Just a Girl and Her Umbrella

Delaney...my fashion Diva, is seen by our neighbors on almost a daily basis with her pink Hello Kitty umbrella. She uses it like a parasol. I don't know how she knows to do that...instinctively I guess. She rides around on her tricycle with it. She rides her bicycle with it. She has someone chauffeur her around in the Disney Car while she sits in the passenger seat...holding the open umbrella in one hand and waving to everyone on the street with the other.

Her umbrella died this month. I don't really know how, but there are spokes poking out, and we would rather someone not lose their eye, so Todd bought her another one today. He took the girls to Payless to buy Kaytlynn some cheap white dress shoes...he walked out buying 4 pairs of shoes and an umbrella. They are sneaky creatures, aren't they!!!

So she now has a black High School Musical Umbrella. We will see if she still feels like a princess with this one.

My Parents Just Had to Buy a White Car...

So...here's the story...

In 2001 My parents bought a brand new Blue 2002 Toyota Sienna Blue mini-van. In 2004, I had Delaney, and my Corolla died on I-35 North, so Todd and I bought a 2002 Blue Toyota Sienna. In 2005, my sister bought a Blue 2006 Sienna when she had Gracie.

I am assuming you are bright enough to see the pattern here. It was actually all by accident. We happen to be a "Toyota" family. My sister also has a Toyota Avalon, and we have a Corolla. My dad sort of "raised" us to like Toyotas.

Now the color...was really a coincidence. My parents liked the color blue, so they got it. We bought ours used...so we didn't even choose. My sister actually wanted a different color, but for some reason couldn't get it when she wanted the car...so blue was her second choice.

The blues are even different hues...and we didn't notice it, until one day we look out in my driveway and see 3 blue Toyota Sienna's. My neighbors probably think we are pretty wacky, but we thought it was hilarious...and would joke about it each time the family got together.

My parents don't like to drive cars with more than 100,000 miles on it. They think it is going to break down on a lonely highway and a gang of thugs are going to do who knows what to whom when they see them stranded on the side of the road. Their van has not been giving them any problems, and I tell my dad that is why you buy a Toyota...so it will go and go and go. His response. It has gone and gone and gone! So my dad went and got a brand new...you guessed it!!! Toyota Sienna. Except this time, it is WHITE!

The only thing I can guess here is that maybe we are starting a new pattern, because our relatively new Corolla is white, as well. But I am going to miss the see of blue parked in the driveway.

My Sister's First Long Visit...

For anyone that knows me well, you know that either I am sick, my girls are sick, my sister's sick, or one of her babies are sick. My kids LITERALLY know and love my mother's emergency room Dr....sad huh? One or both get bronchitis or pneumonia every time we visit (except for this past Christmas...YAY!)

Well God blessed us and made sure everyone was feeling well and Lisa, Jacob (9), Emily (6) and Gracie (3) came for 10 solid days of fun. We went to the Children's Museum, The Aquarium, hung out and watched movies, did crafts, and had a VERY Belated Birthday party for Delaney (they weren't able to come). We took the kids to get their pictures taken, and took them all to Target and let them all choose any toy they wanted. We let the kids swim several times,and we went to Lisa's old neighborhood on Brockhampton and ate at the pizza place named Pizzini's that our family used to eat at when we were little. We also went to look at her old Elementary school.

We went to New Caney and looked at the house that I grew up in and just drove around...everything had changed! I hope to go to Corinth and Denton in late July!

We really had a ball. It was exhausting, but so much fun. Both sets of kids were so sad to leave...even after 10 days, so it was definitely a success.

My Birthday and Kaytlynn's Graduation

May 29th, 2008 was a big day at our house.

First of all...I turned 34. I woke up to the phone ringing at 6:45 and listened to my dad sing Happy Birthday. I don't quite know how I feel about it. Sometimes, in fact most of the time, I like my life more now that I am a little older. I did the math though, and realized I am probably middle aged now. I will be pretty lucky if I make it to 68, so its a little depressing to think that its half-way over!

I only worked until Noon so that I could go and see Kaytlynn's graduation at Spring Baptist. They were so darn cute! They sang their favorite songs...Oh Won't You Be My Valentine(Kaytlynn's favorite), Jesus Loves Little Me (my favorite) and a cute little song called A Tuti Ta! They also performed a cute short musical called "Obedient Bee" and then left the stage and came back in their cute little cap and gowns!!! They looked so adorable! Before they received their diploma they said what they learned in Kindergarten. Kaytlynn learned about "seasons". Ms. Lopez, her original teacher, came to give them their diplomas. It was really nice to see her again, since she left mid-year to fight breast cancer.

After the ceremony, we went back to their classrooms for a class party and boy were the kids WILD!!! As we were walking to the car, Kaytlynn smiled at me and said "Today was a really good day at school...we didn't have to do ANY WORK!" Out of the mouths of babes!

We went home and took a 2 hour nap, while Todd went back to work. Later the girls gave me my cute birthday card and Kaytlynn gave me bath salts and Delaney gave me a bag full of goodies from Bert's Bee's. They sang Happy Birthday to me. I also got to speak to my sister and mother.

It was really a great day.