Well, it has been awhile... I'll try to not be too long-winded catching you up on our news.
To start, the kids are noticing that mom is spending more time in the kitchen than she used to... so once in awhile they decide that some of their men need to do some recon on mother and make sure everything is OK. Luckily, no men thus far have become MIA in a salad or stew.
These pictures are weeks old now, so I don't even remember the name of this recipe... but Joe gave it a thumbs-up!
And this was more simple-fare, but the kids enjoyed the more simple "noodle" supper the next day.
Yeah... so some people look in our front yard and think "Hey! Those cool parents got a huge tractor tire to make a sand box for their kids!" Nope! This dad got himself a huge tractor tire so he he could roll it and throw it around! He actually just was finished rolling it home from the tire place when this picture was taken. Talk about someone who has simple pleasures! Just give the guy a tire...
And, of course, we had to do the classic in-the-tractor-tire pictures!
The Sunday before Thanksgiving we had our friends, the Morris', over for the afternoon for some play time while the men put their heads together figuring out the best way to build a workout platform in the back yard.
And the now well known picture of David reaching for the camera...
...followed by "shots by David".
He actually got some decent ones of Kiley and mom!
A few action shots of Dad putting the first touches on the platform... using the pool as a support.
Well, by the time the Morris' had to leave, the platform was far from finished, but a plan for completion was in action, so Joe was pleased. And, the current state of the platform was a perfect little kid dancing square!
And yes, sometimes I actually am a bit mean and don't give the camera to David when he asks...
Daddy has become the master bather as of recently, and he decided to take a couple shots of the bathers one night. He says that the little one is quite like his mother in his love of the water. He is "swimming" in the water from the instant he gets in to when the last drops go down the drain.
I actually remember the name of this one, because it was so simple. This is Chocolate, Banana, Graham Cracker Ice Box Cake... and Joe thought is was Heavenly!
On the Monday before Thanksgiving, I was trying to have a relaxing day before hitting the kitchen hard for two days in preparation for the week, so the kids and I went to the parade field on post and had a nice walk. The kids each brought a bouncy ball with, so they stayed at the "bandstand" (at the far center of the field) and played while I enjoyed the beautiful day and walked around a few times. It was great!
Well, I missed a few days here... no pictures. I was a bit distracted both with cooking for the week so that we could just throw things in the oven and have a meal ready... but mostly because I started showing signs that I was once again miscarrying on Tuesday morning. To make a long story short... over time it became obvious that this was not just a scare, and Patrick Magdalene's passage to Heaven was affirmed on Friday. Unfortunately, this second precious little baby of ours stopped developing much earlier than Hector Alida, so we were unable to see an ultrasound with a heartbeat. We were deeply saddened by our little one's passing, but everything is grace, so we praise God for His wisdom and continue on down the path He has lain before us.
And that path included my amazing parents and my brother driving two full days in the cab of a U-Haul truck all the way to El Paso so that we could both spend Thanksgiving with them and once again acquire all of our worldly "stuff" (read "junk")! Ahhhh!
But... we quickly unloaded the HUGE truck and forgot about everything that was on it while family was still here to enjoy for a few days. And those days all started early in Bumpa and Grandma's bed!
My pictures of our time together are fairly scarce, so if you want to see more, you may have to check out my mother's blog... sorry!
I did get a picture of possibly the worst tasting (it was good, but just didn't compare to the other meals), but most elegantly and interestingly served meals. I don't remember the name of the stew, but it was served in small pumpkins, which you would eat along with the stew! I had been excited for a long time to try this out! I might try it again in the future, but possibly with a different stew, and not after stuffing my guests at a huge meal before it!
Due to mom being laid-up and the need for distractions, the kids enjoyed a few movies in their room while family was here. Of course, David felt the need to wear a safety helmet for the occasion... that bed was pretty high off the ground. Good thinking, D!
The kids did get up every morning pretty early to snuggle in bed with Bumpa and Grandma... in fact, so early that Therese fell back asleep with Uncle Johnny at one point!
Yikes! David got the camera during one of the early mornings!
I don't know what happened to the settings on the camera for these... they are extra tall and skinny... but anyways... We took advantage of having mom here to try and take some family pictures... here are the results. First, mom and the kids:
Joe was AWOL for the moment and the Minnesotans were itching to leave, so we gave in and took a timed family picture without him...
An attempt to get a kids and Bumpa picture...
Yay! Daddy got home just in time to say good-bye to the folks and to jump in to a few family pics!
Yikes! After the family left, we were left with the realization that we have TONS of "STUFF" to unpack/get rid of! Ahhh!
Joe did the honors of documenting a few of our "piles"... as a warning... these pictures are graphic and may cause nightmares. At least they did for me!
The "playroom"
The "back yard"
Joe was sidetracked by this cute kid on a girly bike.
Back to the "back yard"
OK... enough of that!
On to another bit of unfinished business filling up our lives: Joe's workout equipment and platform. He is VERY excited about how this will all work once it is put together... but until then... this is what the other part of our back yard looks like:
And once the Minnesotans left, Joe spent an entire day wrestling with and figuring out his platform. Here it is in the first stages:
And his helper:
His make-shift work bench:
And many hours and innumerable dropped nails later: the ALMOST finished project! He was so excited! I don't think that anyone who saw the supplies he was working with and heard his desires for them thought he could actually make this platform perfectly level on such an uneven surface. Ladies and gentlemen, HE DID IT!
So... we are slowly starting to open up those scary boxes of stuff, and what did we find? FLIGHT SUITS!
We told them to do "tough" faces for this one:
OK... so this is a bit of a story. While I've been unpacking boxes, I've always had a box near by that Therese knows is for the "thrift shop". So... once in a while I'll explain my putting something in that box by saying "this isn't nice enough to keep." So... later in the afternoon yesterday, Therese and David were in the other room finding all sorts of new toys to play with, and Therese comes over to me in the kitchen and announces with a grimace on her face "Mom, this isn't nice enough to keep". I look down, and see her holding her absolutely favorite toy from when she was an infant: her Chickies! Yes.. they have seen better days - who wouldn't be a bit worn after having a young girl drag them around and gnaw on them 24/7 for months! I have put huge amounts of "stuff" in the "thrift shop" box so far... but I couldn't agree with Therese on this one. The chickies stay! And after hearing the story behind them, she agreed with me.
And here is yesterday's HUGE accomplishment: the play room!
And a bit of order in the kitchen!
Well... that is all I have, and tomorrow is another big day of unpacking. In fact, the forecast says that we will be the recipients of a very rare winter storm on Friday, so I have a immovable deadline for when I need to be through all this "stuff"! So... I am off to bed to rest up for another day of very scary unpacking! Good thing I have a couple very willing and excited sidekicks to keep my spirits going! Oh... and if you are in the El Paso area and want some "stuff"... I feel a garage sale coming on!
Love, Us.
