Farm Life for Little Girls

Thanksgiving with Cousins

Annie in Georgetown

Annie was playing at the community theatre in Georgetown. Pretty cute for an amateur production. We enjoyed it! The girls acted like they were "working orphans" afterwards anytime I asked them to do a chore! I told them the orphans on Annie don't get to make chocolate chip cookies after their chores!!

Is it just me or does JM look like a cross between Rainbow Brite and Michael Jackson? She needed black shoes and she picked these, which I was glad to buy as they were the clearance ones! :-) And the rest of the outfit is our attempt at making a spring dress into a fall one. Not sure we pulled it off, but I do think JM pulls off somehow making it cute anyway! ha

We took our friend L, who is someone I always enjoy going to the theatre with and I knew the girls would too! :-) JC always plays shy at first, but JM is her instant buddy of course. Our visits seem to be less frequent and the girls are getting to that age where they forget people after a while, so they know L's name of course and we talk about her, but poor things (especially JC) are starting to forget her too fast if we don't see her!! L was the first person I think to keep the girls overnight without us and took part in their Baptism! Important person! :-)

Her First Field Trip

JM left for her very first field trip this morning! It's not a foreign concept. We've definitely taken our share of outings in the pre-school years, but not without Mom! You weren't supposed to bring siblings if you were a parent wanting to come, so I opted to stay hope and do some much needed chores with JC. Yeah JC is thrilled. Actually she owes me money for 2 stuffies she bought on clearance for Halloween for she and JM. ha A whopping buck it cost her!

Isn't my JM so grown up? Oh and they were going to Sweetberry Farms - somewhere we've been before, another reason I don't feel I am missing out!

JM is wearing one of her "souvenir" shirts from Disney World. Remember I said the kids bought one $10 item and that was the end? Well its true, but Mia and I went shopping at the Disney outlet and other stores here before we left and got great deals on t-shirts (like $3-$5 each), sunglasses, bags, jwelry etc and the girls got something each day of our trip. Of course I wouldn't by the $15-20 shirt at Disney World - Are you crazy? But with all the stuff they came home with you'd think we went crazy at DW!

Have fun my beauty on your field trip!

Last Day of Magic Kingdom 2009

We only spent about and hour an a half rushing around on our last day! We picked to go back to Magic Kingdom since there was lots for the kids that we hadn't made it to yet.

They loved Minnie's house!

Crazy girls taking pictures. Not always cooperative, but always having fun and loving. JC loves squeezing JM and saying 'I love you' over and over!

At the Orlando airport playing around. Sad to leave so soon! Oddly we want to go back sooner than I imagined! But, our new addition in March will definitely keep us home for a little while.

Had fun with my family!! The girls did great!

It's a Small World

The It's a Small World ride was a hit with my girls. We rode with the whole family. We also really enjoyed the Peter Pan flight ride.

More rides.

Thanks for the great pictures in front of the castle girls! ha I was thinking this might could get used for Christmas cards, but my theme is JOY and JC is not looking joyous at all! Yes, once again we will be doing some chocolate bribing for our Christmas photos! :-)

I was proud of these shots!

Oh and we went to dinner with the family and had birthday cake (2nd bday) with little nephew L...who got sick and didn't really enjoy it! ick.

Meet the Princesses!

Yes, we splurged for breakfast with the Princesses in the Magic Kingdom! And we surprised the girls with new dress up that we brought with us so they could wear it to breakfast. I think they had a magical time.

And here they are! Breakfast was good too!

Halloween 2009 is Nearing!

Aren't We Scary?

Hardly, Mom says we are Stinkin' Cute!

Fitting in Pumpkins

Well, all the big pumpkin festivals seem to be next weekend, a time I know we can't go, so we headed to the Red Barn garden Center for theirs which thankfully was today! Who was my main model? JM. She was all over the place. And the kids both crashed when we got home! Long day!

