Camera Critters and Baseball

Here I am, late as usual! I have a good reason which you can read about under my critter. This is Ty our Belgian Malinois begging for help! Sweet Mama that I am, I take a picture instead. ;)
Today was Youth Little League Parade day at Minute Maid Park. This is where the little leagues across Houston can parade around the warning track before the game. It's really no big deal, but Bear insists we do it every year.

While waiting for Bear to return to us, someone tried to hand me a flyer. I generally say "No thank you" and keep walking. However, this time something caught my ear. If I register my child, he can get a Jeff Bagwell autograph. Last year was Craig Biggio's year so Jeff Bagwell hasn't gotten much mention. He retired from baseball and had his jersey retired at the beginning of the season. He is one of our true Astros' Heroes. So, of course, I registered Bear! Not sure what for, I might have just signed away his first born child, idk.

Fortunately, Big D was wearing his Astros cap. He gladly gave it up for an autograph. Bear says he was so nervous! Jeff Bagwell asked how he was doing and all he could do was mumble that he was fine. He couldn't even return the favor and ask how he was doing. Fortunately, he did remember to say thank you.

He was only signing one item per child. Only the children could get autographs. He did stop to smile for a camera tho!

Not a bad day at the ballpark!

So that is why my Camera Critters is late.

Does God Get Mad When People Have Plastic Surgery?

That was the question posed to us by Bear.
He's ten now. I wonder what sort of things he'll think about when he's thirteen, his sister's age. His sister who will only be 13 for another month and a half. Sigh.

5 Years--All Clear

"You are dismissed" said with tears in her eyes is what my mom heard from her oncologist today.

That was the news were waiting to hear. For five long years and several "routine" biopsies.

So thank you, Dr. Because of you, these are the things my mom was able to see:

• youngest child's graduation
• oldest son coming home from Iraq and Cuba
• seeing her dad induct oldest son in the Coast Guard (ok, ok, more like a re-enlistment, but still)
• oldest son's wedding
• going with Lamb to Washington D.C. with her 5th grade class (and being able to do the same for Bear next school year)
• seeing Bear's very first hit and his other accomplishments
• seeing Lamb's plays
• going to the Astros games, especially being able to say Farewell to Biggio and seeing the team win the NL championship & going to the World Series
• saying goodbye to her beloved greyhound, Felicia and saying hello to her new doggie, Cocoa
• seeing the Astros play the Cubs at Wrigley Field
• laughing at Bear
• celebrating her dad's 85th birthday and her parents 60th wedding anniversary
• (hmmm, I guess I, personally, haven't done anything these 5 years)
• doing community service that she enjoys oh so much
• Just Enjoying Life

Our family is extremely thankful tonight. I can not wait to hear the news from Bubba's Mom and other families battling this awful disease that they have reached the 5 year mark as well. I know I will.

I'm Sorry

I have been a bad blogging friend these past few days. I apologize. Tomorrow, I am going to try to "visit" ya'll.

Here are 3 reasons why I've been quiet lately.

I'll try and give a real update tomorrow, if my energy allows. Please forgive me!

Camera Critters

My blogging friend, Misty Dawn, has started a new meme called Camera Critters. All you have to do is post a picture that YOU have taken of any animal.

I decided to start with a pet who doesn't get much blog time. This is Cleo in her very favorite place to be. It's not always convenient for me. Oh wait, I just realized *I* didn't take this pic, a child of mine did. Hmmmm.....
Ok, here's a pic that *I* took. Cleo's 2nd favorite place to be. Please don't look at the dog slobber on the window. Yick.

High School Musical on Ice

LOADS of fun!!

Mean Mama

Apparently, that's what I am.

My weekly schedule:

Monday - Lamb: Youth Group----- Bear: baseball practice
Tuesday - Lamb: play rehearsal----- Bear: baseball practice or game
Wednesday - Bear: play rehearsal
Thursday - Lamb: play rehearsal----- Bear: baseball practice or game
Friday - Bear: has been turning into baseball practice night. Grrr!
Saturday - Lamb: play rehearsal----- Bear: baseball game

Sunday is the *only* day that there is not child's activity going on. Well, Lamb does volunteer at church in the Children's Ministry every other Sunday, but I don't really count that.

