'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

He spotted her across a crowded restaurant. Her long dark hair and big brown eyes were hypnotizing. He couldn't help but stare at her. She had a smile that lit up the room and she saw him watching her every move as she swayed and twirled around her table. She got up to try her luck at the quarter "toy grab" machine but walked away sad and empty-handed. Was she 5, maybe 6? He didn't know and it didn't matter, she was older and she was beautiful. As she was leaving, their eyes met....he knew at that moment, he was in love. She lingered outside the door. In desperation, he leapt from his chair and followed her. When he opened the door and saw her standing there, he was paralyzed by her beauty. He tried to say "hello"....to somehow find the courage to speak but he was silent. He stood at the doorway and watched at she was buckled into her booster chair and driven off into the night, never to be seen again. Sad and dejected, wondering if maybe it was the diaper that came between them, he returned to his table and ordered a double-shot of chocolate milk wondering if they'd ever cross paths again.

Yes, this was the scene at dinner last night. While it was the cutest thing that I've ever seen, I must admit that deep down inside, I felt his little heart break as we stood at the door and watched her leave. Our precious little 2-year old, our budding Casanova, in a span of 30 minutes, fell head-over-heels-hook-line-and-sinker for this little girl. Now, Adam can be quite the love-em-and-leave-em little flirt but this time it was different. After a few sympathetic, "Aww, that's so sweet!" and "Look, he's really sad that she's gone, aww!" comments from the hostess and two waitresses, I realized at that moment that I'm going to be an absolute wreck when my kids start dating! As a parent, naturally, you want to shield your kids from heartache, rejection, bullying, etc and if I wouldn't have been, most likely, arrested for doing so, I would have chased that little girl's car down and made them stop so Adam could say "hello" and gaze upon her sweet face one last time. No wonder your kids want nothing to do with you when they're teenagers. : )

The Countdown Begins

I can't believe I'm actually posting twice in one week! I really enjoy sharing these stories, photos and family activities with everyone, it's just finding the time to sit down at the computer and actually type it all out that is tough but, hey, so far so good, right?

We're all gearing up for school to start on the 25th. We'll be attending Gracie's "Back to School Night" Thursday evening where we'll get to meet her teacher and tour her classroom. She is so excited about going into the 1st grade. Ask her, she'll tell you ALL about it! : ) Adam will be going to the same daycare/school but will be moving up to Ms. Barbara's class (I love her!), where they'll begin potty-training boot camp baby!! Can't wait for the day when diapers no longer appear on my weekly grocery list.

August is also the time when we register for all the "extras" in our weekly schedule, i.e. piano, tae kwondo, dance, little gym and, possibly, soccer tots....whew, I'm worn out just thinking about it. These are the many activities we "consider" in the Fall. Gracie has been pretty adamant this year that she does NOT want to take piano (boo) so we're thinking about letting her take a little break from it. Instead she wants to try a Musical Theater class, which she says "if I don't like then I'll just switch to a Hip Hop or Jazz dance class." She told me that she might be too shy to take the theater class.....riiiight, that child doesn't have a shy bone in her body! Oh, and how could I forget Girl Scouts! Did I mention that I volunteered to be an Assistant Troop Leader? Ugh, what was I thinking? Now, I'll be attending the Kick-Off Training Seminar for Girl Scouts this weekend. By the way, I'm putting the word out early......Gracie is happy to be your GS Cookie Connection this year so get ready to place your order for Thin Mints, Somoas, Tag-alongs or whatever tickles your taste buds. Cookies go on sale in January (I think). : )

As for Adam, he has been in Little Gym all summer and LOVES it! He's a maniac on the uneven bars! The only "issue" we have is when they bring out the bouncy BALLS. While other kids are innocently trying to learn how to throw and catch with their parents, our son is PUNTING the balls into the rafters! It's a parent participation class so we spend most of "ball time" running interference between the ball and some poor unsuspecting victim's face. When the new fall semester begins, he'll be moved up to the older class and, guess what, no parents are allowed. We have to sit and watch the fun from the designated "waiting area". Oh, I can already see it now.........one of us (either me or David) is going to get chewed out by another parent when their child is smacked in the face by a 90-mile per hour ball flying across the gym. Hence the need to sign him up for Soccer Tots. Hopefully, this activity will provide the "sports" outlet he craves.
Gracie will test at the end of September for her Junior Black Belt!! We're so so so proud of her! Once she earns that belt, she'll no longer be a "Little Ninja". She'll earn her "whites" (white uniform) and join the older class. A Junior Black Belt is the same as a Senior Yellow Belt.

