She's Too Young To Drive!

But her Daddy lets her anyway. Who can resist that dimple and her cute, scratchy voice? Any grandparents reading this need not be worried... the blade was never engaged. We just wasted alot of gas letting Kamryn "drive" the lawnmower.

The Human Jack-o-Lantern

Todd lost his first top tooth yesterday! We've have been waiting for that thing to come out for a while, now. He bit into his supper and out came his tooth. I was hoping he would lose it before Friday, because that's school picture day. Don't you think he has the perfect smile for the Halloween season?

And The Winner Is...

KAYLEE WALKER! Seen here with her PE teacher, Coach Watson. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the rollers in her hair, but whatever it was, she made student council again and we are breathing a sigh of relief around here. Sam and I knew how bad she wanted to make it, so when her teacher emailed me and told me that she won, I did a happy dance.

Her posters were cute. They said," Are you smarter than a 5th grader? Only if you vote for Kaylee" and "Don't be nerds, vote for Kaylee." The latter was decorated with nerd candy boxes. I was up at the school setting up for next week's book fair when the principal announced the winners at the end of the day. I already knew she won, but she didn't, so I went to her room and stood outside the door to watch her face as they announced her name. It was priceless! She saw me and jumped up and ran out the door and gave me a big hug. If only all her days could be this happy.

One quick story about her PE teacher: It was the first week of school. Coach Watson asked the class if anyone knew the difference between offense and defense. Kaylee raised her hand and very matter-of-factly replied, "Offense sells the tickets, defense wins the championships." There's no denying she's my kid!

Monkey See, Monkey Do (part 2)

Tomorrow is the big Student Council election at Neblett Elementary. Kaylee is running for 4th grade representative from Mrs. Anderson's class. She has her speech all ready and we made posters this week to hang in the school's hall. I can't believe this stuff starts so young, but she was on Student Council last year, so we know what to expect. As much as she loves sports, she is equally "girly." It took her an hour to decide what she wanted to wear. After she got out of the shower, she brought me the sponge roller bag. Sponge rolling that child's hair takes so long I usually only do it for church and school picture day. But, tomorrow is important to her, so I rolled her hair. Note to self: next time roll Kaylee's hair after Kamryn is in bed for the night. I got about 6 rollers in and Kamryn started with, "Me next, Mommy, PUH-LEASE!" Well, you know what happened - Kamryn got her hair rolled, too. My girls have alot of hair! Well, my girls that have hair have alot of hair. I didn't put as many in Kamryn's as I did Kaylee's... mostly because it takes divine intervention for my lovely 3 year old to hold still longer than 30 seconds. I managed to get some in, and I took pictures of my beauties with their heads full of sponge rollers!

Kite Flying With Ike

The Walkers are making lemonade from lemons today. The anticipation of Ike forced the

postponement of some weekend activities and we're staying close to home. Kamryn asked her daddy why we couldn't go to the softball game like we had planned (she has some little friends that she loves to play with during the games) and her dadddy replied that, "We're waiting on Ike." In true Kamryn fashion she turned on her heel and went out the front door. I followed her a few minutes later and found her out on the driveway... waiting on Ike. After explaining that Ike was the name of a storm and not a man coming to visit, we remembered we had a kite in the garage. So I decided to post some pictures of the kids taking advantage of the wind before the rain comes.

Todd in a Sack

Todd had his first "project" this week in 2nd grade. He came home with a brown paper lunch sack with instructions from his teacher to fill it with NON-living items that would describe what Todd liked. At first he was a little bummed that he couldn't put the tadpoles he caught down by the creek in the sack, but after he got over that initial disappointment, he really got into it. Parents could help as much or as little as they chose to, but I held back a bit because I was really curious as to what he would use to describe himself. He chose: a magnet with his basketball picture on it, a lot of legos, a picture of himself with legos on the airplane to Disney, a picture of himself with his sisters and cousins on the beach in Florida, a picture of him, Kamryn, and Goofy at the Magic Kingdom, a book about space (he said that counts as 2 things because he loves to read and he loves space), a packet of macaroni and cheese, his magic wand he got when he went to Great Wolf Lodge with his Grammy and Poppy, and the bobber from his fishing pole. He did a great job, huh?

I love his teacher. Kaylee had her in the 2nd grade as well and she is just awesome. Every day they write in their "forever journal." It's just a spiral notebook that his teacher has him write in everyday. It may just be a sentence or two, but he's supposed to share on paper what the best part of his day was (or the worst, or the most interesting...). Today he wrote that the best part of his day was his mom coming to eat lunch with him. What a sweet, sweet boy!

