Messy Face

I kind of love it when our little neat freak lets the food take over and savors every bite.

 

 And the only place to go after this is to the bathtub!

Family, Chicken, and Sunny Sundays

Sundays are a terrific day to eat lunch at Babes.  Actually, any day is a great day to eat at Babes, and it's even better when Aunt Cindi and Uncle Raland are visiting from Spokane.

 We attempted to round up the kids (minus Gavin) for a quick picture, but it's hard to sit still after eating Texas's best fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, biscuits, salad, and green beans. 

And then, by the time Cindi and Raland jumped in the shot, the kids were done posing for pictures, but I kind of like these, anyway.  Everyone, just doing their own thing, having family fun with full bellies on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon at Babes. 

Crafting with Kids

It's been a crazy busy week month, so when a Friday night came along with with no plans, it seemed like the perfect time to order a pizza, put on some music, and have craft night at home with the kids.  And that's just what we did tonight.  Liam was proud of the paper bag house that he made, and the girls (and Jon) stayed pretty busy with the colors and play-doh.  It was just what we needed to kick off the weekend.

A February Afternoon in Texas

Monday was a day off of school.  Temps were in the high 70s.  It was sunny, and the perfect day to take the kids to the park.  Gotta love February in Texas!

Lazy, Long Weekend

Presidents Day weekend (via the phone camera) included:

Lazy cartoon mornings with the kids piled in bed on top of sleepy parents,

 Skating party fun with a little help from the trainer,

Running errands with Mama,

Being blessed by the Mwangaza Childrens Choir at church,

Relaxing with snacks and a movie,

And ending the long weekend on a sweet note.

Feelin' the Love

Because every special day should have a cake, I made a Valentine's cake for my four sweethearts on Thursday.  

 

And the kids had fun givingValentine's to all their friends.

I was able to slip out of school for a bit and attend Liam's school party.  Ms. Katie's crew had Chic-fil-a for lunch and an ice cream sundae bar for dessert.  The excitement and love was overflowing in the Pre-K room.  I adore the kids in Liam's little class.  They're all so sweet, cute, fun, and respectful. (Teaching middle school, I have to search hard to find these qualities some days. :))

Liam had t-balll practice, but after that and dinner, we had cake!  All three of our littles agree that if there's cake, there should be candles to blow out, so we sang a Valentine's Day song three times, and and each blew out the candles. Why not?

Then, after baths, the kiddos ended the night by opening up love gifts from both sets of grandparents and also great-grandparents. 

See the Valentine's sugar coma setting in? This picture was taken right before they crashed. I think the girls fell asleep just about as soon as their heads hit the pillows! That's what a fun-filled Valentine's Day will do to you!

Little Sweethearts

Happy Valentine's Day!

While Mama Was Away

It was smooth sailing at home with Daddy in charge.  He's awesome.  I probably called home around 154  times, and each time, things were cool, calm, and organized.

Liam had an adventure at the Perot Museum on Friday with his class from Sloan, and Daddy surprised him by  attending the field trip, too.  What a surprised and joyful little boy!  On Saturday, Liam tagged along with his cousins to the Dallas World Aquarium.  Fun!

The girls helped Daddy by being on their very best behavior and playing nicely with each other...not always a guarantee around here. 

Inclusion Works!

Faith and family always comes first in my life, but as far as my career goes, I'm completely devoted to the field of special education.  I love being an inclusion teacher.  When presented with the opportunity to attend Inclusion Works, the state inclusion conference in Austin, my geek flag started waving like hurricane winds were fast approaching.  Jon, being the super hero dad that he is, immediately encouraged me to go, without any qualms of flying solo in the parenting realm for three days.  I love him.

Like all conventions, there has been dynamic speakers, mediocre presenters, and some others who weren't so terrific.  My favorite by far has been Paula Kluth, the keynote speaker and an inspirational special educator-turned-author/consultant.  I've got some big dreams, ideas, plans, and visions that I can't wait to discuss with the powers-that-be in my district.  Special education really is such an amazing, fascinating field, and I'm so happy I stumbled into all those years ago as a Baylor sophomore when I signed up to take "Intro to Special Education" because a friend of mine was also enrolling, and it was the only education class that would fit into my schedule.  I know that it was not a stumble, but a Divine push.

Besides the conference schedule, I've even had a chance to shop, dine in style, get a pedicure, and catch a foreign film with co-worker and friend, so it's really felt like a bit of a vacation.  I'll be so happy to see my Marin, Liam, Ellery, and Jon when we return home tomorrow, but I'll leave with my teaching battery charged and ready for action on Monday!