Christmas Card Photo

If it were up to my boys, there would be no Christmas card photo. There probably wouldn't be any Christmas cards. Except for those on the store shelves waiting for someone else to buy them. Why do I feel like I am going into battle to get them to pose for a few snapshots? Smile. Be sweet to your brother. Just for a minute. OK, pretend to be sweet. Look here. No, not down there...or over there...don't poke him...or strangle him...AAAAAAH!

I think Nick is a double agent, secretly working for the enemy. He isn't all fired up over the process either. They sense his "excitement."

I remember, back in the day, when I could gently place Nathan under the Christmas tree. His eyes filled with wonder seeing all the lights and ornaments. He sat there while I snapped probably a hundred photos. He never complained, never fidgeted. We'd take some more on the brick hearth, and even more outside in the yard. He so patiently put up with this obsession.

Now, fast forward. I'm lucky to get 5 shots to choose from. "Lean together" translates into "who can leeeeean enough to knock the other off the step stool." "Hold this candy cane" becomes "wouldn't it be a jolly good time to WHACK my brother with this candy cane?"

Just when I was about to tear my hair out, they both smiled, AND looked at the camera, AND didn't do anything for one split second to annoy each other, ANNNND I caught it all on film...well, digital film, or digital whatever that captures those magical moments. They do love each other, and there are many moments when they are sweet as pie with each other. Until I want to take Christmas pictures. But now, I have one to smile about. But, ohhhh, the anguish that it took to get it! :)

Pretty Flower and Pretty People

I like to consider Mike and Cindy my own personal friends, but they've been dear friends with my folks since before I was even around. They don't come to Houston often, but nor do I make it to west Texas very much either. They're coming tonight for supper and I am so excited! My boys get to meet them, and it will be so nice having them in the house tonight for a get-together. So much time passes in between our visits, but it is always nice to see them and catch up. Such wonderful people!

Weekend Moments

It's tough when your dad is a soon-to-be-dentist and you have a loose tooth. In Nick's defense, the dern tooth hung on by a microfiber for months it seemed like. But, it came out...on its own in good time. Nick tried to persuade Nathan to let him perform services, and I know it took restraint. I'm sure he could've gone in there with precision accuracy and lobbed it out before I could blink, but thankfully he heeded to Nathan's concerns and my mother tigerness that was going to pounce if he stepped too far away from the "daddy" line and into the "dentist" territory! :) He's a good dad, and let it take its course.

Nathan was blabbering to Michael. I was in the livingroom. They were playing back in Nathan's room and he was in the middle of giving Michael specific, strategic directions for something. In mid-sentence I hear this "AHHH"--not "there's a bug" urgency in the pitch, and it wasn't directed at his brother either. He later said that just seeing the tooth on the ground is what spooked him first. The duty had been done. His first tooth had just popped out in the middle of his talkin'! There was no tugging, floss/door drama, extraction pliers, nothing.

It happened to coincide with Pawpaw Dean's birthday, too! Happy Birthday Dad! My mom wrapped up grandson presents for my dad and the boys' faces were confused-elated to see the surprises inside!

Last night, to Nick's COMPLETE shock and surprise, the tooth fairy had fluttered in sometime before morningtime! How does she keep track of all those kids with all of those teeth??? She must be incredible! Don't you love the FLAME tooth fairy pillow? It's so dainty and frilly and fairy-ish. Ugh.

This Weekend

A COOOOL and wet weekend it has been. We spent two great days with all of the grandparents this weekend. Saturday, we zipped on over to the Houston Zoo with Barbara and Odis. It was almost too cold. Maybe I should not have worn sandals and short sleeves. We had such a nice morning visiting the animals and walking around together. Burgers and cookies topped off the field trip. Yum!
Today, we woke up early and drove to Columbus. It started raining about the time we were on the beltway flyover, and despite my hopes that it would cease, it continued. Sometimes more, sometimes less. Nathan got car sick at the breakfast stop. And, I wasn't so thrilled to be amongst the target shooting practice. However, the bonfire was warm, the jackets slicked off the rain for the most part, and we enjoyed a nice picnic. After toes got damp and too cold enough to stand, we packed up and came home. The boys sure did enjoy the 4-wheeling, fishing, throwing stuff into the fire, and playing in the mud.
This old mama is tired. A fun, busy weekend of family togetherness and it was fun. I hope the coolness sticks around a bit longer!

Some Recent Photos

Cobb Caterpillar Conservatory

A species of sulpur butterfly is sowing its oats all over my candlestick plant. I'm not sad about the caterpillars' slow destruction of my beautiful candlestick flowers and leaves because the plant served as the dating locale for their parents in the last several months. Ever since this plant was not much more than a stick in the ground with a few cute leafy stems, there have been two little buttercup yellow butterflies skittering about. It has been a frequent dance routine. In the mornings, we'd see the flittering. They'd land for a blink of a sip of nectar, then go about their fluttering.

Somewhere in the dancing steps, somebody deposited eggs that have now grown into yellow butterflies. I am not familiar with these as much as I have become with the monarchs since just across the yard, there lies a milkweed heaven that a few months ago was bustling with monarch caterpillars.

My first glimpse this morning was from the bedroom window. The caterpillar's contrast against the leaves caught my eye from clear inside the house. Upon closer observation, other siblings were there too, more camouflaged. I looked up candlestick plant caterpillars and there is strong resemblance, although slight differences between my little sulphur offspring and the model online. The others were from up north. I was happy to connect the caterpillars with the butterflies that had so daintily (is that a word?) flitted around the plant before.

Reading over my caterpillar commentary, I'm now wondering if I am a complete dork. Do I have a million other things I should be doing right now? SURE! Did my Saturday morning come to a screeching standstill because of a caterpillar? Yep. But, do you see the caterpillar INSIDE the candlestick flower? So cool.

Some thoughts...

1. I get to pick up the boys on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Although it makes the commute longer, I love being there to pick up my own children.
2. My three new classes worth of children are going to be fun. We have a neat group of kiddos. It should make for an enjoyable year.
3. Friday night was funny. I called a "family out to dinner" night because we had been too busy during the week to do ANYTHING. Once we vetoed fast food and some other places with Friday night wait times, Nathan emotionally pulled for Luby's. How original. On the way, we weighed some other more-tempting locales, but NO, NO, NO, we HAAAAD to go to Luby's. We get to Luby's, go through the line, sit down in a whirlwind from getting the RIGHT milks, a share-able dessert, choosing a table, getting TO the table, greeting the hypervigilant waitress (I still wish they had the cart ladies instead of waitresses) who is trying to empty my tray (I appreciate the help, but I don't want Michael to really see that Nathan got chocolate milk while he chose the blue carton because of quite possible, if not inevitable meltdown. Plus, I can empty my own tray.) Anyway, we sit down with a humph and no sooner than I unroll my napkin to withdraw my utensils do the boys start in with I'm not really hungry and the I just don't want to eat...ANYTHING business. Somehow we managed to live through it. There were a few moments of peace, and those felt good. Thankfully my mom came over Saturday and we escaped for a date.