As you can imagine, by Friday, I am worn out.

Bear had a birthday party to go to Friday for one of his best classmates. The party was at a skating rink. It surprised me that Bear wanted to go because he has always refused to go to skating parties in the past. "Why should I subject myself to ridicule?" he says. I told him that it depended on what time we got out of practice.

We leave practice and he doesn't say a word about the party. Being naive, I figured he forgot about it. Around 8:10 (the party ends at 9pm), he asks if he can go to the party. I say no. How could I do this to him? After he gave me a chance to rest & relax before asking! He just doesn't understand how I can be so tired and not up to driving him across town so he can hang out, at the most, for 30 minutes.

I predict many similar conversations in my future.

Comfort

With Ty, it's all about comfort. When we had carpet, you'd see him lounging about the living room until we moved on to the bedroom.

Then, we got rid of the carpet.

Ty was not a happy camper. He now stays with us until his old bones can't handle it anymore. That's usually around 9-10pm.

He then retreats to my bedroom to await me. Bear doesn't like that. He desperately wants Ty to sleep in his room. The bright idea of moving Ty's blanket into his room came to Bear's mind one night. It took a few nights, but it finally worked.

Until I come back there for my final bedcheck of the night.
Who needs a blanket for comfort when one has padded carpet?

Sex and the School

I consider myself a lax parent. I don't hound them to do things, I allow them to talk to me about whatever, & they have watched PG-13 movies for quite awhile now. There are certain things I'm strict on, but, for the most part, I use things as teachable moments. For instance, if Lamb came to me in high school wanting to have a party serving alcohol. I'd nix it, strongly. If she came to me wanting purple hair, I'd probably allow it. After all, that is temporary and small on the rebellion scale. I understand her need to feel different.

With that said, there are times that parents amaze me. In the 4th grade class I'm in, there is a beautiful blond girl. She is quite the ditz and I worry about her tremendously. Before Spring Break, her hair had a brassy tint to it. I wish I could say I was surprised when she told me that she wanted highlights so her mom gave them to her. And messed up her hair which was gorgeous to begin with. She returned to school after Spring Break with processed Blond with a capital B highlights. Her mom took her to the salon to fix the brassy look. Her mom also takes her quite a bit to have nail tips put on her fingernails. And the girl often has temporary lower back tattoos. Call me a prude, but I just find the placement too provocative for a 9/10 year old girl. A girl who has more sense in her pinky than she does in her head. A girl who can be easily swayed to do the wrong thing.

What is our society teaching girls? Why would a lot of parents rather be a friend than a parent? My youngest brother & I were talking the other day. According to him (and he admits that he's out of the loop now that he's out of high school), the girls he went to school with were all about being provocative. The hair, the make-up, the clothes, all with the intention of turning a boy's head. The Vanessa Hudgens scandal is commonplace in the high school world. Our society is all about sex. The sexy perfume & clothing ads, the talk of it even on "family" shows which are pretty rare now, and I've read some pretty racy teen lit books. It's everywhere. I realize this and while I do try & shield the kids some, it's impossible anymore to completely shield them.

So what happens to the kids who don't have parents who use those moments to teach them morals? Or what happens to the kids who do have those parents, yet don't really care about what's being said? What's going to happen to this 4th grade girl as she gets older? She's already attracted some inappropriate attention.

In the news, there have been 2 local stories about 8th graders (Lamb's age) giving birth in secret. One was a miscarriage and the other was a full-term baby. Both are completely tragic & heartbreaking stories. I pray that I don't read about my little 4th grader one day.

Glass

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Invent a new flower; give it a name and describe it.
If there were a beautiful way to cross a rose, daisy, calla lily, and sunflower, I'd call it My Family.

