Sugar 'n Spice

Innocence Lost

2010-03-02T20:54:00.000-08:00

I knew this day would come. I just didn't realize that it would come so soon. I didn't really expect that my girls would remain innocent forever. I just thought we might make it to the double-digits before it happened. Well, too late; it's already happened. My sweet little girls have figured out the difference between girls and boys. That's right....you heard me. Sugar and Spice know the difference between boys and girls. Oh, I know what you're thinking..."What kind of mother would allow this to happen? Obviously they've been exposed to something they had no business seeing or hearing." Well, I really don't know how it happened. But they found out. And just in case you haven't heard....girls have eyelashes.

The Formal Dinner Party

2010-01-29T18:24:00.000-08:00

Sugar's teacher held a formal dinner party at her home this afternoon for the entire class as a culminating activity for the nutrition and manners units of study they completed this week. It was fantastic! I'm sure the kids will remember it for the rest of their lives. First they gathered in the living room where Ms. Matejka took photos and served all of her guests hors d'oeuvres . As she circled the room offering each child a cracker with canned cheese, she reminded them of appropriate responses if they did not want anything or thought they wouldn't like it. She even instructed them in the fine art of taking a small bite if you're unsure and then hiding the rest in your napkin until you can get rid of it! :) Next each of the gentlemen was instructed to invite one of the ladies to join him at the dinner table, which was set with black and white table cloths, silver charges, specially folded napkins and goblets of water. The courses included chicken noodle soup, garden salads, sorbet, the main course ( fish sticks, macaroni and cheese, green beans, carrots, and corn), and dessert (brownies presented on a plate with chocolate syrup, whip cream and sprinkles). During the salad course she provided tips about how to move food around your plate if you don't like it so that it appears as though you're eating and how to respond if your host should notice that you are, in fact, not eating. The party ended with the presentation of the hostess gift (some lovely flowers and a bracelet that the room mothers thoughtfully picked up) and a tour of the house. I wish kindergarten could last forever!!!

The Birthday Dance

2010-01-13T20:31:00.000-08:00

Sugar's teacher goes above and beyond what any parent could expect to make each of her students feel special each day, but birthdays are a major event! The birthday boy or girl is greeted at the entrance with a message in sidewalk chalk and a blow-up cake, he or she receives a special birthday gift (which is top secret and must be opened at home so as not to spoil the surprise for others!), and then the birthday dance begins. If that weren't enough, the principal bestows a birthday blessing upon him or her during chapel service. It was incredible and I'm so glad I got to be there to see this!

All I Want For Christmas

2009-12-20T21:54:00.000-08:00

Sugar originally wanted a horse for Christmas. We managed to convince her that Santa wouldn't bring a horse to a family that wasn't prepared and didn't have room for a horse. Well, now she wants a sled. So far, we haven't been able to budge her from the sled request, no matter how many times we say that there's not enough snow in this part of Texas to ride one. She insists that, "She's going to use it for something else!" What? We haven't gotten any kind of answer to that. I guess we need to hire a Santa who can tell her that he doesn't bring sleds to little girls in Texas. Anyone? Anyone? Thankfully, Spice is a little easier to please.

Perceptions Are Funny Things, Aren't They?

2009-12-10T20:34:00.000-08:00

We received a notice from Sugar's school last week informing us that vision and hearing screenings were being conducted. I asked Sugar whether she had had her eyes and ears checked. She responded with a very convincing no. We continued to discuss her day at school, when suddenly she exclaimed, "Oh! We played 'The Eye and Ear Game'!" Hmmmm. I asked her to describe the ear game for me. She explained, "First you put on these headphones that are a little bit squeezy. Then you listen for a beep and when you hear one, you raise your hand." She went on to tell me about the eye game: "You stand way back at the green tape. There's robot fingers on the wall and some go this way, some go that way, some go like this and some go like this. *turning her hand to point up, down, left, and right* You have to look at the chart and tell which way they're going." "Sooooo," I asked. "You haven't had your eyes and ears tested yet?" "Mommy!" she replied. "I already told you I haven't had my tests!!!" ***Disclaimer: Sugar passed her screenings with flying colors. This is a photo from last year when she decided to try Paprika's glasses on for size.

I Can't Believe I Haven't Posted Since August!!!