We bought some pumpkins, decorated them, posed in a multitude of pumpkin and Halloween decorations, had junk food sold by the boy scouts, played in the petting zoo and bounced in the bounce house. I think we got enough pumpkin fun fit into our October! Thank goodness! I would have felt bad if we didn't do any fall fests.

I took a picture of JC buying water at the boy scout stand. She REALLY wanted water and I made her go get it herself and ask for what she wanted and give her money. She tends to be a little shy in this type of instance and I was so proud of her for going. I guess she was really thirsty!

The Ones That Don't Work

Enchanting the Rock

Tuesday we headed to Enchanted Rock State Natural Area. It was a whirlwind trip. Packed up and left in a matter of hours. My hubby does NOT plan. We've talked about taking this trip a while I just needed to know which day. I thought we said we were leaving Wednesday. Nope.

Hubby made us yummy bean burritos for dinner on the camp stove. He's a good camp chef.



What camping trip has no drama though? Our last trip we took with the kids was a DISASTER in my opinion becasue hubby was so set in being VERY primitive that it was very unenjoyable for a mommy with a 3 year old and a one year old! We hiked ALL our stuff in a couple of miles before settling in a spot with no bathroom for miles. Sigh.... So, when I think back on that trip I think this one was AWESOME. We pretty much took the first site we found! It had a picnic table and you could walk to a very clean bathroom!!! YAY! I was already loving it!

Then the drama hit around midnight. JC had an ear infection - AGAIN! She and I can't seem to shake them this year and unfortunately they come on quick with little warning. She barely had a runny nose. So, she and I eventually left the tent and slept in the car so she could sleep a little more upright (plus hubby and JM could sleep more without a screaming child waking them every hour). We didn't get much sleep. :-( And in the night we went potty a few times too. Cold weather does that to me and apparently her too! Then the morning hit and so did JC's mucus vomit! I'll spare you...

No phone service. We decided to go ahead and climb Enchanted Rock to call the doctor and make an appointment.

JC hung in there. She's a trooper. She uses the carrier anyway. Okay this bottom right picture of JM pretty much sums up JM on this trip. She was a silly, goofy and a defiant mess! Ok, she wasn't that bad by some standards but she's definitely going through a testing/ignoring stage that makes us nuts. We used the trip to work on some listening/obeying/attitude skills for sure. This was her cup of tea though. She pretty much RAN up the entire rock. This is what her thin, lean muscular legs were made for!

We made our doctor's appointment while we were up there.

There was a group of young men doing some sort of drills. They looked like soldiers, but they seemed too young. Maybe a military geared academy or something? We don't know. They had been up and down the rock like 10 times. A couple waved to JM though. She wanted to join them. Sigh...

It was a beautiful view up there. I really dislike heights. I can be a bundle of nerves with JM running around. I do love seeing nature like this and imagining God's hands in it though.

Straight to the doc we went for meds...a few hours later JC napping and feeling much better. :-)

Precious Pilgrims

At school today the girls performed a song with their classes (and my class too). All the girls dressed as Pilgrims and the boys like Native Americans.

JM and one of her friends. They felt the need to pick up center pieces to pose for the picture.

Kids in the Kitchen Thanksgiving

JM's little Kids in the Kitchen group cooked at our house. We made sweet potatoes, whole grain macaroni and cheese and Pumpkin Pie in a Bag. Amazingly JM ate it all! Wasn't sure she'd eat the sweet potatoes or pumpkin pie, but I think her taste buds have changed. JC didn't like much.

Look at JM in that top pic. She looks like a little teen sitting there eating talking to R. Also we tried a side pony tail which is a first for us but I think it was cute!

And then there is JC who has to be different in the hammock picture. I guess making binoculars as they pose? I dunno. Anyway we have a small KIK group and they always have a lot of fun.

Are People in Corsicana Overweight?

I have no idea if they are overweight, but geez if I lived in Corsicana the kids and I would be in TERRIBLE shape! Why? My goodness - the best travel stops are in Corsicana!

