Pumpkin Patch

Saturday Bailey and I had the opportunity to visit a local pumpkin patch. We searched and searched to find the perfect pumpkin. I'm sure those watching thought we were crazy because we'd pick one up and load it in the wagon just to find a better one, unload it and continue searching. For awhile we went through this process and even had to do a little rearranging of their "display" pumpkins. Before leaving we spent about an hour running through the corn maze. At first we "raced" another family through the maze (they weren't aware we were competing), but that didn't last long so we decided to try and find our way back to the start. We walked around for awhile with no luck so we decided to head for a Sonic drink; because even though it's October it's still 90 degrees!

Homecoming Dance

As promised here are the homecoming pictures. Jeremy took Nadirah and her friend, Kristi, on a date before the dance to teach them how a lady is to be treated.

KHS Homecoming '08

Well, I had some pictures but I accidentally deleted them from both my computer and my camera. Homecoming has been a crazy week! Nadirah got to decorate a trailer and be a part of the parade. All week at school they had themed dress days. On Friday we took 10 kids to the game (we're now 3-0)!! Bailey had a slumber party. Riley now has a girlfriend. And Nadirah's got the homecoming dance tonight. Welcome to my life ~ I love it! It's funny because so many parents fear the teenage years, but I've always been better with teens than toddlers so I'm having a blast. It's fun watching them grow up, learn some independence and yet all the while maintaing a close but changing relationship with mom and dad.

Fabian

Fabian's been kinda' bored since all the other kids are in school, but Jeremy and I have been able to take him and do a few things alone with him. Here we are in the Water Gardens just before we were yelled at and told to get out of the water. Apparently, you can't get in anymore. We also decided to celebrate his birthday with him since he lives in New York and we don't usually get to spend that day with him. We had planned on going to Six Flags with the whole fam, but it was crazy busy. We stayed for about 45 minutes, didn't ride any rides and then left. Swimming at Jesse's was way more fun and way less crowded. Oh and Mike, Fabian's brother, got to come too.

First Day of School ~ 08/09

So here are Nadirah and Bailey on the first day of school. I didn't get a picture of Riley because he was too sick to go. He had his wisdom teeth pulled on Friday and even though they promised he would be ready by Monday....he wasn't. At first Riley thought it would be great to miss the first day, but that changed quickly. Luckily he was back by Wednesday so he only missed two days. Notice Bailey on her bike. She gets to ride her bike now that she's at Bear Creek because it's so much closer. I won't let her ride alone so I ride with her and meet her in the afternoons. It's so much fun! Nadirah started high school...crazy. And she loves it...the school is huge and has tons of kids.

The Stockyards

Fabian goes home in two weeks and what's a trip to Texas without a visit to the Stockyards. We ate dinner at Risky's because it seemed like the thing to do and not because we like BBQ. It was a neat restaurant, but I'm sure that will be our one and only visit. After dinner we walked around, visited a few shops, and rode the mechanical bull. I wanted to buy Fabian a cowboy hat to take home with him, but the owner of the store was super rude. He told us they don't allow dress-up which kind of confused me. How else are you supposed to know which hat you want? Oh well.

Lady Royal Picture Day

Friday was the first of many high school photo shoots for Nadirah. The Lady Royal's met at Feragne to take their first team photo. The girls were given the option to have individual photo's as well and of course what girl is gonna' turn that down. So I decided to take Nadirah and have her make up applied. She was really excited and as you can see she looked beautiful. My only requirement for the make-up artist was that she not look twenty!

Granbury

Jeremy is off school this week so we decided to go to Granbury overnight for a little peace and quiet which is kinda' hard to come by with four kids. Well, normally I would not be okay with a Bed and Breakfast, but Jeremy found a super nice Inn that was run similar to a B&B but was built for guests and not lived in. So I was game and off we went. The Inn was amazing and the room was perfect. The backyard was the best part because it backed up to the lake, had a pool, hammock, and a swing where we enjoyed our morning coffee. It was really nice because we didn't have a schedule or anything to do except relax!! We spent time walking around, swimming, laying in the hammock and enjoyed meeting new people. So what is Jeremy doing? Okay the only part of our room that was not perfect was this rod iron decoration and it was driving me crazy. Yes, I'm (well we're) somewhat OCD and we just had to fix it. I laughed so hard when Jeremy took it down to "work" on it, but luckily I managed to gain enough composure to take some pictures.

Fun Friday

On Friday night Jeremy got stuck in Dallas with homework. Oh how I can't wait for him to be done with school. Anyway the days tend to run long when he's gone all day and night, so the kids and I (minus Riley because of an injury to the hand) went roller skating. On Friday night at 9:00 they open the center of the rink for dancing too. Nadirah was so very excited! She loves anything to do with dancing and you can see her teaching Bailey and Fabian the Charlie Brown. The only way I could get her to leave was to bribe her with Sheridan's ice cream.

