Pic of the Day

By the light of the tree.

V is feeling good and actually went back to school this week. Thanks to everyone who was concerned. We're leaving for Disney World next week so I just want everyone to be well and in a good mood. I hate flying. Yuck. Vienne want's to "do something Christmas" so we're off to the Riverwalk to see the lights.

(I posted this a couple of days ago but I'm making it My Best Shot. 'Cause I said so.)

Gingerbread in the House

Today we visited the Bear Moon Bakery. We invited our friends to join us in decorating gingerbread houses. What a wonderful way to celebrate the holiday. The wonderful owner of the bakery laid out all the goodies and set the kids a decorating. They all truly took the job seriously. They had so much fun and we went home with works or childhood art. I really hope we can do it again next year. What do you think, Jen? We'll see how long these works of art last. They are just so yummy.

Daddy helping V. When she gave him permission to help.

What fun is decorating a gingerbread house if you can't taste it? No fun at all. Cutie pie Trevor.

Good thing we didn't have to clean up! What a blast the kiddos had. This last one will be My Best Shot for today. For more festivities head over to Picture This.

Main Street with our Buddies

Last night on Main Street was the Christmas parade. Lots of pretty lights, a high school marching band (currently, Boerne only has one high school. Until next Fall, when the second one opens. Won't be a small town anymore!), candy canes thrown at ya' smashing into pieces as they hit the ground. The kiddos sat so excitedly waiting to see Santa. It couldn't have been more fun because our wonderful friends joined us. Oh, and the weather here is whack. For those that are visiting, last weekend we went to Main Street it was 40 degrees. This weekend 77 degrees.

That's what Natalya had to say about that. Maybe Jen got a better picture of the kiddos all lined up in a row.

And THIS is what a Santa experience should be like. The girls saw Santa and the Mrs. walking in the street and ran right up to them. And this REAL Santa opened his arms and scooped them up! Then the Mrs. joined us and and mentioned how she "remembered me from when I was little." Sweet. Natalya asked for a camera and Vienne asked for a harp. I know. And Santa was sweating. The poor guy is used to the freezing North Pole and here he is in 77 degree weather.

(Trying to figure out why when you click the pictures to enlarge and open on another screen they are instead asking to save to disk. Apparently lots of people are having the same problem with Blogger.)


AND Seven Random Facts About Me. Miss Arizaphale has tagged me for a meme. I thought this was my first one but I then remembered that she has tagged me before. I never completed that assignment. She failed me that term and so I must redeem myself and beg for extra credit. Here are the rules to this one:

1. Link to the person that tagged you. Check.
2. Post the rules. Check.
3. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself. Will do.
4. “Tag” 7 people at the end of the post and include links to their blogs. No problemo.
5. Let each person know that you tagged them. Gotcha.

Here goes, 7 Random Facts about me. I will wake you up when it's over:

1. I was born in Thailand. My dad was in the Air Force stationed in Thailand. He met my mom and well, you know how it happens.
2. My favorite movie is Chocolat.
3. My sister and I once, when we were little, opened up every single present under the Christmas tree and then taped them back up. We did not get caught.
4. I taught ball room dancing. For less than a month. I hated it because I wasn't flirtatious like the other gals and that's what was expected. And most of the men that came in were old. OLD.
5. Growing up I always hated my name, Melody. It was so unique and I wanted the names that every one else had, like Michelle, Kim, Debbie (oh, man, are those name so typically 80's?)
6. I have a funky, long, second toe on my right foot. No, I will not include a picture.
7. I have two tattoos and want a third.

Now I tag:
The Honorary Indian, Mama's Boyz, Horizon Way Stories, Texas Cowgirlz, Princess Bishop , Golightly (she's visiting the Alamo City soon, makin' sure she's got street cred), and my sister Steph who doesn't have a blog but can do it in my comments . How do ya like that?

Oh Christmas Tree

We put our tree up last Monday and then decorated it on Wednesday. It turns out that we only have two boxes of ornaments here with us while the rest of the decorations sit in storage. I guess we figured that we could do without most of it for one year but the girls are remembering some stuff that we just didn't bring. They made the tree look beautiful. Even though there is a very heavy spot of ornaments in the front at the bottom. I love it so much I won't change it. It has their finger prints all over it.

(Do any of you smarties out there know how to make the pictures larger in Blogger? I mean larger than the "large" picture option they have.)

Santa the Grinch

He wasn't the jolliest of fellas but he sure was good lookin'. Tonight we took the Grands to the Main Street Boerne Christmas festivities. It was totally Christmas decked out with lights up and down, fake snow, Mexican hot chocolate, and 40 degree weather. We didn't get to ride the horse drawn carriages (and Vienne was a little more than upset about that) because the line was too long so we'll probably go back again next week. This runs for two more weekends so if you are in the area, small town fun.

