A Day at the Splash Park

Click on the picture above for a slide show of our day at the Splash Park!

Last week was our official start to the summer. Because Reagan spent every. single. day. wet. In some way.

Monday: Splash park (see slide show)
Tuesday: Splash day at his school
Wednesday: Splash park
Thursday: At Kendall's pool
Friday: Played in the sprinklers at Brody's house
Saturday: At Aunt Colleen's pool
Sunday: At Aunt Colleen's pool

We took a break for a few days because we are both sporting some very dark tans, but we were back at it today in our neighborhood pool.

We love summer!

The Power of Prayer

Over the past several months I have seen amazing things happen because of God and prayer. So I am sending out a prayer request to all (2?) of you that read this blog.

Oh, I know that there are more than 2, and I appreciate each and every one of you. And I need your help.

Tomorrow is a big day. It is probably the beginning of a very difficult time in this house. But I am fairly optimistic and very hopeful that I am wrong about that. I believe that through prayer this might be an extremely easy time for us.

We are re-starting potty training tomorrow. At precisely 8:30 am. Ok, not precisely. But at the exact time I (finally) go and get Reagan out of bed tomorrow morning.

Short story~~We tried to potty train in December. And we did ok. But Reagan HAD to wear pull-ups still to Mother's Day Out, so it was kind of pointless since he was dead set against pooping on the potty. Over the next several months we got lazier and lazier on potty training, and he was in pull-ups most of the day without using the potty.

That stops tomorrow. Since there is no more school until August, we are saying "good bye" to pull-ups. Kind of. We'll still say "hell0" to them at naptime and night time.

In all seriousness, I do need higher-powered help in all of this. I need the wisdom of knowing the best thing to do for Reagan.

And Reagan needs to lose his fear of pooping on the potty.

God, please help us.

Mighty Texas Dog Walk

David, Reagan, and I joined my sister, Colleen, and her dog, Ruby, in the Mighty Texas Dog Walk on Saturday. There were THOUSANDS of dogs there, and Reagan had a great time checking out all of the pooches.

It was a 3 mile walk around downtown Austin. It was kind of warm, so the dogs were getting pretty hot and tired. There were 3 water stops for the dogs, but we don't think that was enough. Luckily we were walking near the "lake" so the dogs could take dips in it on one or two occasions.

Ruby did an excellent job, and she received a medal. Plus she totally raked in the loot before the walk. I think she left the walk with 4 tennis balls, 2 frisbees, free dog food, and tons of free dog treats!

Back To School

I'll probably use that post title again in a couple of months.

I am no longer just a mom. I am a third grade teacher again!

After interviewing last Thursday morning, I was offered a teaching position at the brand new Westside Elementary School in Leander ISD. I was able to think about the possible position all of last weekend, and David and I decided that I should take it if it was offered to me.

The school/district/principal all seem to be a perfect fit for me and an answer to my prayers. Originally I wanted to teach in Round Rock...and ideally at our neighborhood school. But after thinking more about it, I decided to also apply to Leander (which is the school district west of us). We will more than likely move in a couple of years, and we could possible move to Cedar Park/Leander. And even if we don't, I am very, very happy with LISD.

The school is in the process of completing construction. This is the second time that I will work in a brand new school, and I really loved the experience in the past. There is extra time and work you have to put in, but it is all worth it~~having a brand new classroom, with brand new furniture, bonding with a brand new staff, etc. I saw pictures of the school in Michigan on what our school plan is based on, and I am just really excited about it! The rooms are large, and the teacher's desk is built into the wall so it doesn't take up classroom space. There are built in work areas in the hallways (which aren't really hallways) so kids have a place to work with each other outside of the classroom. PLUS there are windows in the classroom to look into the hallway so you can keep an eye on those kiddos. The classroom doors are double doors~~which is just a nice touch.

I really can't wait to get into my classroom!

A few days ago I was very torn in my feelings. And there is still a small part of me that is sad because of this huge change in my family's life. But I am really looking forward to doing something that I love doing.

