Not Sure What I've Got Here

I'm usually good at deleting pictures off my phone once I put them in the computer (and usually blog about them).

 

Since I haven't been great at blogging, I haven't been great at cleaning out my phone.

 

 

So here's a collection of pictures without a theme, that have been sitting on my phone, and needed a place to go.

 

 

This one is from way back on New Year's Eve. Reed snuggling with Maggie after skiing in Crested Butte. 

(Maggie doesn't look nearly as thrilled as Reed.)

 Reed's other favorite thing besides dogs? Going to school. 

I secretly took this of him when I dropped him off.  He was the first one there, and went right in and got  to work. 

 He is the textbook definition of "teacher pleaser".  (For the record: the other two are not.)

A rare moment of brotherly love (at an IHOP) between these two (the non teacher pleasers).

Not a rare moment, these two get along fine.

 

 

 Kyle's face just cracks me up.

 

 

 

 

Cassidy and the boys came to Houston and had lunch with us one day during spring break.

Koen and Kyle have identical missing front teeth.

 

 

 

 

This statue is right by the bathrooms at Benihana's.  Kyle said, "Look mom, I can see its boobies and its privates!"  Not knowing what to say I said, "you want me to take your picture with it?"

As you can see, the answer was 'yes.'

 

Put to Good Use

Jason and I went to a black tie ball benefiting juvenile diabetes over the weekend.

We had lots of fun, but this is the only picture we have of us.

 

We actually did really well at the silent auction!

We "won" a weekend trip to New Orleans, dinner and theater tickets, and an art basket and art lessons for Reed.

 

He's already been busy using some of his new "winnings".

 

At Least there was a Pac-Man Machine

The kids went to the dentist about a week ago, and they told me Kyle and Reed both had cavities.

He didn't want to fill them since they are so little, and said I should see a pediatric dentist.

 

I thought pediatric dentists were just for kids who were nampy-pampy scaredy cats, but I learned the hard way today that I was totally wrong.

 

 

The day started off great.  Look what greeted us in the waiting room!

 

 

I also thought the flat screens on the ceiling were a good sign of things to come.

 

 

When they called me back (I was in the waiting room playing Pac-Man) they gave me a huge good news/bad news situation.

 

Kyle didn't even have a cavity.

Okay, awesome.

 

Reed on the other hand....

 

The cavity he had filled in Denver was infected.  The dentist (in Denver) had gotten the filling into his nerve and his tooth was abscessed.

(She said she sees this all the time with dentists who aren't pediatric dentists.)

 

 

The tooth would have to come out, but he shouldn't loose that tooth for about 6 more years, so they'd need to put in a spacer to keep the other teeth around it straight until that time.

The tooth was so infected that if we didn't do anything today, he'd need to be on antibiotics.

 

 

And the cavity (the original reason why we were there) on the other side of his mouth was so deep that it might already be in the nerve, so after the filling, he might need a crown.

 

 

Thankfully once they got in there the cavity wasn't to the nerve, so it was just a filling.

He thinks his new spacer is pretty cool, and even better, the Tooth Fairy gets to visit.

 

 

But just check out this little face after his procedures.

Is this pitiful or what?

 

Camp Without the Spend the Night

JR is all signed up to go to Camp Olympia for two weeks this summer.

He's already picked his activities (his range from drama to riflery to wake boarding) and is super excited to go, especially since we spent the day there Saturday.

 

Camp Olympia is only about 30 minutes away from Maw-Maw and Paw-Paw's house, and it just so happened we were there for spring break the weekend of the camp's open house.

 

We spent the entire day there, and still didn't get to do everything they had for us to do.

 

 

They jumped on the giant blob. (I did too!)

 

Climbed the rock wall 15 times.

 Did archery.

 

 

Rode horses

 

 

Oohed and ahhhed over the pool waterslide, which is different and smaller than the lake waterslide.

 

 

And we all seemed to really enjoy the unlimited snow cone selection.

 

 

But they all agreed their favorite was the giant 3 person swing.

(Reed's missing from this video because he was at arts and crafts with Paw-Paw.)

 

 

Daily Dose of Art

I really need to start posting more of Reed's pictures so I'll have them.

I've made some pictures into books, he gives some away, but most of the time they just over-run the house and wind up getting shoved in a drawer.

 

 

He's none too happy that his drawing books are in storage, so he's started drawing pictures from his library books and pictures online.

 

 

This one is a squirrel on skis from the book Squirrels on Skis.  I don't have the actual squirrel he drew, but you get the idea.

 

 

And here we have Gary the snail from Sponge Bob.

 

 

 

This is his latest one. Which is my favorite right now.

 

Here's Your Next Science Fair Project. You're Welcome.

So I have to start with a few of my favorite science fair funnies that were sent to me from friends who saw my Pinterest board labeled "JR" filling up with science fair projects.

 

I'm not sure more truth has ever been spoken:

 

 

And for our family...

 

This one was right on the money. 

Just look at the "Results" section:

 

Crying kid? Check.

 JR cried and carried on in an Oscar worthy performance. (Reed also cried because he didn't get to do one. And he felt he didn't get to help enough with JR's.)

 

 

Parent Yelling? Yep.

Though in my defense, my yelling was related to the crying.

 "Get up off the floor and stop crying! I don't care that you're going to be an actor and don't need science, you still have to do it!" 

 

BTW, I'm more convinced than ever that his career in acting might really pan out after the range of emotions he pulled out during this process. I'm pretty sure CPS thinks I was abusing my child. Nope, that was just his reactions to having to do a science fair project.

 

 

An average of 15 hours of family time sacrificed?

Yes, Except there was more than 15 hours of family time scarified, as it took 11 hours just for the stupid board!

 

 

 

JR's project was "Does a Cold Water Soaking Process Improve the Crispiness of Oven Baked French Fries?"

 

Spoiler Alert: it does.

 

 

 

I put Jason on procedure duty.  (Read: he helped JR do the experiment.)

I took board duty with Reed.  (Read: I definitely got the short straw.)

 

 

On top of doing the experiment and the board, he also had to turn in a journal that was over 20 pages, a 2 page report, and then he had to do a presentation. 

Here's how JR started his presentation, "When I grow up I want to be an actor, but if that doesn't work out, then I'd like to be a celebrity chef since I like to cook. And I really like french fries." 

 

How people listened to him tell if his acting career doesn't work out then he'll be a celebrity chef with a straight face I'll never know.

 

 

 

 

 

I even found my old science fair project at my parents (No, they don't throw anything away.)

Here it is.

I'm sure my 7th or 8th grade self was super into germinating radish seeds.

I'm sure that was right up there with hot rolling my hair and talking on the phone.

 

You know who else (besides my 7th or 8th grade self, of course) likes plants and seeds?

My dad.  Hummm.

 

 

And just for a little close up of my project...that's my mom's handwriting!

 

At least JR worked harder on his than I did on mine.

So in conclusion, the results of this project proved that we will 100% be saving this project for Kyle to turn in (or if JR ever needs to do another one).

Hope You Haven't Given Up on Me

I know I haven't been the best at blogging since we moved to Houston.

(That's mainly because I've lived here "forever" so nothing seems exciting or "blogworthy".)

 

I really did have plans to blog over spring break, but I couldn't get my parents' computer to upload.

The kids had lots of fun at Maw-Maw and Paw-Paw's.  They went to the movies, the circus, the zoo, fishing, and we spent a day at JR's camp he's going to this summer.

 

I'd love to tell about that now, but laundry and bedtimes are calling my name, so I leave you with a strutting peacock picture, cause who doesn't love a peacock?