Finally

Now that the 2nd week of school is in full swing. (And just by the skin of it's teeth too for Stone. He was feeling awful all weekend long. He had a fever starting Friday evening and it lasted into Sunday. This morning he was ready to get out that door!) I can finally rest easy with a schedule in hand!

I signed both Sam and Stone up for the school's IZONE program this year today. It's an after school care program where the kids from school get to play games, watch movies, and do activities until their parents come get them sometime before 6pm. I'm feeling pretty guilty about this, but I needed to do SOMETHING. I am in such a bind. I am at my office until at least 3pm. Just when school lets out. There is just no way I can make it on time, GUARANTEED, every single day. I'm hoping they like it enough to not complain to me about it anymore than they already have. Breaks my heart. I just need time to do things, time to myself, and time for the gym.

Finally posting a few of the pics from the Simply Skin Med Spa event I was asked to photograph recently. I think they turned out pretty well. I was just a fly on the wall.

A lot of everyone just doing their own things and me snapping in the middle of it all. I hope they like them. Thanks again, Simply Skin, for having me! It was really fun!

Can't wait to get my lips done!
or maybe get that fat wrinkle between my eyes taken care of...
or maybe fill these laugh lines...
or maybe get this beard that I'm working on over here taken care of...

Richelle and I both needed a break it seems. We've been going pretty strong for some time now. It seems like I am at work every day (I know I'm not, but it seems like it) plus I am SUPER excited about starting to write some things for Dallas/Fort Worth Child Magazine! So hopefully I will find myself busy from doing that as well.

Where did we go?! What did we do!?

CASINO baby!
I snapped these...



Winstar World Casino in Oklahoma has been doing all of this construction. It's practically quadrupled in size since I first moved here to Texas and I think the outside looks pretty unique aside from trying to emulate some of the world's most recognizable landmarks. Fun stuff!

First Project

It was the second day of school and already we have a project to work on!
We like to knock these things out as soon as we get them so they don't get lost in the mess of everything else that we do daily.
So like I tell the boys, "Just because it says you have til (fill in time here) doesn't mean you wait until the day before to do it!"
Procrastination makes me worry! I'm not comfortable doing it. It makes for more stress than you need.

It was little project this time! A writing folder with a few neat little things to label on it like friends and family, what you like to do and interesting things that have happened to you. From what Sam tells me the folder sort of assists you with ideas throughout the year on what he can write about if he can't think of anything at the time.

Serious credit goes to these teachers that think up the BEST mind expanding tasks for kids to do EVERY SINGLE DAY!


And this gave me a smile when I saw it at pick up time!
HOG HEAVEN!
Maybe not as good as the Redneck Woman (previous post). I don't have any idea what this one means...
Is it for a sports team? Is it an inside joke? Is Kennedale, Texas REALLY Hog Heaven?!?

It's that Time Again

The first day of school is upon us! The boys have never been in such a good mood as this morning. They are just so excited about going to school and seeing all of their friends, working with their new teachers, buying lunch on Fridays and learning new things! Really they are!...On the way to school this morning Sam was telling Stone and I all about how this year he is going to learn all of his multiplication tables!
Alright Sammy! I cannot wait to see!



Remember when you were little?
The first day was so special partly because you finally got to take out all your new things and wear them. The boy's school is a dress code school (which I totally agree with and love) so the clothes are kind of same ole same ole, but this year, they got their first pair of JORDAN's. They'd been wanting them since basketball season last year!

This was a bigger deal than you may think and for those couple of moments this morning when Stone thought they weren't going to fit, it was just like TORTURE!

and Slimer from Ghostbusters backpacks!


Can't wait to hear all about it boys! I'll see you at 3:00PM.
5 1/2 hours left...

Chopsticks

We ate at Ton's. Its this great Mongolian grill thing. Stone was so cute trying to use the chopsticks. He eventually decided it wasn't for him since he could barely get it on a fork!
Both of them are better at it than I am. I am so not cultured!
Heaven knows I need to put the fork down

To Stone, his fortune read: "You are going to the store to get a surprise."
I took them to Target and bought them some wrestlers.

My fortune read:

I am taking it for what it says.

After finishing up some school shopping we went for some well deserved manis and pedis!
Sam especially loved it.
Stone was trying to figure out how he could get one of those chairs in his room at home, but didn't enjoy having to have his pedicure done by a man and refused the manicure.

Here's to Dreaming in Color Tonight!

I was asked and given the opportunity to photograph Simply Skin Medical Spa in Mansfield, Texas at their "Champagne on Ice and Everything Nice" event. It was very fun! The place is beautiful and everyone on staff was so professional and sweet. Thanks for having me Simply Skin!
***I hope to be able to sit down to edit on Monday. I'll post some pics then.

Shackler's Revenge

The boys LOVE Rockband.

If I let them, they would play morning, noon, and night. It would never end. They would play it while eating breakfast, in the shower, feeding the dogs, cleaning their rooms, while they read books, and while they swam in the pool. They would take the guitar and drum sticks to bed with them every evening when they finally passed out from Rockband Exhaustion. (I know the condition exists because I can barely get through one song on the drums-It's some work!)

Thank goodness I am not willing to let that happen. When school starts it is back to the old routine...

• No games during the school week.
• Bedtime at 8pm

and their absolute favorite...

• Lawn Biscuits every Saturday (use your imagination here)

Anyway, the boys have discovered this little girl Piper, at Piper's Picks and now have this "YOUTUBE kid star" idea in their heads. So when the whole band could be together, Daphne, Sam and Stone, I told them I would record them and put it up.

I am a woman of my word.

This is going to be the best to watch when they're older...

On vocals, Sam

and Stone!