Tagged

I've been tagged...(thanks a LOT Emmy!)

So I'm supposed to list some random things about myself:

1) I have never been on a roller coaster. Unless you count the shamu kid-one at Sea World. But most people don't consider that a "real" roller coaster since it doesn't induce feelings of panic and possible vomitting. (I really like the shamu one!) For the life of me I can't understand why anyone would want to put themselves through that. Just watching roller coasters makes me queasy with fear. My friend Vivian has tried for years to get me on a roller coaster, she even made me sign a pact when we were teenagers saying I would go. I'll admit it - I NEVER plan to get on a roller coaster and I am perfectly fine with breaking that committment (sorry Vivian!).

2) I have read ALL TWELVE books in the "Wheel of Time" series by Robert Jordan - and the series isn't finished yet (the last book comes out next year). Most of you probably have never heard of these books unless you have teenage brothers or a nerdy husband, like mine :) Yes, they are Dan's books and he convinced me to read them which I'm glad I did, I really enjoyed them.

3) I can't whistle. Everyone's tried to teach me, but in the end always give up. I really cannot whistle. I think it's because I have a short tongue.

4) I have never been stung by a wasp/bee/related insect. I hope I never get to find out what that feels like!

5) I go by "Anna" but that's just a nickname. No, I am not telling my real name.

Well that's all I could think of at this late hour. Since I came up with 5 random things then I'm tagging 5 of my friends...

Karin, Michelle, Jennifer, Angela, & Katie - You have been TAGGED!!!

Visitors

What a week! We had two visitors come to our family this past week. The first was...(dramatic pause)...THE COMMON COLD! Natalie picked it up somewhere, perhaps she thought it would be a fun pet? And she brought it home without telling me! Then she gave it to Nathan, who decided to keep it around for a few days. Then somehow even Tyler got his hands on it! Don't get me wrong, I really do enjoy having guests in our home, but this one was not AT ALL gracious and would not leave! Fortunately Natalie and Nathan have kicked it to the curb, but poor Tyler is so sweet and hasn't learned how to really get tough and tell this cold it's got to go!

Meanwhile, we were UNlucky enough to get a second visitor...STREP THROAT! I don't know where I met it, but I must have made quite the impression because it decided to come home with me. Then two days later it got tired of me and decided it liked Dan better (fortunately it was too afraid of the kids to bother them, and it didn't want to compete with their visitor CC). We were smarter with this visitor when it came to asking it to leave - ANTIBIOTICS!! I was so happy to start mine and get some relief, even though I have to take them 3 times a day for 10 days. That's 30 pills! (and for those of you that don't know, I detest taking pills). Dan got some meds too - take 2 pills the first day then 1 a day for the next 4 days. Yep, that's right - only 6 pills!! I admit it, I was pretty jealous.

So now we're all back to feeling better and we can finally enjoy this BEAUTIFUL fall weather we're getting! Finally it's not 100 outside, and there's always this nice cool breeze. It's time to start going to parks again and of course go CAMPING!! Our favorite family activity! And hopefully we won't have any more visitors (of the germy type at least) for awhile now. :)

San Antonio Trip

Our friends, the Bludorns, invited us to go with them to the temple this past weekend. We decided to stay the night in San Antonio so we could make it a fun weekend getaway, and boy it sure was! Dan used his Radisson points to get us all *Free* hotel rooms at the Radisson downtown. It was perfect because it had a pool for the kids to swim in while we were at the temple. Then afterwards we took the hotel shuttle van to the Riverwalk for some delicious Mexican food and ice-cream. The kids (and adults) loved it! Our kids really get along well with the Bludorns' kids so we actually got to have adult conversations while they all played - it was exactly what we needed!
On our drive back up to Austin we stopped in San Marcos to go to our old Kyle ward. It was so fun seeing all our old friends, as well as how HUGE the ward has gotten- Holy Cow!! Natalie was thrilled we were going to church with her friend Emma, and of course was glued to her side for the entire 3 hours.
Our last stop after church was my parent's house for a family get-together to celebrate my FIL, Richard's, birthday. We were pretty worn out by that point, or should I say Dan and I were worn out, while the kids were still going strong! But we had a great time, especially seeing our newest niece Katie! She is the cutest little baby, we are so happy to have her in our family! Unfortunately, I was too tired to take any pictures of Katie or anyone else at the party - wish I had! Hope you had a great b-day Richard, that was some great ice-cream cake!



Thanks to everyone who made this past weekend so much fun, we really enjoyed spending time with all our friends and family. We feel so lucky to have you all in our lives, you're the best!!

Natalie's First Week of...

Pre-school!! Natalie is part of a pre-school co-op that meets twice a week, each week at a different parent's home. She's never been in daycare or gone to preschool, so I was a little nervous about how she would do. Natalie was not at all nervous but very excited and enjoyed her first week of preschool. I am so proud of my big girl!



It was also Natalie's first week of...

Dance class!! Yes, Natalie is finally taking a dance class - combined ballet & tap. This is the first time she's expressed any interest in dancing, so you can imagine how excited I've been getting ready for this! It was so much fun trying on her dance shoes and finding the *perfect* leotard.

Waiting for class to start
Just a little excited!
I tried to fix her hair cute, I think it worked :)
After class, showing off the dance bag we decorated for her

What a great week we had! I can't believe that Natalie is almost 5, and we are quickly approaching Kindergarten. I'm so excited that she will be involved in these activities this school year to help her get ready for REAL school, you know, the all-day kind. I'm glad that I still have her at home for another year though. :)

Labor Day - September 1

We enjoyed Labor Day with our friends, the Hodges, at the Rock'n'River here in Round Rock. Natalie and Nathan absolutely love swimming, so of course it's their favorite place to go! Even Tyler had fun splashing in the water for awhile. We then came back to our house for grilling and lots of yummy food. Thanks for coming guys, we had a great time!!

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

The other night I heard Nathan singing "Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are" over and over again. This is how I found him...

Apparently the wall needed some star decoration

"See mom?!" Nathan was so pleased with himself for 1) finding the star stickers in the first place, 2) making the wall look so great with them, and 3) not getting into trouble for doing it! (I could tell he was a bit wary about how I would react, I actually do try to let my kids have fun most of the time)

After we admired his "creativity" for awhile Nathan was just as happy to take the stars down and put them on paper "so we could save it" - I must say I love how Nathan's imagination is starting to shine through. He is my little STAR :)