Soup
Name someone whom you think has a wonderful voice.
The new music teacher at our school. I was pleasantly surprised when I heard her sing! Our old music teacher had quite the soprano voice which wasn't as pleasing to the ear.

Salad
On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being highest, how clean do you keep your car?
Oh, we are supposed to clean our cars too? ;)

Main Course
How do you feel about poetry?
I love poetry, especially the poems written to me by hubby! Hubba Hubba ;)

Dessert
What was the last person/place/thing you took a picture of?
Last night, Bear at his baseball game. I'll gladly show you the picture, but don't ask about the game.

Cat Owners Beware

I'm not sure if any of my readers are cat owners, but just in case....I learned something today from a dear friend of mine. Her family's beloved cat is seriously ill. They linked it back to a lily plant. I knew poinsettia's were toxic but had no idea lilies were as well. Here is a link to her post if you would like to read up on it.

Sunshine

It's funny that today's theme is Sunshine. The family has been quite gloomy lately but we got some news that let the sun shine through a bit. We see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I admire single moms. I was raised by one and I know some. It's a hard, hard road whether or not the daddy is in the picture or not. I don't mean to make light of their situation, but I do think of myself as one during the week. As most of you know, Big D works nights. That was part of our lives for so long that it was no big deal. I wasn't working, the kids weren't in school so we just adjusted our lives around that. But now, after a brief blissful period of him having a day shift, it's harder. I work. Lamb doesn't get out of school til 4pm. Big D has to leave for work at 5pm.

During that time, I feel like it is Us and Him. I am worn out from working, being a taxi cab, prison warden, and loving mom. Out of necessity, the kids have taken on a lot of chores from doing their own laundry (ok, they've been doing that for years but now they HAVE to) to cooking dinner for us (simple stuff folks). By the time the weekend gets here, I want to be left alone. Big D is bored and lonely. He wakes up alone, he eats alone, he comes home to a dark house. By the time the weekend gets here, he wants to be with us. It's just not a good situation.

Right before Spring Break, Big D got news that a position he's been interested in MIGHT be available within the next couple of months. Please God! We aren't holding our breaths, but we are hopeful. Then, just yesterday, Big D got a call that another position, albeit in a department he has ZERO interest in, will be available in the next month. The boss wants Big D so bad that he says he'll try to move Heaven & Earth to get it to be a dayshift. No, it's not what hubby wants (he really wants that other position). At this point, he'll take it just to be on days and it'll be closer to home as well.

A DAYshift! Two possible positions! Just knowing that energizes me. I feel like I CAN handle baseball season, play rehearsals (both kids), youth groups, parent meetings, and anything else life throws my way. Because this time next year? I may not be doing it alone! Altho, I DO like not having to share the tv and computer. Hmmm..... No, no it's worth it; I'll gladly share.

10 Things I'd Fix In My Home

Providing I had money (& time), of course!

1. add a game room
2. knock out a wall for a little hallway so our house innards won't be U shaped anymore
3. have Big D actually build the kids' murphy beds rather than just talk about it
4. put marble (it can be faux) sides in the shower rather than tile
5. get rid of all the clutter!!!!!!
6. landscape the yard & pay someone to keep it up (I kill plants/flowers)
7. have Big D actually build our kitchen island rather than just talk about it
8. paint the walls
9. get all my prints framed and hung
10. have Big D actually finish all the projects he's started and has yet to finish!

To Coastie Brother

More days until my birthday!

High

As is our custom when crossing the state line, we sing Deep in the Heart of Texas, complete with hand clapping. When we come in via Louisiana, we stop off at the Welcome Center/Rest Stop right as you enter Texas. At this particular visit, as we were singing, a man walking his dog noticed us. He knew what were doing and started clapping along with us.

To give you a visual, here are the kids (many, many moons ago when Lamb still attended with us) singing during an Astros game. Yes, it is part of our 7th inning stretch. No worries, it's just a little over a minute long.

Are You Taller?

