Soccer

The boys had their first soccer game this past Sat. Brady is playing up an age division so that they can be on the same team. We really did it for us, so that we only have one team to deal with. We only have to worry about one practice schedule and one game every Sat. It's really nice, and we've only had one game so far. We were worried that it wouldn't be good for Brady because he can be hard on himself. I was worried that it would be too hard, and it would just make him frustrated. He was very excited about it, and did really well in the first game. He's a very competitive kid(understatement of the year!), so that could be good or bad. Hopefully we'll have a good season. I got a couple of pictures, but it's harder when you have two out there at once.

Conversation with God

Last night I tucked Chloe in bed and said her prayers. When I got done she said, "What did God say?" I was confused for a moment, but then realized what she meant. She has been asking God for rain the past couple of days. Random times she'll just say a little prayer asking for rain. It's so cute! So, anyway, she was asking me what God said in response to her request. She truly looked at it like I was having a conversation with God. I told her that God always answers us, but sometimes we have to wait a little longer. These are the things I never want to forget.

I...

I AM... blessed.

I WANT... to reach my (weight loss) goal already!!

I HAVE... a weakness for Chik-Fil-A.

I WISH I COULD... be a marine biologist for a day, or two. Whale watching is tops on my list of things to do.

I HATE... when people think their lives are more important than anyone else's.

I FEAR... being chased by dogs every single time I go outside, regardless of whether there are any dogs around. I also used to think this same thing about bears when we lived in Alaska.

I HEAR... peace. My kids are in bed asleep.

I SEARCH... for answers to questions that have no answers.

I DON'T THINK... I'll ever get tired of hearing my kids pray.

I REGRET... not keeping in touch with friends and family.

I LOVE... feeling good about myself again.

I ACHE FOR... fall. Cooler temperatures, the colors of the leaves...I can't wait.

I ALWAYS CRY... when I hear the music from "Last of the Mohicans." I watched that movie the night my Granddaddy died. I haven't seen it since, and as much as I love the music from it, I can't bear to listen to it.

I AM NOT... a morning person.

I DANCE... rarely.

I SING... in the car when I'm alone.

I NEVER... think of the right thing to say until after the fact.

I RARELY... step out of my comfort zone.

I CRY WHEN I WATCH... Extreme Home Makeover, the Olympics, random commercials...the list could go on forever.

I AM NOT ALWAYS... the mother(or wife, sister, daughter, friend) that I want to be.

I HATE THAT... my kids are growing up so quickly.

I'M CONFUSED ABOUT... a lot.

I NEED... some time to myself occasionally.

I SHOULD... really be doing something else.

A princess...even on the potty.

Yum!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Crunch

6 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 sticks (8oz.) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
One 16 oz. jar creamy peanut butter
3 cups crispy rice cereal
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups confectioners' sugar

1. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper. In a medium saucepan, melt half of the chocolate and 1 tablespoon butter over low heat. Remove from the heat; stir in 1 cup peanut butter, then 2 cups rice cereal. Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan; refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes. Wash out the saucepan.
2. In the saucepan, combine the remaining 2 sticks butter and the salt; melt over medium heat, stirring. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining peanut butter and the confectioners' sugar. Spread half of the peanut butter mixture over the cereal layer. Top with the remaining 1 cup cereal.
3. In a small bowl, microwave the remaining chocolate at medium power until melted, 1.5 minutes. Stir into the remaining peanut butter mixture. Spread evenly on the cereal-topped peanut butter layer; refrigerate until set, about 45 minutes. Cut into 16 pieces.

I got this recipe out of my Rachel Ray magazine. It's the first recipe of hers I've tried. It was delicious, but very rich. If you don't like really rich desserts, then this one might not be for you. It said to cut it into 16 pieces, but I could never eat that much in one sitting. It's similar in richness to peanut butter fudge, so we cut it pretty small. It's definitely something to share. Next time I'll probably make it to take to a potluck or something similar. My next recipe to try is called Monkey Bread Minis, also from the magazine. We'll see how that goes. I was going to try to link to the recipe, but it's not on the website yet. Oh, and the picture is from the magazine also. I didn't get a picture of mine.

We have recess!!

The boys came home today excited and ready for tomorrow! I can't tell you how thankful and relieved I am. My prayers were answered today. They both love their teachers, and have already made friends in their classes. We all have positive attitudes, which is really a big deal, especially with me. They both have a scheduled recess, and it's at the same time. They thought that was pretty cool. Avery has snack, which he didn't have last year. We even gave the bus another try. They have a new driver this year, so that's nice. I know some of you prayed for us because you knew how hard last year was, and I just want to say thank you!

