When it Rains... It Pours...

It has been one of those weeks where everything feels like it is falling apart... In an effort not to fall apart myself, I will focus on my love...

Feb 20. He roots for the underdog.
Feb 21. He still pays for dinner on dates and let's me pick where.
Feb 22. We agreed to disagree a long time ago and have stayed happily married because of this.
Feb 23. He takes care of things when I don't feel good.
Feb 24. He has fully embraced picnic dinners (on a blanket in the living room in front of the tv as a family... seems that American Idol brings with it picnic season).
Feb 25. He sacrifices for friends.
Feb 26. He fully accepts there are things he does not understand.

Hope everyone else is having a better week than us :)

Time is FLYING!!

It seems that there is always a lull between seasons that we never fully take advantage of until the new season is upon us and we are scrambling to find time to do anything! The boys' schedules are consuming us now, and as much as we like it when they are busy and happy, it makes for a difficult time to fit all the other stuff in.

Hunter had his first soccer game on Thursday night and they won. We all froze out in the cold to watch and he did really good. He played again on Saturday and they tied. He had the goal that tied it up, which was great, and played a great game. Brandon had a game yesterday as well and they lost. It is the first time that his team has EVER lost the first game of the season. Very sad!! Brian took it in stride, though, and seems like he will be able to move on. Then last night the boys went to Saturday Night Out to compete in the Guitar Hero competition. Brandon was able to convince someone to play him for tickets (money to spend in the snack area). He proudly got into the car declaring that "he smoked" the older kid. He played on Expert and the other kid played on Easy and he still won and was walking out with the 5 tickets he won (also noting that we should be proud that he did not let the kid back out of the bet).

Brian and I just relaxed at home last night since I had been in OKC all day Friday (leaving around 8:30 am and returning home around 11:30 pm... LONG DAY!). It was nice to be able to grab a quick bite to eat with him and then go home and lay in bed in complete silence without the kids there. BLISS!

So this morning I looked at my calendar and was amazed that there was nothing there... Oh no, not nothing... just nothing scheduled. That means clean house, pack mail, etc.etc... So I am working on doing just that on top of taking the kids for haircuts and grocery shopping (which I only do once a year with the boys and they filled the pantry with garbage). Somehow I walked out of Walmart with a cart full of junk, a lot less money, and two boys with huge smiles on their faces... handsome boys though...

And for the man who gave me two handsome boys...

Feb 13. He gives up everything for date night.
Feb 14. He doesn't need to celebrate Valentine's day because he loves me that much every day. (He says he doesn't need a Hallmark holiday to remind him to show me... and that's true.)
Feb 15. He tried ice skating for the first time today so that the kids wouldn't be embarassed if they fell.
Feb 16. He still finds me attractive.
Feb 17. We make a good team.
Feb 18. He is reliable.
Feb 19. He will help out a friend even if it is outside his comfort zone.

Hockey 101

So the kids really enjoyed the hockey game yesterday. Before the game they gave the kids a rundown of the rules, the calls, the process of how the game works (3 20-min periods, penalties, power plays, etc). They had little cheat sheets so we could know what the calls were and they stayed very involved in the game. After the first period the Allen Americans were winning 1-0. During the second period the kids left with about 5 minutes left in the period to go out on the ice at the break. Well, the Texas Brahmas scored while they were "backstage". The second intermission has a "chuck a puck" event and the kids got to go on the ice with the rest of the homeschoolers and pick up the pucks once they were chucked. Brian threw the pucks onto the ice for the kids because they said they would rather go down to pick them up. They are foam pucks and you buy them and they register the number on them. Then the person whose puck lands closest to center ice gets a prize... Needless to say, we did not win... but the kids had a blast going onto the ice and picking up pucks.

(The pictures are a bit like "Where's Waldo") Anyway, neither team scored in the third period so they went to Sudden Death Overtime (5 min period). Neither team scored then either!! The kids were pumped about that because that means it goes to a shootout. Each team picks three players to take shots one-on-one vs the other team's goalie. Well, it went kind of like this... we missed, they missed, we made it, they made it, we missed, they missed ... so you keep going through players until one team makes it and the other misses... We screamed, we booed the other team, we went crazy because truly the kids (and parents) thought this was the most exciting part of the game. Finally we missed and the other team made it. So the Allen Americans lost. But it did not seem to dampen the kids excitement for the entire experience. They got to be on the ice "in front of the audience", smack the players hands as they came out of the locker room between periods, see someone get their face busted open and bleed all over the ice after a great hit, see someone break an arm getting beat into the boards... Good, clean fun!

After the game, you can rent skates and skate on the arena ice with the players. We all four rented ice skates and had at it! It was a lot of fun and I will point out that I was the only one that did not fall. Brandon made falling into its own sport... Hunter did quite well... Brian stayed on his feet until the very end and decided he was done once he fell. It was a LOT of fun!

We stopped by to see Memaw since she lives in Allen and had a nice visit with her then got some dinner and headed home. A very fun-filled "educational" day :)

Really... Snow??

Yesterday morning it started to snow and did not stop til late last night. It was crazy and the kids thought absolutely fabulous. The kids were out of school and had a great time building snowmen and sledding. They even made me a giant coffee mug out of snow... So sweet! They drank lots of hot chocolate and went through 27 outfits each. I have spent the last two days doing laundry! We had to get all our work caught up today since Monday is a mail holiday and we are going to the hockey game. Can't wait!

I have to say that this is the longest I have ever kept up a New Year's Resolution. I told you I hate them but this one seems to be good for my soul...

Feb 6. He recognizes my need to rearrange furniture and embraces change against his true nature.
Feb 7. He gives people the benefit of the doubt.
Feb 8. He offers to help me without my asking.
Feb 9. He knows how to communicate.
Feb 10. He makes an effort for us to be on the same page.
Feb 11. He worries about me.
Feb 12. He can't stay mad for long.

Hello Sunshine...

It is so nice to look outside and see the sun. I have been sitting at my desk most of the day answering email and trying to get caught up and enjoying the sun shining through the french doors into my lap. Even though it is still cold outside it "looks" warm. I am trying to take it all in as we prepare for... SNOW. Hard to believe we would hear that word so much in Texas!

This past week seemed to fly by and as I look back I can't really remember what made it so busy! We are getting ready for the soccer season to start and planning for a tournament which eventually was cancelled. The boys did get to participate in a Round Robin tournament indoors on Sat which was pretty fun. They thought it was nice to just get to play. And as of now, it looks like we will not be playing this weekend either because of more wet weather on its way. Time to find some fun indoor activities. On Monday we are going on a homeschool field trip to see the Allen Americans (feeder team for the Stars) play hockey. They are going to have an educational segment about hockey, the game, skating with the players and then a tour of the locker room. The boys are excited!!

Other than that not much is new... In an effort to "spring clean", I rearranged the living room and got rid of some stuff hiding behind furniture. It looks pretty good and may stay that way for a little while. I am going to work outside on the back patio today (in the sun) and try and throw away more STUFF. Wish me luck...

For my wonderful husband (no, I did not forget or decide I didn't love him anymore or anything like that... I just got busy...)

Jan 30. He is my best friend.
Jan 31. He lets the kids get away with murder but supports me when I have to be "bad cop".
Feb 1. He recognizes when I need a break.
Feb 2. He understands that marriage takes work.
Feb 3. He just wants to be loved by me.
Feb 4. He can watch Grey's Anatomy with me and only critique the show during commercials.
Feb 5. He is passionate about my projects and full of positive advice.