My good friend, Melissa, who moved away last summer, is in town visiting friends. I'm not sure that ya'll know that she was also Bear's 3rd grade teacher. I know this is hard to believe from the stories I share, but Bear used to be incredibly shy. I think 10 minutes in Melissa's room brought him completely out of his shell. I told her I was sorry all the time. The poor dear.

So, she's at the school visiting co-workers and students. Bear hears the rumor and seeks her out. On the way home, he's telling me about it and all that they talked about it. I asked him how it was seeing her again. He informs me that he thinks she's gotten taller. Hee!

It was so great visiting with you face-to-face again, Melissa!

Bear At The Bat

"Borrowing" from Patois, I am going to do a Wordy Wednesday rather than a Lensday (Spring). Mainly because I want to share about last night.

When he found out Monday night that he'd be pitching at Tuesday's 8pm (!!!!) game, Bear's nerves started singing. He's never pitched on that high of a pitcher's mound before. He hasn't pitched in a long time. All that kept playing in his mind. No amount of encouragement would help. He asked his sister to come to the game. The goose told him that it would be over past her bedtime. So sorry. Uh-huh. She's a wily one, that Lamb. (True to her word, she was in bed when we got home. Not sure if she was *really* asleep, however.)

True to his word this time, the coach had Bear be his starting pitcher. Poor Bear. He never had any out of control balls; that's the good news. The catcher caught every single pitch. However, Bear threw more balls than strikes. He did make a great out when the batter hit a ball directly to him. That didn't improve his mood tho. He was cold (boy howdy was it cold), his sinuses started bothering him, he was nervous, & the mound felt funny to him. All of those added up to the other team scoring their 5 runs off him. It was the longest at bat of my entire life. And Bear's only inning to pitch.

I was so afraid that his psyche would then make his turn at bat a bad one. Have I ever mentioned that Bear is a moody child? He was more nervous about pitching. Big D & I were more nervous about his batting. This was the 1st game using his new batting style. First pitch, Bear swung and missed. Next pitch, an obvious ball. Third pitch, I was messing with my camera when I heard a crack. I looked and saw this ball SAILING over the infield. Bear was running for all he was worth to 1st base and then on to 2nd base. The ball was TO THE FENCE in center field. His 1st hit in a year and it was a double. Oh, the pure joy!

So, for my Wordy Wednesday, I present to you Bear at the Bat.

Crying In My Diet Coke

Vacation is over and I am sad. I'm not getting too much sympathy since in just 11 weeks, it'll be summer break. Eleven weeks is a long time, people!

The last part of Spring Break was a whirlwind. Wednesday night, Big D, Bear, & I went to the rodeo. Lamb opted not to go since she already had the rodeo/concert experience. She's a sweetie and said it was Bear's turn. It was Big D's 1st time to see the Houston Rodeo. I think he had fun. The only night that really worked for us, Fergie was the entertainment. I was a little concerned but it was for naught. She dressed appropriately and, except for @ss, the language was appropriate. Let me tell you, the girl can entertain! She was charming and can sing live! She also did a lot of rock covers. I guess she doesn't have enough of her songs to fill a concert. I enjoyed that, but Bear didn't know a lot of the cover songs. All in all, it was a fun night.
Then at the crack of dawn Thursday, we were up. Big D *really* wants to experience a Yankee game at Yankee Stadium before they move to their new one. Last summer, it just didn't work out for us. The ONLY way we can go back to NYC is to have free airfare/free hotel. We have 3 free flights already and were only 1 point away from a 4th. The cheapest way to get that point was to have me fly one-way from Houston to somewhere in Texas. We chose Corpus Christi since it's fairly close & only $29). Not thinking that we'd be up late with the rodeo/concert, we chose the early flight. My flight was at 8:30am. Big D wanted to get me there at 6:30am so that I'd have plenty of time to go through security. I was a little nervous traveling by myself. The last time that happened was wayyy before 9/11 when I could be walked up to my gate.