2009-12-05T20:29:00.000-08:00

Wow...it's been a while. A LONG while! I've intended for weeks, *ahem*, months, to put something new up, but it seems that the blog is constantly falling to the bottom of the priority list. Tonight was the Burleson Christmas Parade and we rode the HCCA float along with several other families and Ms. Werner, the school administrator. It was WICKED cold, but we had a great time. Spice LOVED throwing candy out to the other kids on the street, although they had to risk their very lives to get it since her tosses never managed to land very far from the trailer. Sugar took herself right up to have a seat by Ms. Werner and spent most of the parade sitting with her. I was only slightly jealous. Actually, I was quite proud of her. She can be very shy and clingy at times, but it's obvious that she feels very comfortable with her teacher and Ms. Werner. We are so glad that we chose to send her to HCCA!

Our Little Kindergartener

2009-08-30T19:15:00.000-07:00

Sugar made the transition into kindergarten last Tuesday flawlessly!. (I, on the other hand, had a little difficulty!) She has a fantastic teacher who has so many amazing things planned for this year and she loves going to class each day. Paprika, once again proving his superior mental capacity, told Spice that she would be going to Grammygarten each day while Sugar was at kindergarten, which seemed to appease her quite nicely. We are so excited to see our Sugar blossom into a confident, independent little girl and we can't wait to see all of the things that she will accomplish this year.

Sugar, The Artist

2009-08-22T20:18:00.000-07:00

Sugar loves doing craft projects, whether it involves coloring, painting, foam stickers, or whathaveyou. So when we found The Art Barn this summer (thanks, Michelle!) Sugar was hooked. She has thus far made a bowl for Grammy, a pumpkin plate for Nana (sorry, no photo of that one!),
a rainbow box for her cousin's birthday next month (shhhh!) and a unicorn box for herself.
I even joined in the fun and made this tile collage cross.

Our First REAL Emergency

2009-08-13T20:31:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday night, we experienced our first SERIOUS child-related emergency since Sugar was born a little over five years ago. As we prepared to go to Nana's house after dinner, the girls went out to get in the car ahead of us. Spice took the opportunity to play for a moment and was bitten by some type of ant (we think) as she stood in the grass by our driveway. As I was coming outside, Sugar was racing into the house to tell us that Spice had been bitten. We put some StingEze on her foot, gave her a bag of ice and proceeded to head over to Nana's house. On our 5-minute drive, Sugar began to complain that her 'lip wouldn't go up'. When I looked in the backseat I thought that her lip had gotten numb because she was putting the ice pack on her mouth. As we neared Nana's driveway, she began to complain that her 'eyes were going down'. I looked in the backseat again to discover that her face appeared to be swelling. When we stopped, Paprika jumped out to check her, while I ran into Nana's to find out whether she had any Benadryl on hand. She didn't. So Paprika, being the level-headed, rational person in the family, thought to rush back home and get a hefty dose of Benadryl in her before we attempted to go to the nearest emergency clinic. The Benadryl had the desired effect....her swelling did not worsen...and the CareNow clinic physician prescribed a steroid, which we were able to fill the next morning. Two days later, her swelling has almost disappeared, and she's back to her normal wild self. Thanks be to God for His faithfulness to us and His care for our little Spice! And now here's Spice's version:

And They Swam And They Swam All Over The Dam!

2009-08-07T20:55:00.000-07:00

For the last couple of weekends, we've had the pleasure of spending Sunday afternoon swimming in the pool at my brother's best friend's parent's house. Got that? The girls just love going 'swimming', although neither of them can swim yet. Sugar would still rather die than go under water, and Spice isn't too much better about it. However, I am finally seeing some progress and now have hope that maybe one day they will actually be able to swim. Look at Sugar floating on her back and swimming all over the pool! She even jumped into the shallow end by herself. (Okay, I bribed her with the Swan Lake Barbie movie, but it still counts!) There's just a tiny section of Spice doing her thing, but that's because everything you see in that section is everything she does in the pool. She's just gotten comfortable floating with the life jacket in the last couple of weeks...up until then she would have a panic attack when she couldn't touch bottom any more. So she's making progress, too. I predict that we'll have a couple of swimmers next summer!

Little Gymnasts

2009-07-29T17:35:00.000-07:00

Every summer for the last three years, Sugar and Spice have gone to the Little Gym for classes. It's one of their favorite things about summer and they really look forward to going to their one-hour class each week. This year I've really been impressed with how much their confidence has increased! Both girls are walking on the high beam without assistance and jumping off the end and both of them can do a basket hang from the bar (hands and feet on the bar). See for yourself!

