Cowboys Forever

I am not afraid to say that I enjoy the new OSU song - Cowboys Forever. It is getting BASHED by all the fans and non-fans and media and music critics. I think it's catchy. I think it's easy to understand. I think it brings our heritage and history into the song. Way to go, John Martin, and I really hope that the fans don't 'Boo' it when played on Saturday - what a way to represent and show school spirit.

Plus, if you've ridden with me anywhere in the past 6 months you will find that I listen to the band August Rose almost all the time, when I'm not listening to K-Love. We love their music and style.

Grant just informed me that he now wants to be a Gym Teacher when he grows up - guess they talked about that this morning. I find that to be an interesting career choice as he doesn't even go to gym at school. :)

Best Buds

There they are. Double Trouble. Best Buds Grant and Mason. We had a playday for just the three of us so I decided to go all the way and we went bowling and at ice cream and got pizza! Listening to the two of them "talk" is so funny - just a few disagreements today (but they worked through them SO much better than just a year ago), they sang songs, shared more with each other about school than I get without prying, and told each other jokes (is this a favorite thing for 4 1/2 year olds?). Their jokes were so (stupid!) and not funny, but no matter what...when one finished telling his, the other just cracked up for like 30 seconds. I guess it's good to have such a friend that will lift you up when you want it most!

Kyle's Turn

On Tuesday, Kyle started his first day of "school" so I need to show his pictures, too! We just put him in a mother's day out program from 9-11:45 one morning, but it is great for everyone. He happens to be the youngest kid in his class so I was worried.... without cause because the teachers said he was the best at mingling and being social with all of his friends. Plus, he will talk about the two guinea pigs and gerbils all the time! No more baby!

OSU Splash!

Our family was outside tonight while Jason was mowing and decided to go eat dinner with one of our two favorite neighborhood friends (come on down, Foxes, for next time!)....

We went to Hideaway and didn't even have to wait on a Saturday night, and then decided to stroll around the campus as all four of us are alumni. A beautiful, quiet night on the OSU campus was delightful, especially watching all three of the kids just run and play and have childhood fun on places we each had collegiate memories....

So we get to the library fountain. Leave it to my dear Kyle to decide to splash so much that he is basically in the fountain except for his feet - and cracking up! We just asked him to wait to do fraternity pranks in the fountain for another 16 years....

He was soaked. Grant had a boo-boo from when Kyle tried to push him in the fountain and instead banged his head on the edge.

Now, Kyle is in bed after announcing that his eyes hurt really bad (we were in a hotel last night as we were in Tulsa to celebrate the life of my aunt's mother-in-law and none of us slept well). I'm watching House Hunters on HGTV, and Jason and Grant are camped out in our tent - set up in the dark, simply because it is a glorious 75 degrees outside. We may not make church in the morning so everyone can get sleep but at least it is a memory for the bigger boys!

To my precious family I saw this weekend - love you all so much! I have the most awesome cousins and second cousins ever. Sure wish Texas, Oklahoma, Minnesota and all parts of California were a lot closer!

Pre-Kindergartener

Grant at his room. The theme is "Out of this World."
All set and ready to go!

Can't wait to see this picture at the end of 5th grade! Lots bigger.

School Starts Today

Pre-kindergarten starts today! Unfortunately, it's a monsoon outside and we "get" to walk the kids to their classrooms every day. The first day of preschool last year was fun, but this year is "it" in the big school, with big classes and one teacher. Grant hasn't hesitated a bit and is so looking forward to playing and learning with his friends (thankfully he knows many kiddos in his class).

As both of my kids said their good-nights last night and purposefully planted a kiss on my lips, I wondered "how long until they are "too cool" to do this and don't want to kiss me?" Sad thought, but those precious baby days are slipping by quickly!

Go Eagles! :)

Farm Time, Fun Time!

