A Good Laugh At Myself

I promised the family some updated pics of the house but first I have to tell you this story that had me cracking myself up.

For those of you who know me you know I LOVE animals. If I lived alone I would probably be one of those crazy animal horders with 135 cats and dogs. Anyway, we went to Lubbock for Christmas and I was coming back to my bro-in-law's house and drove by a big chocolate lab laying dead in the street. Next to it was this filthy pink towel as if someone maybe tried to cover it up. I felt so bad....some kid was going to find out his dog died just days before Christmas. It was heartbreaking.

When I got back to the house I decided I was going to go for a run and had a plan. I would run up to the dog and cover it with the towel. As I was headed that way I grabbed two sticks so I could lay them in a cross shape on the towel. I just figured that when the owners found the dog they would at least know that someone cared. Maybe it would help ease the pain just a little.

I was getting nervous as I got closer because when I had driven by I could tell the dog was really mangled. I just took a deep breath and decided no matter how gross it looked I could do it for the sake of the dog.

I ran up towards it and thought "Man, that's a really big dog." As I got closer I thought "What is that? Those aren't dog feet. They're PIG feet!". I just burst out laughing because I was standing in front of an enormous wild boar with it's guts hanging out right in the middle of the neighborhood! I felt kind of silly but thought "Well, I came all this way and it is an animal.....". So, I covered this disgusting wild pig with a pretty pink towel and laid a cross on it and then high tailed it out of there. I hope no one saw me because they would think I was nuts! I swear that thing had to weigh at least 250 and it was U-G-L-Y!

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Here are a couple of pictures of the entry chandalier and the kitchen light. My computer has been acting up and I just discovered my camera software was accidentally deleted. So these are from my phone--sorry they're so small! I'll have to fix it all tomorrow and I'll get some better photos up of house and kids.

When It Rains It Pours (no pun intended)

For those of you just discovering my blog after receiving a Christmas Card you can just skip this post. I don't want you to be too grossed out.

So, our rental house has ONE thing in it that is new--the living room carpet (I cannot even imagine how awful it must have been for my weird landlord lady to have it replaced. Homicide maybe?). Anyway, I came into the room yesterday morning and Connor was throwing up ALL over it. Like the kind with projectile splatter--You mom's know what I mean. As with every kid puking incident he immediately felt better and was jumping around and I was stuck cleaning it. After using an entire bottle of Spot Shot and every towel in the house I almost have it out.

Reminder: Just because it is Saturday, do not let your kids have as much Coco Krispies cereal as they want.

Later for dinner we went to Chili's. Charlotte was being extremely loud since she has now found her voice. She likes to yell but has no volume control. We kept apologizing to the people next to us. They were very nice and said they thought it was "funny" because it was someone else's kid. About 5 minutes later Connor started puking all over the table, floor, himself, me. I kept saying to Aaron, "GIVE ME YOUR SALAD BOWL!". He just sat there in horror. The nice people next to us had just gotten their food. I was thinking it was going to be like a Saturday Night Live skit where everyone starts puking.

We grabbed the first waiter to walk by and said, "We need all our food to go!". He looked at Connor and practically ran off. He definately didn't have kids. I cleaned up as fast as I could and grabbed Connor and got out of there. We even left his shoes under the table. I think people were watching me as we walked out thinking, "Look at that mom! She didn't even make her kid wear shoes in a restaurant!".

We made it out to the car and Connor started crying because he wants his pizza! Are you kidding me!

Aren't you glad I didn't post pics! :) haha.

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, that's right----I Ran the Rock!

The White Rock Half Marathon that is. I really wasn't prepared (the farthest I had run was 9 miles) but since I had paid my money and wanted the shirt I figured I'd check it out. Of course, once I got there, the Porter in me kicked in and then I decided that I would feel like a loser if I walked any of it (not that you are a loser if you walk, because there are plenty of people who do, but I tend to set ridiculous expectations for myself).

So I ran the WHOLE thing and about fainted when I was done. My final time was 2:42 which was the same time as the top women's marathoner. I felt great until mile 6 when something happened to my hip but I prayed, ran through it, and worked it out. By mile 10 I was really hurting but you can't really stop if you make it to 10 so I kept on trudging. Believe me, I was trudging! By the time I made it to the finish line I was so glad to be done I didn't even look at my time!

Aaron brought the kids down for the finish. There were so many people that I couldn't see them but I heard Connor yell "Mommy!".

My immediate reaction upon finishing was that I would never do that again. But with a few days under my belt I think it has turned into a sick addiction and I have decided to do it again next year. Marathon maybe???? Hmmmmm.

Didn't Know I Could Paint!