Spice Strikes Again

2009-07-23T19:20:00.000-07:00

So we're in the local Wal Marts one day last week and we picked up a block of Monterrey Jack for some Chile Rellenos that Paprika was planning to cook up (yes, they were delicious!). I was focused on trying to find Sugar a pair of lightweight navy shorts that she could wear under her school uniform jumper. Suddenly Sugar comments that Spice (who was seated in the grocery part of the basket) is 'trying to bite that cheese'. I reach back and take the package away from her to find that Sugar has not quite captured the enormity of the situation with her assessment. This is what I saw:I assure you that I have not altered or intensified the results of Spice's efforts in any way. Notice the teeth marks?! To make matters worse, she continued to try to get the block of cheese back throughout the remainder of our time in the store. I'm thinking maybe I should schedule an appointment with her doctor....I'm sure it's a calcium deficiency.

Sugar Shaker!

2009-07-16T12:58:00.000-07:00

Sugar received a hula hoop for her birthday last Friday, which she immediately identified as her favorite gift....along with her Belle doll, her unicorn, her Alaskan doll, her kitty, her new clothes, etc., etc. (She wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, dontcha know!) Anyway, she has been practicing with her new hula hoop every day and doggone if she's not hula hooping already!

A Picture Paints A Thousand Words, Oh Yes It Does!

2009-07-12T13:55:00.001-07:00

Both Sugar and Spice have now had their first experience at the wondrous place known as the Build-A-Bear Workshop. I took Spice for her birthday in April after she received a gift card from her uncle. May I introduce you to Princess Aurora Royale? No amount of coaxing could convince Spice that PAR needed any type of clothing, accessories, or other paraphernalia. She finally acquiesced to a small bouquet of flowers on her front right leg, but later had second thoughts and promptly removed it.
And, here is Princess Estella Royale. Sugar sincerely apologizes for the lack of fancy gold and silver sandals, a skirt, and several other items that her cruel mother would not allow her to purchase. Painfully, she was limited to only two additional items of dress and was thus unable to properly adorn her new companion.
Yep, these pics pretty much sum up my girls' personalities.

Cowtown Camera Girl Rocks!

2009-07-06T18:59:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago my friend and colleague Nell Valdez, who is not only a super librarian, but also an extremely talented photographer, got some new equipment. She offered a free sitting to someone who responded to her blog post and I won! Last Wednesday I took the girls to her new house (it's beautiful!) so that she could shoot them wearing some tutus that she purchased for her business. Here are a few shots from that session:

After the tutu shots, we went to a nearby ice cream store so that Nell could get some summertime ice cream cone pictures. I haven't seen those yet, but I'm sure that they will be just as good! Nell has lots of interesting ideas and an amazing eye for what will make a fantastic photo, plus she shoots her subjects very naturally so the finished product shows the real expressions and smiles that you love. You can see more photos from our tutu session, as well as more of Nell's work at here blog, Cowtown Camera Girl. Here's the link to the complete session!

Oh, Those Summer Nights!

2009-07-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

Except for the unbearable heat, summer is my favorite time of year. Our schedule, which can be hectic and exhausting during the rest of the year, slows to a crawl. Or maybe it just seems that way because I'm not working! Anywho, today was one of those great summer days. After a relaxing afternoon, we took the girls to Burleson where we had ice cream for dinner....YUM!

Then we headed over to the park to play until the sun went down.

Sugar and Spice especially love this particular park because it has two play areas separated by a creek, which of course is very nearly dried up at this point in the summer. Crosssing the creek, looking for animals, and throwing rocks in the water are just as fun to them as the slides, swings, and monkey bars. I just love these carefree days of summer....

Spice Does Her Librarian Mother Proud!

2009-06-29T20:07:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. Spice is NOT actually READING this book. She has memorized it. But, still....my baby is taking her first steps toward reading and that does my heart so good. Just look at how proud she is!

Sugar's First Time Behind the Wheel

2009-06-29T19:32:00.000-07:00

While we were in Juneau visiting our dear friends, we were treated to a little boat ride. Sugar took over the captain duties briefly and actually did quite well for her first time behind the wheel. She was quite proud of herself, as you'll see in this video.

Overhead one morning last week....

2009-04-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

Sugar: "Mommy, why do you always smell bad?"
Mommy: "I don't know what you're talking about. Do you mean my breath?"
Sugar: "Yes!"
Mommy: "It's probably because I just took my vitamins."
Sugar: "Will you smell better later?"

Gee, I certainly hope so....

III : the time, it does fly...

