to Molly and found a MUCH different picture.

There she was in her red ruby slippers, long bunny necklace and faux-fur basket (held like a purse) walking right past all these highly coveted eggs. My first thought was that she just didn’t get the object of the game. But after further imploring of my dainty diva I found that was not the case at all. The eggs that she passed were just not right for her. You see… they weren’t fancy enough. It seems that our Molly has rather refined taste in regards to her Easter eggs.

So while Molly’s friend sat next to her a in sugar-infused haze with a basket full of about 40 eggs, Molly lovingly clutched onto her proud little basket of 5 fancy eggs.

Forget the candy folks’ … one of the eggs had POLKA DOTS!!!

While there were clearly very different approaches to the hunt, it was a stellar party indeed and everyone left HAPPY!
Can't wait for Sunday!!!

Life Lessons

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First of all let me lead by saying that I love the REAL SIMPLE magazine. It is my favorite! I was gifted it for Christmas one year from a friend and there was no turning back--- hooked for life. And NO this blog is NOT sponsered by Real Simple but you can bet your buns I would endorse it in a heartbeat if asked! It is a little sad at how excited I become when I drive up and see it sticking out of the mailbox--- and yes, I might make Gabriel and Molly clap along in the car too. Shameful and oober nerdy. I know.

I have never entered a true essay contest before this July. With that said, I was really intrigued by the topic for Real Simple's Life Lesson's essay contest which was... "When did you first realize you were a grown up". I love thinking about questions like this...in the shower, in the car, washing the dishes... you know, all the random moments when your mind wanders. I definitely did not win. But it was fun and I will most likely do it again (well, me and probably the other 6800 entries...) One of the prizes is to lunch with the editors of Real Simple. Um, yes please!

Here is my entry... I would love to hear your response to this question too... it really is a great one. Oh, and if you have time to check out the winner you should--- such a great essay!

To Be a Grown-Up…

As a child, I always believed that being a grown-up meant you were taller, had reached the culmination of your endeavors and, perhaps, owned the best means of travel available. Through time, my perception of adulthood gradually transformed to the belief that some entrance into adulthood took place when you had reached an important milestone or endured intense tribulation with grace. Adulthood was the equivalent of achieving some fraction of greatness. You can imagine my shock to discover that my arrival at adulthood took place in aisle 6 of a random grocery store making the simple decision to purchase my one new luxury- a bottle of conditioner.

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Now don’t get me wrong, conditioner is wonderful and not at all disappointing - just not quite the colossal landmark my former self had envisioned. Donald Miller once wrote, “It always is the simple things that change our lives.” Well Mr. Miller, I couldn’t agree more.
As a second child of five, I grew up in a neighborhood that was blended with individuals of all economic situations, but primarily families bracketed somewhere in the zone of middle class. We had limited struggles, abundance of play and a supported development of faith, education and friendships. We were given the resources to become dreamers and yet were instilled with the values of accountability, honesty and effort. My childhood was a healthy blend of comfort and stability. Looking back, I had always felt that we were provided for beyond the basics and yet never indulged in extravagant living. My parents inserted bits of their childhood to form the framework of how we were raised. Don’t we all do this to some degree or another? My mother never used conditioner growing up and it wasn’t necessary to the care of my stick-straight hair, so consequently, it was never purchased.

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When I first moved out on my own it was an adjustment. For years I existed in a pack of siblings and hadn’t the slightest clue how quiet an empty room could seem. In many ways as the loneliness crept in I found myself rushing to fill it with the familiarity of home. My childhood was a balance wonderful smells, routines and noise. While my roommate and I discovered our own balance of noise, I made an attempt to feel comfortable by surrounding myself with a few staples and familiar routines from home. I essentially replicated the items and routines from my previous environment so that I could quickly adapt to my new surroundings. Slowly, the changes crept in. The name-brand foods were quickly replaced with generic (gotta love that college budget), the dishes were no longer washed before bed and I think I lost my ironing board halfway through freshman year. I had new routines. And while all of this decadent change was occurring I was living in the land of oblivion. Sometimes it takes time to recognize gradual change. For me, it took aisle 6.

