I hate Jillian Michaels...again.

Seriously, how could 20 minutes of exercise make your whole body feel like rubber. I stepped back on to the shred train this morning...back at level 1. I could withstand it without wishing for death, but seriously...it's like my arms and legs are rubber now. I haven't shredded since last May's 30 day shred-athon. I'd take 45 minutes of Pilates over 20 minutes of the shred any day...but I can't find 45 minutes in my day...20 I can do before I jump in the shower.

Spring Break part 3: Camping

We went camping last weekend at Brazos Bend State Park. We wanted to go to the George Observatory, but got rained out long before nightfall. We'll try to go to the observatory again another Saturday. Here are a few photos.







We let them finish "camping" in the family room. Ordered Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs on On Demand, and lit up the fireplace.

Spring Break part 2

On Thursday afternoon we headed to the beach with a couple of friends for what was supposed to be playing in the sand, roasting hot dogs and smores, flying kites, etc. Apparently no one told the kids that the water/air was too cold for swimming because they all jumped right in like crazies. I let them wear their suits with the intention that they could play at the edge and then change into dry clothes. They took the suits to mean free reign.
I can't tell you how cold I was. They don't get their cold tolerance from me...that's for sure.
Bella lives for shells, rocks, and any other related discoveries that she can make. She's considering a side career in paleontology or geology. You know, if the whole writer/artist gig doesn't fill all of her time.
The fire was probably the only thing that kept everyone from suffering from mild hypothermia.

Spring Break

We kept it simple for Spring Break this year. No major plans like last Spring Break's Disney Trip. With Daniel and I having our big solo trip coming up...we kept it to a low roar. Early in the week we went to the park, the library, put the sprinkler under the trampoline (which was really popular), played some Wii, visited Grammy, etc.. To be continued...

After we had to resort to this ---^ to keep my sunglasses on Xander's face...I went and got him his own 2 year old sized pair. He will take any pair of glasses he can get his hands on and scream if he can't keep them on his face.

Rodeo

Rodeo is just not really my kind of thing. If I'm going to drop a fortune on rides and food...I do it at Disney World. Disney and I...we have a lifelong love affair going on...and it's quickly spread to the next generation in our family. But I digress, this post is not about my love of all things Disney...it's about the Houston Rodeo. Despite my general lack of enthusiasm for anything Circus-like (or other questionable animal treatment)/Carnival-esque events...I put my big girl pants on and did it for the sake of the kids having an authentic Texas experience.

After 3 years of living here, the little kids and I finally joined up with some friends who were going to the rodeo for free kids day (unfortunately the big girls were in school). Leia really wanted to strap on a helmet and ride a bucking sheep (called "mutton bustin"), but she was 1 pound too light on their scale to qualify. It was heartbreaking for her. She really wanted to get on that sheep. I consoled her with rides and a corndog. She has also reminded me every day since the rodeo that she "really really wants a pink cowboy hat". Noted.

Cow milking demonstration.

There were a lot of animals in the petting area, including chickens and kangaroos. You don't usually see those in petting areas.

Ahh, to be young again. While Daniel and I spent last Saturday digging out the weed forest...the girls spent their time doing this...

Dress Decision

*Update: Feedback has already been rolling in. Thanks guys :). So, I thought it best to mention that I found these shoes, and am about ready to commit to them..in red. Which leaves me down to accessory decisions. More help is always appreciated.


Remember when I asked for input on finding a dress for my upcoming anniversary cruise? Thanks for all the advice by the way. Well, due to my extreme cheapness, and inability to purchase things that are not on some type of sale...I never bit the bullet and ordered any of them. I'd also like to point out that none of them EVER went on sale. It seems impossible that in several months they could still be exactly the same price...but they are. So, Xander and I were cruising the mall today looking for a dress while Leia was at preschool and I found a couple of cute ones on sale that I liked at JC Penny of all places. However, as usual they never carry size 2 in the women's department, and everything in the junior's department at this moment in time is hideous. I could tell just by looking at the 4's that they were not going to fit, but I did notice they were both the same brand...American Living. One of them looked to be a very similar cut to dress 3 ($130 Ralph Lauren dress) from my previous dress post, except it had cap sleeves instead of long sleeves...even better.

Well, clearly I am not as fashion clueless as I generally appear, because when I got home to look around for that brand online...lo and behold it is actually a line from Ralph Lauren. I was totally pleased with myself for identifying the similarity. Yes, I know this post is getting tremendously long and you likely are not terribly concerned about what I'll be wearing on formal nights on my stinking trip. But I'm still rambling...so bear with me. I could see that stock was already low, and of course I knew if I didn't snag up a size 2, I would never get another chance. (why do they always run out of 2's first?) So, I googled up a promo code and got the price down to an acceptable $54...which seriously...I'm so cheap that is really like the absolute limit that I would pay for any article of clothing. And I officially am done looking for a dress. I hadn't really wanted to do black...but under these trying dress finding circumstances, I accepted that if I wanted a flattering cut, in my size, at a good price, I was going to have to compromise on the color. I suspect this dress may be a long term staple in my closet because I love the cut and the fabric. So now I need to punch it up with some shoes and accessories. Suggestions anyone?

Spring Has Sprung

I've spent the last 24 hours working on sprucing up the front porch. Got a cushion for the bench, a new pot, some flowers, a new fern for the hanging basket, etc. Leia and Xander "helped" plant flowers in the skinny bed by the door this morning. Notice the strain on his face while he attempts to be manly and help his sister with the heavy watering can."Our mom takes too many pictures of everything and has decision making issues about which ones are most important to clutter the internet with.""What do you mean I'm stepping on the new flowers...I'm totally helping right now."
Now the real question...should I paint the bench, or just seal it? It annoys me that it partially blocks that low window...but I don't see a better solution. I was definitely going to paint it, but now I'm wavering a little. Mom, I'm talking to you. Since I've noticed this blog has gotten ZERO comments for a LONG time, feel free to call or email me if you have an opinion and cannot bring yourself to press the comment button. ;-)

I made these no-bake chocolate peanut butter bars on Superbowl Sunday. They are deceptively delicious...and addictive. I find the weight loss ad underneath the recipe to be an amusing juxtaposition of page content. I made some more today. It's like self sabotage, but I had a taste for them, and happened to have the ingredients on hand. Hopefully the kids will gobble them up quickly so that I only get 1 or 2. :)

Field Trip

We went on a preschool field trip to a museum last week. Our main reason was to see the frogs, but there was a lot more to see than that. I've officially reached the point where I don't have a helpless infant to carry around on fun outings, and I've got to say...it is AWESOME. We saw a lot of cool rocks and crystals, frogs and tadpoles, touched a neat ice wall thingy, saw a 360 degree Sesame Street Astronomy movie inside of a dome, and got to see a really neat Narnia exhibit. Not shabby for a local museum branch. We didn't even have to go downtown.
I was busy messing with my camera, trying to get a few decent pictures, chasing Xander who kept trying to run off, and trying not to lose the extra preschooler that I had with me. Thank goodness there were other mom's to help keep Leia interested. (Thanks Suzy)
Checking out one of the frog and toad cases. It's so exciting to see him being interested in things like a big kid.
They had lots of cut open geodes and stuff with plexiglass on top. Perfect for the kids to really get up close and examine.
Some kind of wireless communication dishes. There were 2 across the room from each other. You could whisper in and the other dish would pick up your voice.The Narnia exhibit was pretty awesome, but there were no photos or video allowed inside.