2009-04-19T13:02:00.001-07:00

April 10, 2006

April 10, 2007

April 10, 2008

April 10, 2009

Can my baby really be 3 already?

Boogity, boogity, boogity! or as we saw shoe-polished on the back of a car in traffic...booga dee, booga dee, booga dee,,,

2009-04-06T17:37:00.000-07:00

Paprika and I made our first trip out to the Texas Motor Speedway yesterday and it was amazing! The colors of the cars were SO bright...the smell of the fuel burning was SO strong...the roar of the engines was SOOOOO loud....and the cars flew by us at unbelievable speeds. Here's a video that gives you a look at how fast they're moving. You really can't watch straight ahead like this for long, or at least I couldn't, without starting to feel sick.

It was a fabulous day, even though the weather was quite cold and windy. You might think sunscreen would not be necessary in such weather. You would be wrong. Paprika and I both look like we've had some serious microderm abrasion on our faces. From a trainee. Who took a break during our treatment. A really long break. Needless to say, we won't forget the sunscreen again! The day ended well as Jeff Gordon won the race...his first win at TMS. And since it was Paprika's birthday and Paprika roots for Gordon...it couldn't have worked out much better than that. Unless of course Tony Stewart or Kyle Busch won.

Spring Break '09

2009-03-23T19:46:00.000-07:00

Spring Break was absolutely delightful! I accomplished very little in the way of housework or any home-improvement projects, but I spent lots of time doing things with my baby girls. My niece, Cinnamon, joined us (along with Nana) on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for trips to the zoo, the park, and The Cupcake Cottage, which is owned and operated by my friend and former co-worker, Sandra Bradshaw. The cupcakes she bakes from scratch are DELICIOUS and we really look forward to our much too infrequent visits to her precious shop. If you live in the Fort Worth area, you MUST pay a visit to The Cupcake Cottage! I recommend the baby cakes because you can try several flavors at once. I don't know if Sandra will back me up on this, but I figure four babycakes are equal to one regular cupcake, so.....eat up! It was wonderful to relax, sleep late (7:30!), and spend time with Sugar and Spice. Add to that a massage and pedicure (thank you, Pappyrika!) followed by a lovely dinner with my hubby one evening and you've got a near-perfect spring break. Ahhhhh! And the best thing........summer break is only 11 weeks away!

Bye-Bye Diapers!

2009-03-11T20:21:00.000-07:00

After a couple of my colleagues were discussing mothers of 3 year olds who had not yet potty-trained their children, I decided that in light of Spice's upcoming *ahem* 3rd birthday *ahem * that I had better get serious about this affair. So we started earnestly working on the potty visits two weeks ago. We had an ENTIRE weekend where we were basically at home, so it was a good time to start....or so I thought. Previous attempts to make this step toward big girldom were met with serious resistance so I wasn't entirely hopeful. However, it seems that the time was right...she didn't protest much at all, and although she had several accidents the first week we seem to be well on our way to the end of the diaper era. She's been accident-free this week and even took herself to the potty last night to poop! Whooo hooo! My baby is growing up....and yes, I'm a little sad about it.

A Recent Exchange....

2009-03-11T20:14:00.001-07:00

Mom: (in response to the 100th misbehavior in the last 5 minutes) Spice, you are a train wreck!

Spice: Chooo! Chooo!

Paprika Rocks!

2009-02-11T20:47:00.000-08:00

In May, Paprika and I will celebrate our 21st anniversary. It’s a special marker to me because it’s the ‘half-way point’ in our relationship. I was just a young thing of 21 when we married, you see. Through the years he has shown me in a myriad of ways how much he loves me. There have been big things….like the cruise for our 10th anniversary, the FLIP video camera he bought me for Christmas, or the total bathroom makeover he gave me for our 20th anniversary. But it’s been the little things, day by day, that continue to win my heart and cement our love for each other. I can’t tell you how many times he’s cleaned up bodily fluids of every variety after one of the girls became ill, had an accident, etc! He is almost always the one who gets up in the middle of the night when there’s a problem. But, I want to share a little incident that took place recently at the Taco Bueno because it perfectly depicts the kind of guy I married so many years ago. We ordered some cheesecake chimichangas, as we are wont to do because no meal is truly complete without a helping of cheesecake surrounded by fried dough. (If you haven’t experienced these little bits of heaven, then I pity you. They are, in a word, divine!) They have recently come out two new varieties of these tasty treats: cinnamon and raspberry. I chose to sample the cinnamon on this particular evening, while Paprika stuck with the original version. Well, when I took the first bite of my yummy dessert, I encountered a discouraging lack of cheesecake filling and an overabundance of cinnamon flavoring. Upon noticing this disturbing turn of events, Paprika immediately took my chimichanga and used it to scoop out part of the cheesecake filling from his own. He did this over and over, each time I took a bite until we finished our dessert. Flowers are nice. Candy is better. But, sharing your cheesecake chimichanga…now THAT’S true love.