My Granddad Was Green

I'm getting a little annoyed at all the celebrities who are so proud of themselves for "going green." Good people have been doing the right thing for a long time without the need for publicity. My granddad would have been 90 years old at the end of the month, and he was a conservationist long before some of these yayhoos were born. Sorry Al Gore, you don't have the market cornered on recycling. My granddad reused the aluminum foil his hamburger from Dairy Queen came in. He hand washed plastic party cups. He never left a light on in a room when he walked out. He drove to the farm everyday in his pickup truck with windows down to save gas. He wore his house shoes until they had holes in them, then he would tape them up and try to get just a few more miles out of them. He would save the bows on the presents at Christmas. Not only that, he would open his presents so carefully as to save the paper for presents next Christmas. Leftovers were never thrown away. Rain runoff was saved to water flowers. My granddad was a true friend to the earth, and he never owned an expensive hybrid car.

Chef Kamryn

As much as I miss the big kids while they are at school, things are hardly boring back at home. Kassidy is still pretty easy, she naps twice a day. Kamryn, not so much. A few days ago she got the idea to create her own recipe. Not wanting to stifle the creative genius in my 3 year old, I did what any mother too tired to fight would do, I gave in and said, "Sure, we'll make anything you want." "Mommy!" she said, hands on her hips, "We're not gonna make it, I'm gonna make it!" Whatever. So I was relegated to reaching anything that she couldn't climb and get. Don't get too excited, she just made toast with candy sprinkles, but she was so proud of that toast that I had to take a picture. I was pleased because there wasn't much to clean up, either. Now if I could just stop her from turning on the microwave just to hear it beep...

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Lots of things have changed around here since the big kids went back to school. Especially for Kamryn and Kassidy. It's been fun to watch their relationship change. They don't have Kaylee and Todd around during the day to play with, so they have had to figure out how to play with each other. Kassidy is a little sponge soaking up everything Kamryn does. I hope that's a good thing ;). These pictures say it all.

Hell Hath No Fury...

like a mother at a softball tournament. Yesterday we spent all day (left at 7:15 am, pulled into the drive way at 11:20pm) in North Richland Hills at Kaylee's softball tournament. The hardest part of these things is just the prep work it takes to get 4 kids ready to spend all day outside at a ball park. We need Kassidy stuff: stroller, pack -n- play, bottles, diapers, extra clothes, baby food, spoons, bibs, wipes. We need Todd stuff: LEGOs, extra clothes. We need Kamryn stuff: sippy cup, extra clothes, pull up (just in case), play dough, toys, shock collar in case she tries to run off (just kidding... but if you've ever lost a 3 year old even for a minute, you know how tempting it would be to have one). We need Kaylee stuff: 3 jerseys; 2 shorts; 2 pair of socks; bat bag with helmet, glove, bat; crocs; and various hair accessories to ensure that she is "cute." Then there's everything else: cooler with water and gatorade; sandwiches; fruit; various boxes of crackers; sunscreen; the all important lawn chairs. I'm sure I'm leaving things out but you get the idea.

When we get to our destination, our team sets up camp. We have a big tent to provide shade and a place to snack in between games. It's fun because you get to know the parents of the kids on your team and hear stories about what goes on in their families. It makes you realize that your kids aren't as bad as you thought ;). We all (even brothers & sisters) have team shirts and some of us even made necklaces with our kid's number on them( think: over the top). We walk up to the game field together ( think: intimidation) and get ready to watch our little superstars... because there has never been better softball players on the planet than our little angels (think: sarcasm).

My favorite part is game time. Surprised? I love watching my daughter do something she loves and is really good at. Yesterday she caught 3 pop flies, was involved in 3 double plays, ( 1 of those single- handedly),and got on base 7 of 10 times at the plate. All of the effort involved is totally worth it to see the smile on her face when she comes off the field between innings after she has performed really well. In one of her games yesterday, she came off the field after being responsible for 2 of the 3 outs in that inning. She was the first batter up and her coaches were telling her to get her bat out and helmet on. I'm glad there's not "delay of game" penalties in girls softball because she couldn't stop hugging her Poppy, who was at the duggout gate telling her how awesome she was.

