stuck in

yesterday we were stuck inside. lee had been pestering me to keep the store closed. they keep saying it is going to be bad. when i woke up yesterday i heard the sleet hitting my windows. plus they had closed pantex. if they didn't want people going to pantex then who in their right mind would go to a scrapbook store. panhandle by the way did not cancel school. i think we were one of the few places that didn't, but they did let all the kids go at noon. that meant that lee went to pick up tayte at 11 and then had to be back up there at noon to get baylee. lee did manage to go the the grocery store and taylors after picking up both kids because he forgot something at both stops the first time.

so, since we were stuck inside all day i got a lot of things done: washed 1 load of regular laundry, 4 loads of sheets and put them back on the beds, cooked 2 meals (both of them without meat-that was tough lee and i really wanted stew), watched grey's anatomy with lee, played board games with the little boys, and spent hours in lego hell. i have put this blasted thing together 3 times now. i think it took me a good 6-8 hours, i swear it has a million pieces and we are only missing like 6 this time. it is going on a shelf never to be taken down again, so help me.

today, as everyone has said the snow was short lived. we went to amarillo for a fundraiser (sorry, rebecca i didn't know about it when i talked to you). and spent a couple of hours at jump-n-jive. the boys really had a good time after being cooped up all day yesterday. we took archer with us and some of the people kept looking at him and then they would see payton and that really freaked them out. baylee got his face painted camouflaged and the guy who did it was pretty good. tayte found the biggest slide and spent the majority of the time there. payton and archer both stayed at one place for 2 minutes and then moved on to the next thing. lee and i chased the 2 little ones around. archer kept telling every kid "no no" when they went where he was going. we left with one 3 fits, 1 cookie, 3 brownies, 1 bag of cotton candy, 7 hot dogs (8 if yu count the one that fell), and no owies, not to bad if you ask me.

one of the 3 fits. he is gonna love that one later in life. or is it me that will love it later in life?

this is the little slide that tayte found, not the one he spent most of the day. the best was when he put is hood on and went down the slide 50 times that way. he was yelling "cannonball" we hear that a lot at our house.

baylee was a great big brother at jump-n-jive. he kept helping payton up this slide as many times as payton wanted.

payton would yell cannonball and go head first down this slide, with baylee quickly following and crashing into him.

here is archer he really loved this bouncer. i didn't post the picture with his fit.

we had to hurry home so we could play in the quickly melting snow. we usually have snow long after everyone else's has melted away, but not today. it was all melting fast.

camo baylee throwing snowballs at lee (i think this could be the first ever camo painted snowball fight, he got painted for war.)

lee getting one of the boys.

lee had thrown a snowball at lee and if fell in baylee's hood.

here is tayte throwing a snowball at lee. i love to see tayte smile. when he smiles you just really see the joy.

payton showing me his snowballs. he has been wearing this hat a lot lately and it cracks me up. one minute he has it down like this over his eyes and the next he has it up resting on his head.

payton and tayte going at it. i think they are so close in age that they don't remember life without the other and they do so much together. lee and baylee were at it and these two went off on their own and took a slower approach to snowball fighting.

we didn't stay outside long. the wind was still freezing. but we all had fun and that is what matters.

tara

waiting

i am patiently waiting for lots of things. today, though i am waiting for the blizzard that is about to hit us.

it is hard form me to believe that we are about to be bombarded with snow. the sun has been shining all day, it is warm. yes, every person that has walked in the store today has mentioned the snow. colorado is covered, kansas is blanketed. really it has to run out sometime. i am hoping that it runs out before it hits us. i am also annoyed with the fact that aisd closed school before a single flake fell. really... really. i worked for the district and remember walking to my classes in snow. i am annoyed by that. i hope it snows 2 flakes and then is done.

tara

i have been busy

first of all i can't believe how much time has passed since my last posts. we have been super busy in this house and i just haven't taken the time to post anything.

last weekend i hung out with some friends and had a blast. we spent the entire time scrapping, talking, and just plain having the best time. i really needed to get away and get some scrapping done. rachael was giving me a hard time because i was abandoning my kids. first, i know their father is completely capable of caring for them. so i never worry about them while i am gone. secondly, i spend the entire time surrounded by pictures of them so i am constantly thinking about them. thirdly, i firmly believe that when i get a break like that i come home ready to be more patient with them and therefore a better mother.

i got 27 pages done. that is a lot for me. i was sooooo happy with several of my pages. so here are my favorites. i apoligize the lighting in the room was not the best so these are not the best pictures (one day i will invest in a scanner, but until then these will have to do). i hope you enjoy these pages as much as i do. and yes, some of these pictures are old.

tayte swinging in our backyard. the blue letters were just extras i was trying to use up i saw this idea in a magazine and liked the look.

this photo is lee, baylee, tayte, grandma, and me at the farm a couple of years ago.

baylee's suit(tuxedo as he calls it) for his first communion

baylee drew dad a picture while he was in the hospital. he put on it remember the good times and the picture had the two of them fighting with lightsavers (that is what baylee calls them).

baylee read this and i asked him if i say any of these things. "like everyone of them."

i always wonder what babies and little kids think.

again sorry about the colors it doesn't really do the pages justice.

tara

lee

he is...