Happy Birthday, Ms. Michaela!

2009-01-19T19:23:00.001-08:00

Today is my best friend's birthday. Special days like this are bittersweet since she moved several thousand miles away to Alaska. Several thousand miles and a three-hour time difference combined with crazy busy schedules make it difficult to keep in touch as much as we'd like. Talking on the phone and exchanging occasional emails and text messages is not the same as having a girls' night out or getting our families together for an evening. And I won't even go into how great it would be if her teenage daughters were close by to babysit my preschool ones! However, there's one positive thing that such a distance forces upon a relationship. Deliberateness. There's a greater effort involved to maintain the closeness we've built up over 30 years of friendship. We aren't close because it's convenient, because staying in touch is very inconvenient most of the time. We remain a vital part of each other's lives because we both want that and make the effort necessary to do so. Distance also offers the opportunity for some creativity in making these special days as special as they would be in person. I miss you, my friend! Happy Birthday! And in case you didn't get the email, here's a birthday song just for you....

The Scariest Words of All

2009-01-19T18:58:00.000-08:00

Sugar said something the other day that hit me like a punch in the gut. I know I'm not the first parent to hear these words or the first to feel their effect. In fact, I'm sure that I'll hear similar words from Sugar again and Spice is bound to weigh in at some point, too. I don't even remember what it was that I was doing, but here's what Sugar said as she joined me in my activity: "I'm doing exactly like you, Mommy!" Oh. My. That's sobering, to say the least. I sincerely hope that she doesn't do exactly like me. I pray that she's smarter than I've been. I pray that she's less selfish than I've been. I pray that she's more patient than I've been. I pray that she's less judgemental than I've been. I pray that she's kinder than I've been. Most of all, I pray that she trusts her Saviour more than I have and that her life is marked by a deep faith in God that guides her day by day. Of course, if she still wants to be a librarian when she grows up, that's okay. She's already got the look down.

It's ALL About the Glitter

2009-01-01T20:10:00.000-08:00

Sugar LOOOOOVES glitter. Anything with glitter gets her immediate stamp of approval.

glitter nail polish

glitter crayons

glitter glue

What more could a girl ask for?

Death and Destruction

2009-01-01T19:40:00.000-08:00

Spice struck twice during the holidays. The first victim was a Raggedy Ann doll that she received for Christmas last year. Who knew that the little bag of sand used to weight the doll's bottom so that it will sit up could be so easily removed by a two-year old?!? Apparently Spice discovered this. She performed some sort of surgery on poor Ms. Ann during the night and this is what we found on the morning of Christmas Eve:

Thankfully R. A. survived, although she does have a little soreness around her crude 'incision'. I feel sure that Spice dreamt about sleeping on the beach, what with that lovely pile of grit in her bed all night. She keeps talking about how she got her doll all dirty...it was an assadent!

Her next victim was not so fortunate. Alas, after several trips of an airborne nature, Mr. N. Cracker was, as you can see from his expression, profoundly injured and although we did everything we could with the resources at our disposal, we were unable to save him. He was buried quietly in the kitchen trash can with only immediate family in attendance. Spice did not attend the service.

We hope that Christmas 2009 will be celebrated without additional injury or death.

The Ghosts of Christmas Passed

2008-12-27T21:14:00.000-08:00

Well, it's over for another year. All but the tear-down, that is. Paprika and I have always disagreed on the time-frame for the Christmas un-decorating. I have always felt that I must dismantle everything and have it stored away on the day after Christmas. By noon, if at all possible. Paprika is a little less stringent about the timing, perhaps willing to leave everything in place all the way to THE NEW YEAR. *Deep breaths...slow...deep breaths.* I have (in my mind) a good reason for this need to clear away all the Christmas stuff....my school break is two weeks long. Depending on the way the calendar falls in any given year, this gives me approximately a week of Christmas doings and a week of total vacation. How can I POSSIBLY enjoy said total vacation when all these Christmas items are staring me in the face every day reminding me that they must be taken care of before I return to work? Well, I can't, I tell you!!! Or I should say I couldn't. I find myself relaxing a bit this year...not in quite as big a rush to complete the tear-down and get on with other things. Maybe it's the fact that I've got two little girls who will be so disappointed to see Christmas go. Maybe it's the fact that we've rushed ourselves silly for the last month or so and I am all rushed out. Maybe I'm finally learning that time will go by quickly enough and I better not wait until everything is just the way I'd like it to be before I can relax. Yeah, that's it. At least I hope it is.