Turkey Day

Thanksgiving started and ended as usual. We went to the Grands' house with the pecan pie. I think we could have pretty much replayed last Turkey day and wouldn't have missed a thing. Even the same food because we so look forward to our usual turkey and fixins. If any deviation occurs, it's just not Thanksgiving. Natalya started the day announcing that her other top front tooth came out. We were sooooo thankful for that because, again, it was causing great stress. And she was able to enjoy her wonderful turkey feast with no worries.

Another one bites the dust. I couldn't wait to see both front teeth out.

After turkey, after nap exercise. It is cold here. It has been around the mid 40's. That's cold around these parts. Some of North Texas even got snow.

Natalya brings paper out and sits on the driveway to draw. Even in freezing weather, she was drawing trees. I wish I had the tree drawing to scan but she gave the wonderful tree art to Grandma. It was a nice day.

I'm Thankful For...

...This face. And this from Vienne:
(Noticing that Natalya had glitter on her face) Vienne says, "Natalya, why do you have magic on your face?"

Have a wonderful Turkey Day. Count your blessings, not the calories.

This is another shot from our Christmas card session. The Card unveiling on Monday.

Saturday

We were very lazy today. Which is very odd. But this evening we decided to go check on the house and passed the river. The paddle boats were out so decided to go for a ride. The girls had a blast. The weekends are usually set aside for doing "something fun" as Vienne says. They couldn't wait to get out of the house. I am hoping to have some new pictures of the house soon. They've been spending a lot of time on the rock work so I'm waiting for something new to happen.

The view from right in the middle of the river.

Toothless!

Finally!

To Be...

...Young, carefree, uninhibited, naive, independent, imaginative, loved. To be V.

This is My Best Shot for today. Come on, give us yours at Picture This.

Groovy Ghouls

It's very hard to take pictures of kids who have been on a constant sugar high for the last two weeks. The girls had a blast as monsters but they ditched the suspended eyeballs about half way through our route. We've always dressed up with the girls and will always until it becomes too embarassing they just can't stand it.

Mommy monster with her Groovy Ghouls.

Daddy was the only one that did not get a hand made costume this year. We don't think he really minded.

Checkin' out the loot.

This is what Daddy looks like when he's told the girls to brush their teeth and go to bed for the upteenth time. Hope everyone had a great Halloween. Bring on Thanksgiving.

Fun in the Fall Sun

The weather has been glorious! Not a cloud and in the high 70s. Perfect Fall for South Texas. Yesterday, Vienne and I played outside while Natalya was at school. V is so into dressing up while Natalya rarely would. Here she is modeling the tutu that her Aunt Linda gave her early in the year. It one of her favorites. Oh, can't forget the Cinderella shoes. It's never the same without Natalya, though. V can't wait until she gets home from school.

Rockey dog getting in on the action. She had already taken her snake in and put it in her bowl. (Click to make them bigger.)

Go Wildcats!

Our sweet friend Priya celebrated her 6th birthday this weekend with a High School Musical party. Happy Birthday, Priya!

Happy party faces.

Our wild cat.

Living Green

When I was pregnant with Natalya we decided to use cloth diapers. Everyone thought we were nuts. I was always asked, "How hard is it?", "Isn't it a lot of trouble?" "What do you do with the poop?" But did you know that 50 million diapers enter landfills each day and they will stay there for about 500 years? Cloth diapering was the only option for us and turned out to be easy. We did it with both girls.

As a part of Blog Action Day, I am doing my part by letting you know what we do in our family to protect our happy earth. Still today, I am as green as I can possibly be. We are. We, as a family, do our part to protect the environment. It has become a lifestyle. And, again, it's easy. It's the least we can do. And you may think that you and your family can't possibly make a difference but it's you and those millions of others that say they can't make a difference that really could make a difference.

* We recycle!- Our community has a recycling program so we utilize it. Junk mail, plastic, tin goes in the bucket; magazines go to big bins set up at schools for recycling.
* I use canvas shopping bags- I try to never use plastic, and only use paper when my canvas bags have runneth over. Plastic bags go back to our grocery store because they will recycle them. And we try to remember to say, "That's OK, I don't need a bag."
* I try to remember to bring my own cup to Starbucks. They will put my coffee in it so that I don't have to leave with trash.
* We don't run the water unnecessarily.
* We xeriscape. Meaning our landscaping doesn't require much watering.
* I try not to buy water bottles. A tiny percentage of all water bottles are being recycled which means that the majority of them sit in a landfill.
* We use reusable plastic containers for lunches, not baggies.
* We split one napkin in half at dinner. Hopefully we will use only two napkins instead of four.
* We keep our blinds closed during the heat of the day keep our air conditioner from running more than it needs to.
* We donate a lot of stuff. If it's reusable it goes to Good Will instead of the landfill.
* We try to repair things rather than replace things.
* I try to buy bigger rather than many small. It takes less energy to produce one large container of yogurt than it does to produce several smaller containers.
* We turn off the lights when we leave a room.
* We really try hard (really try hard) not to buy those little things that we don't need. This is hard when you have kids. Junk toys and trinkets will ultimately end up in the trash.
* We talk about things that the girls understand and have an interest in. Like endangered animals and protecting the park.
* We pick up trash when we go for a walk.
* We play outside.
* We try to remember to turn off the tv when we're not watching it. We are working really hard on this one.

