Wink, wink

Max is big into copycatting lately. He particularly loves to wink. I could spend all day winking back and forth with him. He's too cute.

Cousin Camp

Blake and Sydney had a ball at ACU's KidQuest this week. We had the privilege of taking Hollyn (Matt and Sara's oldest) with us. The three of them were so well-behaved. I think they genuinely had a great time. My Nonnie and Poppie hosted us in their home. Big thanks to them. I'm sure their quiet retired life was completely turned upside down by a crazy woman and five kids! But the little ones had a great time watering the flowers and playing in the wonderland of a backyard. It was an exhausting week, but a fun one. I'm missing my "H" (my new nickname for Hollyn) already.:)

My kids love the stage

I know, imagine that... Both Sydney and Blake went to drama camp at our church last week. At the end of camp, they put on a show, a very shortened version of Jungle Book Jr. Blake was the daddy wolf and Sydney was the baby elephant. It was pretty cute. They both delivered their lines beautifully. Sydney, in particular, shows a passion for the stage. I'm not sure whether to be excited about that or to fear it.

We're moving...again

Well, it's official. We are moving to San Antonio by the end of the summer. Andy has accepted a position with Valero, and we're in a full sprint to get the house on the market and get moved before school starts.

The kids have taken it pretty well. Blake is just excited Andy will be working for a company he recognizes (you know that kid's crazy obsession with gas stations). Sydney is a harder sell, but she's beginning to get excited. Obviously, the younger two are completely oblivious.

I am excited about living in San Antonio, although I will be sad to leave our church family and neighbors here. The hardest part is just getting from here to there.

I would appreciate all the prayer I can get at this point. The perfectionist in me wants this house HGTV ready before it goes on the market (in less than a week), but it just isn't possible. We have to pick and choose the things that are most important and leave some things undone...which drives me INSANE. So please pray that the Lord gives me clarity and peace and patience. A little perspective would be nice too.

More from Brady, the Comedian

Brady: Mom, I go to airport? (Why, oh, why is the airport so special??!)
Me: No, not today.
Brady: I go to Disneyworld?
Me: Sorry, not today.
Brady: I go to beach?
Me: Nope.
Brady (getting frustrated): I go to Wal-mart?!!

Now that's a possibility!

Blakey Blake

So Blake turned 6 yesterday. We celebrated on Sunday. He took a couple of friends to the Astros game, along with their fathers. Then their families came here for dinner and cupcakes. We gave Blake a basketball goal, and the boys had a great time breaking it in. What began as "shooting a few" turned into a hybrid of basketball and football in which traveling and tackling were perfectly acceptable. Blake had a great time. Here are a few pics from the party.











Blake is an amazing boy who has made parenting him a breeze. He's low maintenance, funny and scary smart. Some of my favorite things about him are:

He has style. He actually came down the stairs in the below outfit last Sunday. (I didn't say it was good style:)

He loves gas stations.

He can beat Andy in a game of "match the Astro player to their number".

He loves to watch ballgames with his Daddy.

All things school-related come completely naturally to him (which is a good thing...it might make up for his lack of style:).

Other kids like him. This is, in my opinion, a rare thing for a kid as smart as he is. Really smart kids usually lack social skills. But I'm always amazed at the number of kids at school (K through 5) who know his name . Everyone seems to want to be his friend.

He's funny. Granted, sometimes he doesn't intend to be. But he keeps us grinning.

He prizes good behavior. Each day, he is dying to tell me who was on yellow and red. He's particularly happy when he managed to pull off a green day.

He's predictable. For instance, every time we sit down to a family meal, it takes him about 5 minutes to excuse himself to poop.

He's neat. His room is the cleanest room in the house. He hates it when friends come over and rip his room apart. He likes things to be where they go, and if he doesn't know where they go, he will hound me and hound me until I help him figure out a place to put them.

He's transparent. If he doesn't know what you're talking about, you can see it on his face. Then you can see the moment he catches on, as a little smirk crosses his lips and his eyes light up as if to say "Oh, I get it".

He adores his sister. Even though they fight from time to time, he's lonely without her, and he likes to be near her.

He loves his little brothers. He takes his job as big brother pretty seriously and tries to play with them and help out whenever he thinks of it.

He loves any kind of slapstick or body humor. Burping, tooting, etc. are all hilarious. And he loves America's Funniest Home Videos. I've never understood how watching people hurt themselves is funny, but he just giggles and giggles.

Oh, and his laugh. His laugh is infectious. I especially love it when he's a little tired and gets his giggle box turned over. He will laugh until it hurts, and it's the cutest thing in the world.

All in all, I am so blessed to be mom to a kid that I not only love, but I really like. Happy birthday, Blakey blake! I love you.

Soccer, Dancing and Donuts

This weekend was very busy for us. There are a few things I wanted to record, just so I don't forget them.

Blake had his final soccer game. He scored. He really picked the game up well. I'll admit that I've been surprised at how good he is, especially on defense. He's been playing with Upward, a Christian sports organization. His coach was awesome...so encouraging and gentle. It's been a great introduction to sports for Blake. I missed his final game to be at Emily's baby shower (Emily is Andy's cousin), but he didn't seem to miss me.

Sydney and I went to Em's baby shower with Gran, and enjoyed seeing her open all her goodies. She's a cute little preggo woman. This will be baby number one for her and her Matt, and they've already named him Carter. Cute, cute, cute. Emily was in high school when Andy and I married, and it's so hard to believe that she has a driver's license, let alone that she's married and having a baby!!

Sydney had a dance recital on Saturday night. She dances with a Christian performing arts center. I love it. I don't worry about skanky costumes, etc. The theme this year was creation. Sydney was a flower...a very beautiful flower.:) She danced wonderfully, and we all had fun watching her.

During one of the numbers, there was a boy dancing...the only boy that danced all night. Blake leaned over to Andy and said, "Hey, Dad. Is that a boy?" "Yes, Blake. Boys dance, too. Would you like to dance?" (Pretty enlightened for Andy, huh?:) Blake shot back VERY quickly, "NO!" I think we'll stick to soccer and baseball.

Yesterday, when Brady got up from his nap, he was in a very silly mood. Our conversation went like this:

Me: Hmmm. What should we have for dinner tonight?

Brady: How 'bout nonuts! (donuts)

Me: We're NOT having donuts for dinner!

Brady: How 'bout....nonut holes! (enthusiastically with a huge grin)

He ultimately settled for mac-n-cheese.:) Love that kid.