We Need the Tooth Fairy

Bailey has lost 3 teeth in July and she has at least two more loose!! This is a huge accomplishment because all but two of her teeth up to this point have had to be pulled. She has a really small mouth and doesn't have enough room yet. When she was little she lost her first two like normal but after that the dentist kept having to pull one at a time hoping to make some room before she needed it. But this past January she got an expander, which is apparently working, and for the first time since she was two or three her teeth are falling out all on their own....yay! Oh and by the way Bailey does not believe in the tooth fairy but that hasn't stopped her from wanting some money anyway :)

American Girl Store

The American Girl Store opened it's Dallas location at the end of 2007 and ever since I've planned to take Bailey. Well, yesterday all three of the other kids were busy with church stuff so it was the perfect opportunity to take her. We started off our girls day at Sam Moon, had lunch with Jeremy and then spent the rest of the afternoon at the Galleria. The store is huge!! You can browse through all the dolls, clothes, accessories, etc... There's a doll salon where you can have your doll pampered with a new hairstyle. Upstairs you can enjoy lunch and a snack at the Bistro. We easily spent a couple of hours enjoying the store. It was so much fun! When we set up Molly's hair appointment we were informed that Molly needed to go off to the hospital in order to spruce her up a bit (she's about five or six years old). So we changed her into a hospital gown, gave the doctor's their orders (change her head), sent her off and now we wait. Bailey was less than thrilled with leaving her. The last photo is Bailey with all of her loot. It's was hard to say no because I was having as much fun as she was.

My New Car

Jeremy bought me a new car!! I think he was definitely tired of trying to cram all six of us in the Camry or take two cars everywhere we went. Either way I'm thrilled and I love it. Bailey is the most excited about the new car because it was always her having to squeeze in with someone, Nadirah thinks the coin slot thing is super cool, Fabian likes riding in the third row and Riley doesn't really care but is glad to have the extra room. I absolutely hate making large purchases so not having to be a part of any of that just makes it even better for me.

Bailey's 10th

This year Bailey decided to have a slumber party for her 10th birthday (Bailey, Meagan, Caitlyn, Selena and Ashley). The girls had a lot of fun, stayed up way too late and definitely had way too much sugar! Sounds about right for a slumber party. She got tons of gifts but I think the funniest was clothes for Oliver. I'm not sure he thinks it's so great, but Bailey does. So Happy Birthday to Bailey again! I can't believe my youngest is now in double digits!!

NSM Youth Camp

On Friday Nadirah, Riley and I got home from a week at youth camp. I was not originally planning to go, but on Thursday of last week one of the youth pastors asked me to fill in for some one who had to cancel last minute. I knew right away that I was supposed to go even though I had no idea why or what I was going to do with Bailey. But as always God provides for that which He asks of us and so on Monday all three of us headed off. I knew that God would show me why I was there so I kept myself ready to see all that He had planned for me. On Wednesday night I experienced one of the most intimate corporate worship experiences of my life. It was amazing!! We worshipped, prayed aloud, read scripture, took the Lord's supper by the lake and then worshipped and prayed some more. At the end of the evening Nadirah walked up to me in tears. As we embraced, cried, laughed and shared I knew that if for no other reason God had me there for that exact moment. The kids had an amazing week too!!! There was a ton of stuff to do. We didn't go to bed until crazy late each night, but it ended up working out really well. I've been to plenty of camps before and have never been able to sleep well at night, but since I wasn't going to bed until about 2:00 a.m. I was literally out the minute I hit my pillow and didn't budge. Riley was not so thrilled with the food. He walks up to me on Thursday and says "I'm beyond starving" so we headed off to the concession stand for some nachos and a coke. I don't think he would've survived the week if the snack stand had been closed. Nadirah made a lot of new friends and had a super fun time. Camp's great ~ can't wait till next year.

NSM Broomball

Last night Riley and Nadirah got to experience the greatness that is broom ball! Broom ball is basically hockey with tennis shoes. You have a paddle instead of a stick (I'm sure they actually used to use brooms hence the name), a small round ball and way too many people. Everyone runs around trying to score on the opposite end. Well of course there's a lot of falling because you're running on ice! It is so much fun! It's kinda' hard to get a good picture out there but I did my best.

Ladie's Night

At least once a month I get together with a group of my friends for dinner with no kids or husbands. We met through our boys who are good friends. They play sports together, go to church and school together, and pretty much spend most available nights and weekends together too. It's so great to know the other mom's. Not only are they some of my closest friends but it helps us all keep up with everything that's going on and there's usually a lot in the life of a teenager! From left to right: April, Christy, Sonia, Lori and me.