And then there's the parents... Lord have mercy on the poor soul who needs money so bad they officiate a softball tournament. Because if you're officiating because it's fun, then you must have some weird addiction to verbal abuse. Not to mention a high tolerance to heat stroke. I wouldn't want to stand on a dirt field all day in long pants, shirt, and pads. And while we did bear the brunt of some terrible calls, I was a little amazed to hear a parent say, "If it wasn't for those officials we would have won the tournament!" That is quite a stretch. In my last post I ended with a quote from Abe Lincoln. This one will end with a quote from another great man, Tony Romo. Well, he'll be a great man if he leads my Cowboys to a Super Bowl victory. Anyway, I realize that professional football is not exactly 9 year old girls softball, but it's still something worth remembering non-the-less. "If the worst thing that happens to me is sports-related, then I've lived a pretty good life."

Oh, Gag!

I seriously just threw up a little bit in my mouth. This afternoon I sat on the floor folding laundry. I had the TV on one of the 24 hr news channels, probably FOX, but I can't really remember. If you don't watch Oprah, (which I DON"T) then you are limited in your afternoon viewing pleasure. Anyway... this guy was ranting on and on about Sarah Palin and her views. He questioned her "common sense" in deciding to have a baby with Down's Syndrome and encouraging her daughter to choose life. WHAT?!?! Are you kidding me?!?! The news guy doing the interview introduced him as an 'elitist.' Well, I can think of another word for him, and it starts with a vowel, too.

When did the gift of life become so cavalier? When did this guy decide that he had the authority to criticize someone for choosing life? I'm sure those babies, both born and unborn, are happy to be alive, and I applaud their parents for their decisions.

Do I think that an unmarried, pregnant daughter disqualifies you from being a worthy VP candidate? Absolutely not. Do I think that an unmarried, pregnant daughter means you spent too much time in the office and not enough time at home? Absolutely. I think there is a lesson here for all us, even stay at home moms~ Pay Attention to Your Children!! Just because you're not putting in 40 hrs/wk. at the office doesn't mean that you can't be so self absorbed that your family gets put on the back burner. Likewise, the best mom I have ever known was a 3rd grade teacher while her kids were growing up, and ALWAYS had time for them.Her kids grew up secure and successful, in no small part to their mother always being there.

All this talk about politics is giving me a headache and an eye twitch, so I'll end with one final thought. I was watching the DNC last week and thinking about God. I was wondering whose side God was on, anyway? Who Would Jesus Vote For? Then I remembered one of my favorite quotes from Abraham Lincoln. In April of 1863, right in the middle of the Civil War, Lincoln called for a day of fasting and prayer. When asked who's side he thought God was on, he replied,"My great concern is not whether God is on our side. My great concern is to be on God's side." That's one smart republican ;).

I'm a Moral Compass???

Yesterday I was on the phone with a good friend of mine. We have lots in common and she is always good for a laugh. During the middle of our conversation she asked for my advice on a situation she was in. After I told her that I agreed with the decision she made, she said, "Good! Because you're my moral compass." Don't worry, you're not hurting my feelings if you're reading this thinking my friend is going straight to hell with me as a moral compass. It was my first thought, too. After I hung up with her I couldn't get that conversation out of my mind. Never in a million years would I have thought that anyone, let alone my friend who is older and smarter with more life experience than me, perceive what I do as "the right thing" and make decisions accordingly. God used my friend to open my eyes. Not only are these precious kiddos watching every move I make... other people are, too. I remembered what I used to hear when I was in the youth group at church..."You're the only Jesus that some will ever see." What a scary thought that is. I need to do a much better job advertising, because someone is always watching.

Addiction...

Am I the only one who can't pull themselves away from the Olympics? It's a good thing they're almost over so some things will get done around here. The tv is on NBC (or CNBC, MSNBC, or USA) all day. When Sam comes home, we eat dinner in front of the tv, hit pause on TiVo if we have to change a diaper or something, put the kids to bed, and continue to stay glued to the set. You know it's bad when you only make the move from the den to the bedroom during a commercial so you won't miss anything. Now would be a great time to give a great big shout out to my brother, Jeff, and my dad for their enabling of our addiction. See, Jeff bought himself a new tv. So, he gave his really nice tv with built in DVR to my parents, who in turn gave us their really nice tv and their TiVo. Without them, none of this would be possible.

Welcome to my Blog

Well... Here we go! I've been thinking about starting a blog for a while now, and I figured that now was a great time. The kids are starting school on Monday, so I'll start something new, too.
This is a way for those of you who live far away to keep up with the kids as you want to, instead of me bombarding your inbox with a million pictures :). Check back often... there is always something going on here.