OK, you get the idea. And even though that list looks pretty long, I know there are still tons we can do. Hopefully the girls are learning as we live and will be able to carry these lessons with them. Because isn't it scary to hear about the demise of the earth? What will you differently today?



And in honor of living green, some pictures of the girls enjoying the great outdoors:


Natalya is really enjoying fishing with Daddy. This is her yesterday with her catch (and release.) She actually caught three!


And amazingly, Vienne's catch. Amazing because Vienne caught one within seconds of the line hitting the water. Perfect for her attenion span.

Fun Run+Fun Fair=Fun Day

Yesterday we went to Natalya's school's first annual Country Fair and Fun Run. The day started off with a 5k run and 1/2 mile run. After we exhausted ourselves we ate too much candy and had some fair fun. The school also held a silent auction. Lots of donated items and class projects had to have brought in soooo much money for the school because we took home a few items after paying a pretty penny. But it was for a great cause.

Getting in race mode.

Aunt Jennifer getting in race mode. This is what she gave me when I said, "Look like a runner." Can you believe she's training for a triathlon? Amazing.

Vienne, HipHub, and Jen set to run the 5k. On your mark...

Natalya and I ran/walked the 1/2 miler. She did so well. This is her saying, "I think my legs are going to fall off."

Colored hair spray. You should have seen the tub later that day.

There seems to be a slight resemblance. Hmmm.

I was so excited to see the sack race because I hadn't seen one in such a long time. This is how the race started...

...And this is how it ended. The bag was ditched and she ran to the finish.

The hat that Daddy came home with proudly won in the silent auction.

Run!

I think that it's safe to say that the girls usually run every chance they get. It has to be buillt into the child's brain. Every cell in my body wants to yell, "Walk, please...don't fall!" I think that is built into every mother's brain.

She was running to see her sister. More from the pumpkin patch here. Run over to see more of Thursday's Theme Walk at Picture This.

Sick Day, Schmick Day

She's supposed to be sick so we've been hanging out at home. It's really more so that she doesn't politely share her tonsillitis with her sweet friends at school. But I'm thinking that if she weren't 3 that she might just be faking it. Playing dress up and kitchen and hide and seek for hours can definitely be mind numbing. She's going back to school tomorrow if for only one day this week.

Gone Fishin'

Last Sunday evening we got together with our best pals for picnic and fishing. We all brought a few dishes, our poles and the bug spray and had a fun time. We will be doing it again soon. We are so fortunate to have great families surround us and our children. I know that the girls realize how lucky they are to know such wonderful people.

Natalya has been really really wanting to fish for a very very long time. She loved it. And did so fantastically her very first time fishing that she even caught one! I think she may have a new hobby.

As for Vienne, well, we'll chalk it up to her being just a little too young. She didn't have the patience to wait around. She was gone in 60 seconds. But she had great intentions.

Our pretty little fishing hole with a view.

And Vienne's second big sister, Priya. Every time Vienne sees Priya she say, "I love Priya."

Pic of the Day

I had already published this post with just this picture but I had to come back and add a note.

Today I had lunch with Natalya at her school. If your child's school offers this, I would definitely take the opportunity to do it. It was very nostalgic. It has been a long time since I've sat in a school cafeteria. Honestly, I was even a little anxious. I don't really know why. Maybe I was just excited.

And I had great reason to be. When Natalya saw me she started jumping and had the biggest smile on her face. She came to me and gave me a humongous hug like she hadn't seen me in days. She had even made me a "Thank You" card for coming to have lunch with her. Ok, I've been crying some these days because of the trouble that I've been having with Vienne. You can't imagine how happy she made me just in this one minute period. I cried again. She'll have no idea how much I needed that.

So we sat and ate our fries and chicken. She told me all about the lunch time routine. The teachers have taught the kids sign language so that they can ask for things with less words. That cracked me up. She told me about some of her friends and then about what they had already done in class today. I saw my baby grow up so many years right before my eyes.

Lunch was over and she joined her class. I thought to myself, "She is my angel. She gives me strength. How lucky I am."