Paprika is the Man!

2008-12-22T08:24:00.000-08:00

A couple of months ago I wrote a post about the new FLIP video cameras that I purchased for my school and *hinted* very discreetly that I would love to get one for Christmas. Well, Paprika not only bought me one, he got the FAYNCY model! AND he already charged it up and gave it to me! This, in spite of the fact that he strongly opposes my penchant for giving and/or getting gifts early. But since he knew that I would want to use it to record our family's Christmas celebrations this week he bravely overcame this silly insistence upon waiting until the actual day to present the gift to the recipient. Now you may enjoy this special rendition of Jingle Bells, thankyouverymuch!

O Tannenbaum!

2008-12-17T20:27:00.000-08:00

Well, here it is....our Christmas tree this year! We actually managed to get it decorated on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, even though we went out of state to visit family for the holiday. That was possible only because Paprika worked tirelessly to get the FAKE tree assembled before we left town. Okay, I'm a little disappointed about the FAKE tree, but we didn't have any other option this year, due to the above-mentioned trip. Yes, it looks like a hot mess, but what do you expect when two of the three people working on it are under 5?!?!? Sadly, our tree is lacking the finishing touch this year. The finishing touch that has set it apart from all others. You may have noticed the lovely silver and gold star atop the tree....purchased at Michael's the day after Christmas last year per Paprika's instructions to replace the topper we had used for many, many years. Well, he didn't say that I had to dispose of the old one, so ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce you to....

the ever-popular (with me!) Tasmanian Devil angel tree topper. Notice the leather jacket! Now what could possibly prompt Paprika to suggest replacing such a wonderful piece of Christmas finery, I ask you?

Elf Yourself, again

2008-12-07T20:40:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Elf Yourself

2008-12-07T13:54:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Christmas Parade

2008-12-07T12:23:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to Burleson for the annual Christmas Parade of Lights. The parade was shorter than usual, but the girls didn't mind that. We walked down to the commons area at the end of the parade to see Santa light the city's Christmas tree. After the tree lighting, there were fireworks set to Christmas music and this was by far the best part of the evening. The girls were in awe of all the beautiful colors and the music matched the display extremely well. And what Texan doesn't prefer to see fireworks in chilly weather at 7 PM, I ask you???

Whistle Stop Christmas!

2008-12-07T12:03:00.000-08:00

Friday evening we drove down to Cleburne's Hulen Park for their Whistle Stop Christmas celebration. The girls had so much fun running around and touching all of the lights. There were hundreds of displays from the US flag to toy soldiers to trains to younameit. It was quite chilly, but that didn't slow Sugar or Spice down a bit. Paprika forgot his hat so he was suffering a bit, (what with the increasing lack of natural head covering that he's experiencing), but he played along for the girls' sake. If you're looking for something inexpensive (read: FREE) and fun, head on out to Cleburne...it's well worth the drive,especially at $1.58/gallon!

Perhaps You Didn't Know That...

2008-12-05T20:51:00.000-08:00

December 5th is a VERY important holiday on the U. S. calendar. For the uninitiated, today was 'Bathtub Party Day'. Sugar and Spice had a blast celebrating with party hats, blowers, bubble bath, and bubbles. Next year we'll have to add some music and lights...

Ho! Ho! Ho!

2008-12-05T20:32:00.000-08:00

Well, we survived our 9 hour car trip (EACH WAY!) to Mississippi with three preschoolers over the Thanksgiving holiday. It was great to visit with my aunt and cousins, who we hadn't seen since Sugar was just a few months old. We were also able to visit with the man in the red suit while we were there! The three cousins (Sugar, Spice, and Cinnamon) talked amongst themselves while they waited in line apparently, and all three asked for the exact same thing: a cupcake maker and baby dolls. Well, I'm afraid that Santa is going to be all out of the cupcake makers since a little research revealed that the refill supplies cost about $13 a pop. Oh, no ma'am. We won't be going down that road! Paprika suggested a fancy cupcake pan and a pastry bag. Now that's more like it!