Big D is an experienced traveler and knows the airport extremely well. As he knows my inexperienced, nervous nature is his nature, he told me exactly where I needed to go and what I needed to do. He even printed out my boarding pass for me before we left the house. We got to the airport later than planned, but Big D still felt like we'd all be arriving in Corpus at the same time. So I kissed the family good-bye and started my adventure. I got through security quickly & with no problems. And I had a LONG time to wait for my flight.

The flight was uneventful. I got off the airplane & called the family. Big D was a little shocked that I was already in Corpus. He figured by the time I was able to de-board the plane, it'd be 10am. I was calling at 9:10am. They were still about 50 miles outside of Corpus. So I settled in for another long wait.

Unfortunately, I was right by security so I saw all the sad good-byes and strange hellos. There was a family saying good-bye to their military son. That was the hardest to witness. The mom was video-taping him going through security, walking down to his gate. When he was out of sight, she broke down. I was crying right along with her. Praying for his & the other troops safety. Praying that he'd be coming home to them and the mom could cry tears of joy then. It was heart wrenching being there. Another family was saying good-bye as well. After their loved one walked to his gate, they stuck around. I guess they were waiting for the plane to actually take off. Between the 2 good-byes, a mom & her 2 daughters walked up. They waited and waited. Finally, I overheard one daughter ask if the mom even knew what the girl looked like. The mom replied no she didn't but that she'd be wearing a dress. Strange comment right? When I took in their dresses & long, beautiful hair, I didn't find it so strange. The mom was concerned so she kept 1 daughter in the area with me and took the other daughter to see if they could find any info. I was keeping vigilance with her. My curiousity peaked. I see this girl walking down with such confidence & style (even tho her clothes were a tad outdated). Her hair was adorable as were her shoes. The daughter called out a name and the girl responded to her. This was the mystery guest. She just exuded presence. As the daughter mentined they'd be roommates and hope she had fun with her, she looked dowdy compared to the girl. And she wasn't a dowdy girl. The new girl was very gracious and eager to set the daughter's mind at ease. The daughter found her mom & sister and introductions were made. I hope it's a wonderful experience for all of them.

Right at 10, I get the call that my wait is over. The family is ready to meet me outside. We head to the beach to walk around. It was way too cold to swim. We saw so many cool things tho. Hubby is an adventurer/explorer at heart. He likes nothing better than to find fascinating things & teach the kids about them. Then we headed to the aircraft carrier, U.S.S. Lexington. Big D has always wanted to go on it. After having only 4 hours sleep, I was pooped. We headed to our hotel. WooWhee! Aren't we fun? We woke up the next morning and drove home.

A whirlwind adventure all over way too soon. I'm not ready for the daily grind again!

Birthday Wishes

When I was a month shy of my 13th birthday, I got the phone call that I had a new baby sister. That call was received with mixed emotions. On the one hand, I was elated to have a sister. I already had a brother & stepbrother (both the same age as each other) so it would be nice to not be the only girl. And then there was the other hand. I would NOT be the only girl.

I wish I could tell you that life with sister was grand. To be honest, I don't really remember much of the baby years. I remember being silly with Shonda using sister's things. I remember picking her up from the baby sitter. But her? Not so much. I didn't really see much of her and when she was 2, Coastie Bro & I moved to Massachusetts.

I came back into her life with a bang when she was 5. I was 18 and had just moved in with our dad, her mom, and our other sister. Oh, we fought. She was in my way and I was in her space. But in the midst of that arguing, we became close. During that time frame, I was the one the girls depended on. Their mom was unhappy and tended to shut herself away from the world. I would take her shopping, do her hair, dance, & be silly with her. I even took her to a New Kids on the Block concert. She fell asleep before it was over!

Once I was married, life didn't change too terribly much. By then, her parents were divorced. When the girls would come for their weekend visits, I'd spend the night with them. I would meet them at the movies. I'd have them over to spend the night with me. After Lamb was born, I didn't go back to work. So during the summers, Sister would come stay with me for a week or so. At this time, our other sister was having some issues and I didn't see her anymore.