Chloe's Easter dress

I'm aware that it's not Easter, but this is the first time Chloe has worn her dress. She accidentally stepped on the bottom of her dress right before we were leaving the house, so she was unable to wear it. Until now. I know it shouldn't have taken me that long to get the dress fixed, but I was so bummed that I just didn't deal with it. I gave my Mom a really hard time about the dress because she was horrified that I was putting her in a sleeveless dress. It was really cold this past Easter, but I did have a sweater for her to wear. Anyway, I blamed my mom because she didn't get to wear it. (I was really kidding Mom!) So, thankfully Mom was able to repair the dress. I'm excited that Chloe will be able to wear it before it's once again too cold.

Beijing Olympics

So, I don't know how many of you are watching the opening ceremonies, but does anyone else feel bad for the Chinese ladies in white? You know the ones lining the parade area? I just feel bad for them because they've been out there dancing/cheering for quite a while now. They seem a little tired. Anyway, we all enjoyed watching it tonight. We didn't stick around for the entire parade of nations, but we're recording it so we can catch the highlights tomorrow. We tried to let the boys stay up to see the U.S., but we finally had to send them to bed. I thought the ceremony was amazing. I think the drums were my favorite. I wasn't sure that I agreed with our country even being there, but then I heard them talking about what Pres. Bush said about it.

President Bush on Sunday defended his decision to attend next month's Olympics opening ceremony in Beijing, saying that to boycott "would be an affront to the Chinese people." Speaking to reporters ahead of this week's summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations in Japan, Bush said he did not need to skip the ceremony to show his position on religious freedom and human rights in China. He said if he failed to attend the Games it would "make it more difficult to be able to speak more frankly with the Chinese leadership."Bush said he would raise concerns when he meets Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Olympics, but he was also "looking forward to cheering the U.S. athletes." He said it was good for them "to see their president waving that flag."

You can read the entire article on cnn.com. I just really liked what he said. Then I saw our athletes giving high fives to Chinese people lining the parade area. We really are all the same, with the same thoughts and feelings. Regardless of the fact that politics are always involved in stuff like this, good can still come from it.

Fresh start

Today we went to the school to register and find out the boys' teachers. I thought we might not know that until Monday, but luckily that wasn't the case. We met their teachers and saw their class list. The teachers seem very nice. I told them both that once Chloe goes to preschool in Sept. I can help in the classroom. I'm very excited about being able to be up at the school this year. I wasn't able to do that last year, and I think it will help me learn to love that place. Or at least not hate it. I'm determined that this will be a good year, and being involved should help that. It really feels like a fresh start this year. The school has been expanded, and when they finish the new classrooms, Avery will get to be in them. He is actually excited about it too! They will have all new technology, which is what the other classrooms are seriously lacking. I think it's going to be a good year.
Here are some fun facts about my kids and school:

• Avery has had two teachers named Mrs. Fox, one he had for two years. (seriously, the two could not be more opposite)
  
• Brady has had one teacher named Mrs. Fox. (not either that Avery has had)
• Avery's teacher this year is out on maternity leave right now. That makes this the third year he's had a teacher out for that reason, !st, 3rd, &5th.

Okay, so I thought I had more fun facts, but that's all I've got. I guess that's all I've got.

Who says boys don't play dress up?

Okay, so the boys didn't dress up, but Avery decided to help Chloe dress up. He put her in some of his clothes, and had her come show us. He thought it was hilarious, and she was pretty amused too. We got some cute pictures out of it. Oh, one more thing...we are NOT yankee fans. Avery was a yankee for baseball one year. Unfortunately you don't get to pick your team name.

Chloe's first makeup!

No, she didn't get into a fight. That's makeup. Yep. Looks great doesn't it? She always asks me not to wipe it off before we got out, but I just can't let her look like she's either sick or has been beat up. She always has one blue eye and one pink eye. The boys just roll their eyes when she plays with it, but she has a blast.

Adventure Science Center

We went to the Adventure Science Center with some friends yesterday. Avery had been there once before, but Brady, Chloe and I had not. It was fun and not too terribly crowded. We're trying to make the most of this last week before school starts.

Cousins!

Ethan ran after Tessa all day, and he finally caught her!
Emma used her Easy Bake oven to cook us some cake and cookies.
Ethan playing with model magic.
Chloe and Emma enjoying dressing up.
Tessa and Chloe, in a very different outfit.
The gang before nerf wars. Things look pretty intense.
Do you see the bullet Brady just shot at me?
Ethan finally gets in on the action.



Last week we headed to Renee's house for the day. Ethan came over too, so there were plenty of kids to play with. We all had a great time and enjoyed hanging out. I think everyone was worn out at the end of the day. They came to our house yesterday, but I didn't get many pictures. We're trying to make the last week without school a fun one.

Trapper Keeper!!

out with the old...

in with the new!!

Here's the post I'll probably regret posting. I think these pictures are more telling then any words I've ever written! I just had to share pictures of my new Trapper Keeper! I remember as a kid, I would get a new trapper keeper for school every year. I always looked forward to it. When we took the kids to finish up their school shopping a couple of days ago, I spotted this one among the binders and just had to have it. I was planning on getting a plain binder for my coupons, but I just couldn't resist having a trapper keeper again!!