And Reagan's going to love his new preschool!

He Gets It From Me

Reagan got new shoes today.

"Why?" you ask. "Didn't he just get some a couple of months ago?"

Because he asked for them.

He asked specifically for "light up shoes".

If you don't know me personally, or if you don't see my kid regularly, you might not be so shocked at the new light up shoes. Those of you who do see Reagan quite often may be wondering what has happened to me. I tend to dress Reagan pretty preppy. Spiking his hair (and even his current buzz cut) are things that at first went against my nature. I thought I would never get him light up character shoes.

But he has them. And they're quite cute. And Reagan LOVES them. With a passion.

So much so that when David went into Reagan's room to wake him up from his nap, the shoes (that were placed on his shelf where he could see them from his bed) were in bed with him.

Under the covers.

On his feet.

Mixed Emotions

1. Excitement.
2. Sadness.
3. Comfort.
4. Nervousness.
5. Usefulness.
6. Confidence.
7. Eagerness.
8. Dread.
9. Guilt.
10. Confusion.

All of these because of one little phone call this evening and me saying "yes".

I Say Hello

We can all say "goodbye" to our big, blue brick. Bye, old camera! You will not be missed.

Because my hints got heard!! That's right, my husband gave me a new camera for mother's day. Oh, it is fabulous. It is what I can an in-between-camera...because it isn't a point-and-shoot and it isn't a digital SLR. It is in between those two types, and I couldn't be happier. AND it has a 10x optical zoom, so make sure your nose hairs are trimmed if you're around me and my camera!

Here are some shots with the fantastic new camera taken on Mother's Day.



Making pancakes for breakfast.



Swimming at Aunt Colleen's. Reagan did a great job holding on the edge of the pool and kicking!



Playing with Ruby (Aunt Colleen's dog~~she's not in this picture) by the pool in the evening.

More Lives Than a Cat

A few weeks ago my handy man husband was going to replace a belt on his dying Jeep. Oh, who am I kidding? The Jeep is past dead. It has been on its last leg for quite some time. Remember this?

In the process of getting the old belt off, David broke a bolt. And although he is extremely manly and muscle-y, I think the fact that the bolt broke cleanly in half says something about the metal parts in this thing. The Jeep and its parts all are very, very crusty.

We picked up a new bolt at, of course, The Home Depot. The Home Depot is known for their auto parts section, right?

Here is video of the repairs. And I use that term very loosely.

Once it was fixed (two weeks after this was taken), the two boys went around the block. Reagan wishes that it had a radio in it.

The best part of this story is that David was trying to fix it (BEFORE the broken bolt) just to be able to pull out a couple of big bushes that we want to replace in the front yard. I will admit that I love watching the Jeep do that kind of stuff.

See? I still have a soft spot for the beast. But I'd still love to replace the monster with something a little nicer to look at.

Diamonds are nice to look at.

A Day at the Farm

Last Friday, Reagan and I spent the afternoon at Crowes Nest Farm in Manor, Texas. We had a great time. We got to see Blossom the cow get milked, tons of different kinds of chickens, huge turkeys, peacocks--one even had his tail all up and beautiful, a bobcat, prairie dogs, pheasants, horses, ostriches (there were one month old babies), goats, pigs, ducks, etc.

If you ask Reagan what his favorite part was, he'll tell you it was when he was shouting "Chickens for sale!!!!!" over and over and over and over. You will not be sorry that I missed getting that on video.

And since we still only have the digital camera from 1978, I just took my video recorder. So no pictures, just a movie. The best part of all of these clips in the movie is Reagan's face. He had a great time, and I love how he took everything in.

Not Just About Legos

There is a new favorite activity at our house. Legos. All three of us enjoy making things with all of those tiny bricks. I thought I'd capture it on video and post it on the blog for all to see.

What I didn't expect was for Reagan to tell David about the conversation we just had. Reagan and I had just gone to HEB, and we had to drive David's car because it was parked behind mine.

This may not be the funniest video to all of you, but it is an example of how free children are with their thoughts and words...