As Sister grew up & became a teenager, I saw her less & less. As is understandable, she didn't want to come visit. She wanted to be with her friends & boyfriends. And then my family moved to Texas. Luckily, by the time she was in college, I was fully internet savvy. During her college years, we'd talk via instant messaging or the cell phone. She'd come visit down here during her college breaks. During that time, now that she was grown, we realized how much alike we are. It was freaky but oh-so-cool.

Now she's married. We don't talk as much as we used to. She didn't have internet (she does now & I'm THRILLED), she didn't have nation wide on her cell phone (she does now AND we have the same carrier, woot), and life just got in our way. With all her new stuff, I fully intend to get her back in my life as a sister should. No, we don't have the typical sister stuff. That's kinda hard when you don't really grow up together. But, we ARE sisters.

But, the biggest news of all is not only is today her birthday, BUT! She's going to be a Mama herself! I'm going to be an aunt again. The only sad thing is I'm so far away. I won't think about that now tho. Today, I'll wish her a Happy Day and tell her how happy I am that she was born!

Good Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Given the choice, would you prefer to live in the country or in the city?

city

Soup
Who is the cutest kid you know?

besides my kids and Bubba's Sis' kids, Coastie Brother's kids! Altho, they DO have some competition coming up. ;)

Salad
Fill in the blank: I couldn’t believe it when I heard __Bear has a game on the day we are going to see HSM on Ice_________.

Main Course
If you could star in a commercial for one of your favorite products, which one would you want to advertise?

Pancho's Cheese Dip (we can't buy it here and my supply from my stepmom has run out, wah)

Dessert
What type(s) of vitamins and/or supplements do you take on a regular basis?

None, altho I really should...

I hope everyone has a joyful and blessed Easter!

Who Are You?

Forensics fascinates me. I love how crime scene investigators can solve mysteries by the evidence left behind. Today, my family got to pretend that we were C.S.I.s ourselves.

Big D woke us up early (doesn't he realize this is Spring BREAK?) so we could beat the crowd at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. There they have a C.S.I. exhibit. Three different scenes with their own crime, lab work, & conclusion. We chose Who Got Served? about a waitress named Penny. She was found dead near a trash can behind the Sundancer Motel. She had definitely been run over by a car. But, was that the cause of death? Who killed her? How did she die? And is Penny her real name? All of that was for us to find out! Gil Grissom welcomed all the new recruits and gave us the lay of the land. He warned us how important evidence is and that if it's not in the report, it didn't happen.

We gathered evidence at the crime scene. You can see by our evidence sheets that we have different styles of crime solving. Big D (top left) was meticulous with pictures & words. I (top right) obviously couldn't care less about recording the scene. I was the crime photographer. Lamb (bottom left) didn't draw any pictures. She just wrote where each piece of evidence was found. Bear (bottom right) took Big D's style but used more pictures than words. If you can call those pictures. ;)

After the evidence gathering, we went to the lab where we could "talk" to the experts & research our findings. We needed to find out what information we could gather from her cell phone. What prints, if any, could be found on a torn picture. Which tire tracks from suspects' cars match the tire tracks on the body. Once those were determined, we moved to Lab 2.

At that lab, we needed to find out what drug was in the plastice baggy by Penny's body. How long she had been dead by the growth of the Blow fly larvae found on her body. I did not enjoy that aspect. Who is Penny? We used DNA to confirm her true identity. From there, we moved to the morgue.


Medical Examiner, Dr. Robbins, welcomed us to his domain. We saw cool virtual graphic autopsy. Even the bugs crawling out of her ortifices seemed real. Again, I did not enjoy that 5 seconds of my life. We saw the Y incision and what the organs told him during the autopsy. No worries, it wasn't graphic at all.

We were ready to submit our reports now. Luckily, Grissom wasn't in his office to freak us out as we were writing the reports.

All 4 of us were correct and we are now Rookie Crime Scene Investigators. Grissom is proud, I'm sure.

It was so much fun. We are ready to go back and do the other 2 scenes now! I left out all the pertinent information in case you are able to do this too. I don't want to spoil it for anyone!