On the way to Longview we stopped at Braum's in Corsicana. Ummm....ice cream and burgers! We just got the ice cream this time. JM gt chocolate chip cookie dough, JC got mint chocolate chip and I got peanut butter cup. They got a good size Kid cone and I got a good size small cone. What does this cost at Braum's????? $3.04...And it's GOOD too. That's TOTAL, not EACH! Good Grief. I don't think I could have left for under $10 at the ice cream shop here. This is a favorite stop. What is amusing about Braum's to me is the clientelle. I rarely see kids! It's very often couples, many of them older. And you can tell a lot are regulars. Just that kind of place. They also have a tiny market that has produce, bread and milk. There is a Braum's in Tyler which I also go through, but it's not on the main road I use like the one in Corsicana is.



Now the problem with Braum's being in Corsicana is that Collin Street Bakery is ALSO in Corsicana. So, decisions, decisions! We hit that one on the way home! They have great cookies. Now, usually I can skip this stop because I like ice cream more than cookies but now CSB has it all! Well, not ice cream, but they have actual food now! I stopped for our lunch and got the kids a cute peanut butter and jelly for $1.50. I got a super yummy (but small) turkey and cheese for $3.95. I was not thrilled on the adult sandwich pricing but it was scrumptious. Hey they are a bakery and have fabulous bread! I guess they charge for it! And to top it off they now serve cappucino! SO, if we can get lunch AND a cookie AND my yummy driving coffee we are in good shape!! Plus, they have super clean bathrooms! :-) This is NOT the place to stop on the way home before a major holiday which serves pies though. They actually hire secrity to assist people in parking and coming and going because it gets so busy. They are known for fruit cakes, which I hate, but theirs are edible. Although that won't make me buy one!

There are actually other places I think my parents may stop like a nut place or something. Also there is a field of American flags I like. Besides my driving Hwy 31 stops I have no clue what's in Corsicana!! But thank goodness it's there! :-)

Tyler Roses

On the way home from Longview I felt them calling my name. I literally did a U-turn. Yup those Tyler roses were in bloom and I knew my flower loving children needed to see them! It was cold and we were in shorts which is why we jumped out of the car with blankets.

Beauty. My camera loved this stop!

We Love Longview

We do. It's true. The girls just LOVE going to Longview. They look forward to it and have become wonderful travelers with me. Why? They want to see those grandparents of course! We are so lucky all the grandparents live in one city. And the grandparents are VERY different so I think the kids benefit in so many way on our visits. They see 2 worlds. And of course they always leave Longview VERY confident they are loved!



Hubby's parents are still raising cattle in retirement so the girls get to see some farm life. On this date Bett made paper dolls with the girls. That's something she likes to do with all the grandgirls. The bottom right picture in the collage is in the sunroom. I do not know why but I love the sun room. We always spend a lot of time out there with it's sort of 70's patio decor. Bett painted the the paintings on the wall. I somehow can manage to fall asleep pretty regularly in the somewhat uncomfy furniture.

JC was just so funny mimicing all the many expressions of Bett. JC has so many crazy looks that I love capturing. Bett likes to be dramatic in fun...so if I ever wander why the kids are...

And then there is my parent's house which is always full of fun, often in the kitchen! The girls made cupcakes this trip. Yup, we needed more sweets! We aso made these cute pumpkins. JC is SOOO strong! I am not kidding. She was determined to push her pieces in herself! She was shaking trying to get it in there. This is JC's first version. She actually decided it was to normal and re-did it to make it completely mixed up. JM on the other hand JM made hers perfect. Hers is a kitty cat on one side and a puppy dog on the other.

And if anyone ever wanders why I do so many crafts and cooking with my kids...it's totally revealed at Mia's house!! Goodness without a doubt. And JM has SOOO caught on. Give her a pile of scraps and supplies and she'll make you a craft of some kind. This weekend she made a "kite" with a balloon, stickers, a paper towel, wrapping paper and some ribbon from gifts. And then she makes up stories with it for a long while. It's so amusing.