• the man i was supposed to fall in love with.
• the one i will spend the rest of my life with.
• the reason my life is complete.
• the father that i want for my children.
• the provider of many things.
• the caring compassionate person that all people should strive to be.
• the man i hope my children become.
• the one who has helped me through many things all these years.

he is one year older.

happy birthday.

i am a better person because i met you 14 years ago today. i love you forever and a day.

tara

when i die....

as time goes on there are things that bug the fire out of me and i want it to be known that there are certain things i don't want.

1. if i should die on the road do not put flowers or crosses on the side of the road. please do not make all my places traveled be referenced by the last spot. that bugs me.
2. do not put rip tara on your car with shoe polish. if you feel the need to put my name on your car (which i hope you don't) at least use some type of vinyl so it isn't on there halfway and washed partly when it rains.
3. also i probably will be scared to death. i don't want to die alone so please be loud and let me know you are there. i hate the quite.

these are the big ones and know this... i will come back and haunt you if you do any of these.

tara

pokemon fever

i thought pokemon died years ago, but i am sadly mistaken. pokemon has taken over this house. it is an obcession that infects all three little boys. it is sad many of them know the names of several of the pokemon.

the other day baylee was telling me something about pokemon. this is what i got:

....evolves......level......i can't believe he isn't evolved yet......that is so crazy....evolves....i need to catch.....and his super powers are....

when i told baylee i didn't understand anything he was saying he looked at me rolled his eyes and then spoooookkkkkeeee veeeeeeerrrrrrrryyyyyy slllllllooooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyyy to his idiot mother and went through the whole thing again. "now do you understand?"

no. but i at least listened like i cared and that is what matters to him, right?

tara

maybe just maybe

i tried pharmacy school-correction, i had thought about pharmacy school. i started the pre-reqs for pharmacy school and decided that chemistry and i were not friends. so i went on to other things.


see how much fun he is having. maybe....

the other day we were at the pharmacy, tayte and his friend mackie were playing pharmacy. for those of you who don't know mackie's dad bought the pharmacy. mark and lee grew up together and have known each other their entire lives, so it is fun that their kids will have a similar experience.

anyway, i hope that maybe one day... maybe one day he will follow in papa's footsteps. he reminds me so much of my dad as it is.

maybe tayte will be a grown man counting pills for real.

and they were counting mints, not pills.

tara

what is the deal?

i don't know what it is. if he hears the water running in he comes. does he feel the need to go in there while i take a bath? does he think i will get lonely and need someone to talk to while i bathe? well tonight i was really in for a surprise.

he decided he would help me get undressed. i have been doing that for a while now and i can handle it on my own. but he insisted he help.

and this is the night my 2 year old undressed me.

didn't see that one coming did you? he kept saying "heppa you." apparently he is more like his daddy than i thought, trying to get my clothes off.

but he did pick them off the floor and put them in the dirty clothes so i was excited about that. and no there are no pictures to document this event in our lives.

tara

"i had to go to the post office"

tayte had a rough day today at school. they were playing on the playground someone started throwing sand then some kid threw a rock. this is what happened according to tayte:

some kid threw a rock at me. his name starts with a c.
and it hurt. that's why you don't throw rocks.
and i had to find my teachers, because there was blood.
i was crying.
and i had to go to the post office.

according to his teacher she doesn't do blood and grabbed him and ran to the nurse's office. he was crying but was very brave. she kept telling me she was sorry. i told her that if it had to happen to someone's kid she would want it to be a parent like me. that is when she told me that was what she was thinking because with 3 boys i was probably used to blood. i was thinking more along the lines that i am laid back and realize that 4 year olds throw stuff and eventually someone will get hurt. so i don't really throw fits about my kiddo not being watched.

tayte is doing fine now and it was a good thing that nurse clay was at the "post office".

tara

chicken legs

aunt rachael said, "look at those chicken legs!"

payton's reply, "no, not chichi legs, apple feet."

no clue what that means but it was too funny.

tara