My friend Carolin signed us up for an art class. It was great to get together with her since we don't see each other as much as we used to. I think our canvases turned out great! The teacher was really awesome and explained everything step by step. I love all the color!

This swirl is my favorite so I had to show a close up.

House Update

The fireplace is in and I really like it. It will look even better when the cedar mantle is put up. I like the rustic style but it also reminds me of a New Mexican style fireplace with the narrow top and the half circle hearth. It's like a little reminder of home.

Tile going in. Most people around here like wood so I can tell the neighbor ladies thought it was a little strange to do all tile but I love it.

They are extending our patio since it was so small. We didn't even ask but the head guy thought it looked ridiculous. Yea!!

Connor's World and Other Fun Stuff!

Oh, The Things He Says!

• For Charlotte's birthday I bid on and won a set of Madame Alexander dolls that were part of McDonald's Happy Meals a while back. One of them is Cinderella and Connor had never heard of her before. He kept asking what her name was and then I heard him say, "Don't worry Carla, the prince is coming."




• "Mom, was I born before you?"--"No silly, you were in my stomach"--"How did I get there?"--"God put you there"--(Frusterated) "But HOW did I get there!!??"




• I have talked to at least 3 moms up at school and the conversations go like this:

Me: Oh, really? I also have a 5 year old in Ms. Kim's class. His name is Connor.

Her: ARE YOU SERIOUS! (I'm thinking, "Oh, great, this can't be good"). My daughter (Kendall B, Kendall T, Riley, Bailey) is in love with Connor! She can't even speak when she sees him!

These girls are 4-5! What's ironic is that that I talked to Connor's teacher and she says the other boys get a little embarrassed by the girls but Connor has no idea what's going on.

Our SOOOOOO Awesome Christmas Tree

We literally do not have enough room in the rental house to put a tree so this is it. The best thing is that Connor thinks it's great! I love how kids his age don't care if something is big, or fancy, or expensive. I probably could have given him a stick with one ornament and he would be thrilled!

Continuing with the theme of how our house is so awesome....

This is the space between my desk and the living room (which is really just one area that also includes the eating area, kitchen, laundry "room"/closet, and front door). As you can see, the coffee table is being stored on it's side because there is not enough space in the living room area. Anyway, what I think this is really called is "the best boy play area ever"! What kid wouldn't love this? Maybe I'll hide there just to get away.

Attack of the Birds

In The Colony we do seem to have a bizarre number of grackels (sp?) but this is ridiculous. We went to Walmart last night at about 5:00 and I honestly have never seen so many birds at one time. The sound was so loud. They were sitting at least 20 at a time on every car and just kept coming and going in these huge waves. They were flying so low one almost hit my head. We stood in the parking lot for about 10 minutes just watching. I'm sure people thought we were weird.

Please Don't Call CPS

Yes, we played the trick on Charlotte that I'm sure every parent does at one time or another. You know, she had to have the lemon and would not stop screeching for it, sooooo......

And, finally, you know a dad is not new when you see this......way to multi-task Dude!

House Alert!

I just got back from the house and I am excited! I had no idea the brick and stone were done and then when I walked in we had stair railings and cabinets! Although we are also thinking, "Holy cow, we have to pay for this now!".

And, finally, one of my favorite parts of the house--Connor's & Charlotte's hiding place! I guess we can also use it as our tornado shelter. It's in my closet and I think the clothes will hide the entrance. How fun for a kid!!! (the smallest "door" part is about up to my waist)

A Whole Lot Going On

I seem to be blogging in big groupings lately. If I was dedicated and blogged every few days I probably keep up with it better. But....my kids are alive, fed, diapered, and I call that success!

Below is just some randon stuff:



Our Move

My mom in our old living room during the move out......goodbye Stratford Lane.

Charlotte's old room. She only got to enjoy my mom's paint job for 11 months :( Hey Mom, what are you doing in February??? Just kidding.

Keeping Charlotte contained during the move. Why are non toy items always more fun???

A Wedding

My new sister-in-law, Mandy, bro-in-law Jon, and dogs JoJo and Maxwell. They were married Oct. 23 in Lubbock.

I had not met Mandy until the night before the wedding but I really like her. We seem to have a lot in common and she is very easy to talk to. And liking dogs doesn't hurt! I'm sure we'll have a lot of good times together.

Connor was the ring bearer and later the mint distributor. It was funny because they kept sliding off the tray and then he would pick them all up and as soon as he stood up they would all fall off again!

Aaron was the best man and thanks to him (and White House, Black Market my new favorite store) I felt like the best dressed. Except for the bride of course!

Nana and Papa (Aaron's parents) in their finest!