Grant went to hang with his GG and Bubba last week, and boy did they have fun! One of the adventures was to the Orr Family Farm in Oklahoma City. When I was still working in the tourism industry, this attraction was just beginning to develop and market itself but I knew very little. They had a blast! They went on a Friday afternoon and said it was empty (perfect for them). A racecar track for kids AND adults (you can see Bubba in the background getting 'smoked' by Grant).

Ha! This was one of my favorites from their pics - a pretend cow that they get to milk! I've never even done that!

Big variety of petting zoo animals, which my mom said Grant was really timid around, but managed the goat.

And then this sweet one of him and the bunny!

All in all, I think all three of them had a great time hanging out together and those of us in Stillwater enjoyed a little break, too! :)

Helping His Team!

My wonderful hubby was asked this year to provide the mouth protection for a lot of the OSU football team. He has some new equipment and these mouth guards are pretty "high tech" in the oral world (but the terms mean nada to me!). Just wanted to take some pictures of him working (way too much, if you ask his adoring wife!) to prepare these for the Cowboys.

Pretty neat, huh? You'll have to look closely in pictures for the mouth guards! I'm so proud!

As Jason joked with me - he's just doing his part to help with the National Championship this year :)

Books Abound!

When I have time to rest I will typically choose to do one of four things: hang out with Jason , watch TV, piddle on the computer or read a book. Reading has become the lowest priority until this past month when I was able to finish four books!

Vacation helped that, contributing to finishing two of them while in Minnesota. I read The Same Kind of Different As Me and Chasing Harry Winston. Two completely different books. TSKODAM is a true story and is very, very inspiring. Makes you think - about life, how you live, your relationship with God, and your genuine kindness towards others - are you truly making a difference in the world? Chasing Harry Winston, as you can tell by the title, is simply a mindless female read, written by the same author as The Devil Wears Prada. Two others by Danielle Steele wrap up the month's read - Coming Out and Toxic Bachelors. Coming Out was a waste of a few evenings but the other one was enjoyable.

For those that know me well or have read the blog for a while, you know that I have made my goal for 2009 to read the entire Bible. Considering the church we attend was doing a Bible in 90 Days course, my goal of 365 seems pretty easy. But, it has been challenging to make that a priority in an otherwise busy or tempting world. I was doing excellent at this personal challenge until these other books plopped in my lap and I chose them over the Bible. Big mistake. I am now a few weeks behind (think July 17 or 18) so I need to refocus and get going. There are some great stories that I have never heard!!! I am more than 1/2 finished with it and know that I truly do feel closer to the Lord by spending that extra time each day as well as knowing more details about His life and times and the massive history behind Christianity.

My next read will be The Time Travelers Wife as suggested by friends so we can go the movie in a month or so. Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs will be a movie for the whole family and is taken from one of Grant's favorite books!

Pergola Project

Here's our cement slab before! We have a nice covered deck but with much of my time with the boys spent outside, the extra shade and protection is great! Too bad it's been raining since it was finished so we haven't enjoyed it too much (except for one cookout with our neighbors!).

Jason's progress after about 8 hours. I can say that his attention to detail and pre-planning was invaluable. Part of me was like "hurry up! this is family time that you're just sitting here and staring" but he thought of so many little things I would have forgotten or not known. The saw was our first purchase on E-bay, too!
Ta-Da! We put a shade cloth that provides 75% more shade on the top so it can really be a shaded area and kind of an outdoor living area.

Didn't he just do an awesome job?!?!

Yea, Jason!!!

When shopping for a home in Stillwater, we really wanted a house where the evening sun was not a factor and fortunately, we found a house that faces west, causing our backyard to be in the east. However, we have a large patio on the south side that just wasn't quite right and sunny most of the day. We've been chatting for a bit about fixing it and went the easy way last summer by buying a large "tent" from Lowes. It ripped in about the 3rd storm and was worthless. So Jason was able to start working on our Pergola and finally began building it last Sunday! Here it is and we are thrilled with our new outdoor living space! Isn't he so talented?!?!