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Shopping one day, I made a quick trip to the store to purchase shampoo. You can only add a little bit of water to stretch it for so long. The time had come to just get a new bottle. Once in the store, I grabbed the shampoo but loved the smell so much I opened the conditioner next to it. It smelled just as wonderful as the shampoo, perhaps even a little better. I was suddenly consumed with the desire to have both. The conditioner wasn’t a necessity and potentially more an impulse buy than anything else but it turned out to define far more than I could have ever imagined possible. First of all, who knew that conditioner makes your hair feel like silk? Exquisite, I tell you. But more importantly, buying that conditioner was the first time I recognized my ever-changing home environment. I was bringing something new to my daily routines. It was a moment where I made a conscious decision to purchase something that just made me feel nice. I didn’t have a lot of money or even a huge mess of tangles to warrant the purchase. It was just a small luxury that made me feel pretty. It was simple and effortless but seemed to bring so much joy. Then I realized it. Perhaps being an adult means that you are at a point in your life when you can take the foundation of home and re-cultivate it into your own world. To become a grown-up means that you take the time to seek out little moments of joy in your day (even if it is just washing your hair with pretty smells). Maybe adulthood is more about the freedom to choose what is best for your well-being and finding new discoveries within yourself. Perhaps being a grown up is allowing yourself to be ever-evolving.

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I later told my mother all about conditioner and how wonderful it is. She now uses it on a daily basis which makes me very happy. Who knows, perhaps reaching adulthood increases one’s credibility a little too?

Our Disney Day

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On Friday morning we escaped good ole' Dallas for a bit to enter in to the FABULOUS world of Disney. It was fancy, guys...

In case you didn't know this about me, (I mean, how could you not know this?!) I HEART Disney. The fact that both my children know all the characters to the movies and the songs warms my heart more than anything--- especially because they haven't even seen half the movies (we just happen to own all the underwear). When potty training there is a lot of time spent in the bathroom which is prime for discussing underwear characters and their stories. Nothing quite like learning all the lyrics to Prince Ali and how to tee-tee all the same time. It works for us.

So, when I stumbled across these incredibly priced tickets for Disney on Ice, I jumped on it! Definitely my favorite way to spend a Friday with our besties.

We were in LOVE. First of all, this show is pretty incredible. The music, the skating and the costumes are fantastic--- can we please take a minute also to point out that Princess Jasmine had the most amazing abs. Now I know why Molly aspires to become her--- she was in super shape. My personal favorite moment was when Gabriel was yelling all the princesses that he saw. He knows them all.

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Our morning was sugar-infused greatness.

Very hard to take pictures when you are in such high anticipation of the show!!!
I had been a little worried that Gabriel wouldn't hold interest through the whole thing. WRONG! He was fascinated. Especially when Woody and Buzz came flying on the ice. It rocked his world so much that he had to dance it out.

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We decided to add to our sugar high with a healthy dose of carbs at Tony's Pizza. MMMmmm. Because you can never have too much Disney in a day, the Musketeers watched a little bit of "UP" on Tiffany's Iphone-- until Gabriel's noggin blocked the screen and the sugar-high started to plummet. Then it was time to head home for some Disney dreams.

Once home, I instantly checked Disney World packages and can't wait to take our crew to Magic Kingdom... in perhaps two years. I think I could wait 15 more years and it would still be incredible!

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If you have a chance to see Disney on Ice don't pass it up! It is SO worth it.

Twinks

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In the past few weeks I have had a bunch of people stop and ask me if my dynamic duo are twins. Yes, Gabriel has outweighed Molly since he was about 9 months old but let's face it--- no shocker--- Molly's always been a bit bony. Molly is still about a full head or at least a good half-a-head taller than Gabriel.

Perhaps it is because they play so well together now. We passed some HUGE hurtles this winter when we were trapped indoors for days at a time. Our house is small--- they had to learn to share. I mean, I guess there is a little resemblance...

Sitting down, they are about the same size largely in part to Gabriel's stubby legs. So yes, I guess they could pass as cute...

hilarious twinks to the casual observer.
and I have to say, I love it because it is another reminder of how doubly blessed these past several years have been. For all the hard days with our twinkies, the laughter makes up for it all...

Silly X 2? Sounds right to me.