Spice's First Haircut

2008-11-22T19:26:00.000-08:00

Spice got her first haircut today and I think I can state without reservation that she thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Just see for yourself!

Spice, She LOVES the Jewelry

2008-11-14T20:26:00.000-08:00

We were at my brother's house a couple of weeks ago when Spice found her cousin's stash of plastic necklaces and bracelets. She proceeded to don every single one of them. Ladies and Gentlemen, I present 'Missus T'!

The Post in Which She Does Not Mention Sugar OR Spice

2008-11-09T19:56:00.001-08:00

I was finally able to watch Expelled, the Movie, last week. Wow. If you haven't seen it, you should definitely make the time. Ben Stein does an amazing job of showing how academia marginalizes, ostracizes, and punishes anyone who attempts to question the religion of Darwinism. He also draws a clear correlation between science's blind belief in the theories put forth by Darwin and the holocaust perpetrated by Hitler, as well as the continuing atrocity of abortion perpetuated by groups like Planned Parenthood. This movie provides much to think about in terms of academic freedom and the open hostility of many in the 'academic elite' toward those who dare to even suggest that there might be a Designer behind the earth and all it contains. It was recently released on DVD so go rent it.

Boo Hoo.

2008-11-06T19:03:00.000-08:00

Due to a death in the family, I missed Halloween with the girls this year. My mom's only brother died unexpectedly and I had to fly to Virginia with her, my brother, and my niece for the funeral over the weekend. I hated missing trick-or-treating with my little pirate and Dr. Sugar, but I did get to see them in their costumes the weekend prior to Halloween when we went to a local fall festival. And, thanks to the wonders of technology, I was able to get pictures of them on Halloween from Paprika almost instantly! When I spoke to Sugar on the phone Friday evening she told me that she had gotten LOTS of candy, much more than Spice. Hmmm, I ask, how did you get more candy than Spice (knowing that they had been to the exact same places). Well, she says, I guess they thought I was cute. Oh, of course. That must be it!

Alas, poor Jack! I knew him...

2008-10-26T19:09:00.000-07:00

It seems that Jack suffered a mortal wound in the frenzied attack perpetrated upon him by Spice shortly after his creation Friday night. We're hoping he can hang in there until Friday!

What did one jack-o-lantern say to the other? Cut it out!

2008-10-26T17:42:00.000-07:00

We carved our pumpkin Friday night. The girls are so excited to have it lit up on our mantle in the evenings, as you can see by the way Spice attacks it at the end of this video.

Bold as Brass, He Was...

2008-10-21T20:46:00.000-07:00

He first made his presence known Monday morning in the predawn moments as I was in the kitchen preparing to go to school. Why he couldn't have waited a bit longer to dart from his hidey hole across the kitchen floor to the safety of the area beneath the refrigerator, I'll never understand. I alerted Paprika to the 'guest' in our home and left for work, confident that Ralph S. Mouse (that's a Beverly Cleary reference for all of you nonliterary types) would be enjoying his eternal reward by the time I arrived home. Naturally, I made sure that Sugar, Spice and I arrived home after Paprika....just trying to spare the girls the graphic image of their mother running back out of the house screaming, I mean, the image of a bloody little gray body lying broken in the trap. Well, there was no need to fear, I mean, protect the little darlings because Ralph had enjoyed a lovely lunch and was still sitting somewhere with his little feet up dreaming of his next meal. Okay. He might get lucky one time, but surely there would be a satisfying *SNAP* in the night that would put an end to this drama. Ummm, no. Not the case. So this morning I was forced to turn on every light between me and the garage in order to prevent any sneak attacks in the dark. Little did I know that Ralph was not one for sneak attacks. While we were finishing dinner this evening (after arriving home to find the trap once again empty), Paprika stepped into the kitchen to prepare his caramel apple. The girls and I were sitting at the table finishing our meal when suddenly there was a VERY LOUD crash behind us. I turned to see that Paprika had slammed a plastic bowl down on the floor upside-down. He then informed us that he had just captured the mouse. Yes, that is right. He captured the mouse WHO HAD COME OUT FROM UNDER THE FRIDGE WITH ALL OF US SITTING RIGHT THERE IN BROAD DAYLIGHT, PEOPLE! Clever man that he is, Paprika slipped the little straw connected to his can of ether underneath the bowl and sent Ralph on to the next world. He also used a similar method to put our elderly cat to sleep when she became aggressive toward Sugar, but that's a story for another post. When he removed the body from the death chamber, Spice exclaimed (in her best oochy cooochy baby talk voice) "He's such a pretty little mouse." Yeah, right. Now that he's dead. RIP Ralph.