Well, that about wraps up the latest news. Here are a few pictures we've taken over the past couple of months.


Thanks for hangin' in on this lengthy post.


Our trip to the museum:









What IS this thing?











I want to be a fireman.....














....no, maybe an astronaut




















Bobbi the Builder









Rubber ducky you're the one!













Okay, first you go like this and,
Voila!, you've got your bottle of milk!







The Dinosaur Dig!!!








Look what I found!








She does all the work, I take all the credit!!










Trip home from the museum! : )







A few more of my favorites!


The Build-Up....





Okay, there's a stick of gum.....









I don't know, why DID the stick of gum cross the road?










because it was stuck to the chicken's foot.....ha ha ha ha, now
that's funny!!!




Just goofin' around:




Dadda Montana!

The Lesser-Known Marx Twins

Labor Day at the Lake

We spent Labor Day weekend at the lake house. It was our crew, plus Uncle Steve, Aunt Lorie and cousin Nathan. The kids played from sun up to sun down. Gracie and Adam both had runny noses but that didn't slow them down for a second. The weather and water were perfect as we only had one day of sprinkling rain. The storms held off until right after we left on Monday afternoon.

The last time we were out at the lake, Sunshine, the Palomino, had just had a foal that Grandpa named Sandy. Back then, she was just a tiny thing. Well, that wasn't the case this trip. In just a few short months, Sandy is now almost full-grown.....I thought my kids grew fast! Gracie and Sandy became fast friends. Adam, my little cowboy, loved riding Snickers. We'll definitely have to outfit him with the full hat and boots ensemble next time. The Crocs just don't quite fit in. : )

We took the pontoon out for a ride each day. Adam didn't have the patience for any long trips out on the lake so we opted for short morning and evening rides. He DID enjoy driving the boat and, I must say, he did a pretty good job.....as did Gracie and Nathan. Everyone got a turn to be Captain.

Thankfully, we made it through the holiday without any injuries, only a few ant and mosquito bites to remind of the trip. All in all, we had a nice, long, restful weekend.

Gracie and Sandy

Awww, how cute is this picture? I love this little girl so much

my heart feels like its just gonna burst sometimes!

....and here's my handsome cowboy! What a little man. I think this is probably the only time he sat still all weekend. He really gives me a run for my money but I wouldn't have it any other way. : )

We're in good hands!

On your mark.......

get set.....

Gooooooooo!!!!!

Just some recent pictures

August 4th - My two little angels. : )

My littlest angel.....don't let the wings fool you. : )

Monkey see, monkey do....

Storytime with TJ Beary Tales.

The shower caps stayed on for all of five minutes then they became tools for holding mass amounts of water to dump on each other.

Boy in a bucket!

"Where would you like to go your highness?"

"Now, I'm suppose to hold this, point here and click?"

Natural Bridges Wildlife Park

June 30, 2007

Here we are in San Antonio getting ready to leave our hotel to head home. We spent the entire day (before) at Sea World. Boy was it H-O-T!!! Gracie and Adam have their backpacks on for our trip to Natural Bridges Wildlife Park. Since most of our time at Sea World was spent at the wave pool we were very excited about seeing some actual wildlife.

If you've never been, I highly recommend going. The park is just outside of San Antonio and right off the highway so not much of a detour at all.

Check out their website: http://wildliferanchtexas.com/home.html

Adam's new BFF. This little goat followed him EVERYWHERE and he loved every minute of it.

Adam spent most of the day pointing at one thing or another. There were so many new and exciting things to see at the aquarium!

The beautiful waterfall at the aquarium caught everyone's attention.

"Casanova"

Love 'em and leave 'em! My little heart breaker.

The cake.....hummmmm, squishy.

Adam and Grandpa

Adam walked for the first time on his 1st birthday. Coaxed by his Aunt Katy (not pictured here) he took three whole steps all by himself. We've been chasing him ever since.