Give me a "C", Give me an "O", Give me an "N", Give me another "N", Give me another "O", Give me an "R"! What does that spell? HYPER!!!!

Sorry, my drill team days took over there for a second.

If I had to pick any one picture to capture the life of Connor this might be the winner. All boy, 24/7/365 BABY!!!!

I always say if I had had calm, sweet Charlotte first I definately would have thought there was something wrong with him. Luckily, I didn't know any better. He's just a BOY. Love it!

Another strange way I found Connor sleeping the other night. I think the wool hat was my brother's???

Halloween

Charlotte of course had a great bumble bee costume thanks to my awesome friend, Erin. Connor kept telling me he wanted to be Bob the Builder which is what he has been for the last two years. Of course I was down with that!! Easy for me. Until the 31st when he did NOT want to be Bob the Builder so I borrowed a Superman cape and Batman mask from a friend (all we could come up with at the last minute). I told him he could be both super heros at one time (like a Hybrid Hero) but he backed out on the mask. So he basically wore an old Superman cape with a shirt that said "Backseat Driver". Wow, I really go all out for my kids costumes!

House Update

And now some updated photos of the house!! Yippee!

I was really hesitant about the brick since we didn't pick it but I LOVE it. It looks great with the stone. I can't wait to see it all done.

Standing in the kitchen looking into the breakfast area. Again, Connor lovin' life.

The backyard backs up to the neighborhood entrance which I wasn't sure about but I love it. We have the really nice wall plus no houses behind us.

Standing in the kitchen looking at the living room and upstairs.

This guy freaked me out. He climbed up the scaffolding, some guy from below handed him a 2x6 which he put in place by himself, and then he looked straight up and started measuring the ceiling. I would have lost my balance and killed myself. We have since been praying at dinner for all the workers safety!

Adios Padres! Boo hoo

It was SOOOOO nice having my parents here to help move. What really was better though was just having them here for help with the kids. They babysat for us several times so we could go out. Below are pics from the zoo and I got a WHOLE day to myself. I barely knew what to do!

An End to a Fun Season

It was really cold at Connor's last soccer game and I didn't bring a hat for Charlotte so I "MacGuyver-ed" it and made my own! (it's pants if you can't tell). If you don't know who MacGuyver is you are too young and I don't want to hear it.


Coach Aaron and Assistant Coach Paul with the team. They had a great season and really improved. A few were quite skilled from the start. Others improved from crying because they wanted the ball to actually kicking it!!!! And everyone got trophies!!

Charlotte's 1st Birthday

I'm sure every parent is shocked when their child turns one. Where did the time go? I think it must go even faster for the second one. Charlotte's first year was a blur--I guess because I couldn't focus all my attention on just her.

We had a great Minnie Mouse party at McDonalds. I had to force her hand into the frosting on the cake and she cried when we tried to make her eat it. She obviously is not living up to her middle name (Porter--for those of you wondering. We love our sweets).

Aaron's mission each birthday is to get the cake. I tell him the theme and the rest is up to him. I thought this was so cute. The "1" candle is the same one we used for Connor's first birthday. I am going to save it for when they are 10 and up. I'm sentimental like that.

Our old neighbors Mark & Pam. We miss seeing them everyday and not having a fireman/EMT next door for emergencies. We have needed his services many times over the years! You never know when your kid is going to disassemble a flashlight and need to have a sharp, circular part from the inside cut off his finger with bolt cutters while being held down and yelling "Get off of me!". Ahhh, good times. I could go on.....but why relive the horror?

My college friend Esther and daughter Alyssa.

The boys--Mark, Bert, Dad, and Aaron.

Our godchildren! Old neighbors Cael & Carter. We laugh because between the two couples we had all of our kids approx. two years apart and named them all with C's without planning it. Cael, Connor, Carter, Charlotte.

Notice the shirt. Aaron came home and said, "I found the perfect shirt for Charlotte to wear to her party!". I had to refrain myself from telling him I already had a PERFECT shirt, outfit really, for her. Mine had an embroidered cupcake with diamonds and said "Birthday Girl". The jeans had flower embroidery with matching colors. I mean, really, can you top that? Then he showed me--a shirt with Minnie Mouse's body and sleeves the same color as all the decorations! Ok. I am wrong sometimes :). I know it's shocking. Don't get used to it.

When Connor turned one Nana and Papa gave him Aaron's old rocking chair. When Charlotte turned one Gramma & Grampa gave Charlotte the rocking chair that my grandparents gave me when I was one. How awesome is that!!!! She loves it and hopped in and started trying to bounce to make it rock just like Connor did. Too cute.








Happy Birthday Charlotte!!! You are a little doll. We love you!!