I'm FLIPpin' Out!

2008-10-21T19:56:00.000-07:00

I purchased three Flip video cameras for my school this year and I have been playing with one for the last week or so to figure out how it works and such. Simply because I must be knowledgeable about the equipment the library owns, don'tcha know. Well, I'm IN LOVE with this little camera! It's SO easy to use! If you're not familiar with the brand, it features a USB connection that 'flips' out of the side to plug directly into your computer. And the software is contained inside the camera! It's! SO! Cool! It has 60 minutes of recording time on a flash drive and the software includes 6 different video 'styles'. The movie maker takes your video clips and combines them, edits them, and adds effects to create a great little video WITH music. You can use the music included with the style or add your own. Here's a couple of movies I made last night of Sugar and Spice working on our Halloween craft and making cupcakes.

So I'd just like to end by saying *ahem*...All I want for Christmas is a Flip camera, a Flip camera, yes, a Flip camera! Gee, if I could only have a Flip cameraaaaaaa...then I could make some awesome movies! And you know, in case someone (Paprika! Nana! Salt!) reads this and actually decides to buy one for me...I prefer the black case. It's got the very nice rubbery feel to it, you see.

And if there are any Flip executives reading this who would like to reward my product plug with a free camera....I would, of course, be very gracious!

Trust, As Displayed in the Hay Barn

2008-10-19T18:58:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, we went with my brother, Salt, and my niece, Cinnamon, to Mainstay Farm, a local farm that celebrates 'pumpkin days' every Saturday in October. We have made a tradition of visiting this beautiful farm every fall. One of our favorite parts of the visit is getting an annual picture in front of the "Texas Grown Pumpkins" sign.

But, I digress. Our final stop of the day was the hay barn. They had numerous bales of hay stacked to create a play area that was about 4 feet tall at its highest point. The girls were having a blast climbing up the 'stairs' and running around on top. It wasn't long before they wanted to jump off and be caught by Salt and/or Paprika. While watching this display, I was struck by the demonstration of trust right in front of me and how it corrolated to my own faith. First, there was Spice. She's a risk-taker...within limits. She had the desire to jump off to her Daddy's arms, but she's not quite willing to put herself all the way out there yet. She still wants the security of knowing that someone's holding her hands before she makes a move. Next, there's Sugar....she's moved a little farther along the continuum. She's scared, that's obvious by the way she constantly bends down to touch the hay whenever she encounters any instability. But despite her fear, she knows that her daddy will catch her so she tentatively jumps to him without any contact before the leap. (Sugar has come a long way in the last year! Jumping out into space like this would have been unthinkable this time last year.) And then there's Cinnamon. The epitome of trust. Eyes never wavering from Salt's face, she launches herself off the hay without hesitation. It's as if the thought that he might not catch her has never crossed her mind. If her daddy says, "Jump!" she jumps. Simple as that. Oh, that I would learn to be like Cinnamon in my relationship with my heavenly father. If I'm honest, I'd have to admit that I'm much more like Spice...still wanting reassurance before I leap. Oh, that I would learn to fling myself into my Father's arms, knowing without a doubt that He will always catch me when He tells me to jump.

Grab Your Tissues as We Say Goodbye to an Old Friend sniff

2008-10-19T16:24:00.000-07:00

Paprika and I 'celebrated' the end of an era Friday night. And I use 'celebrated' in the sense that means broke down bawling like babies and screaming, "NOOOOO!" Okay, it wasn't really that dramatic, but it was with a great deal of sadness and nostalgia that we enjoyed our final pizza at THE BEST pizza place in town and beyond. We're not sure how long Charlie's restaurant has been open, but we've been going there since shortly after we married 20 years ago. The thin-crust capicolla and meatball pizza was divine....so much so that we never ordered anything else. Shortly after we placed our order, the waitress announced that the meatballs were still being prepared. Did we want to order something else? Uh, no....considering this was the final supper, so to speak, we'd wait for the meatballs. So, as we sat there Friday night, musing over the fact that we'd not get another chance to savor the delicious, hand-made crust topped with an indescribable combination of sauce, meat, and cheese, we decided to order a second large pizza to take home and put in the freezer. We let the waitress know about our intention and she returned to the kitchen to place our second order....but, it was not to be. The meatballs, which were still not ready, would not be rushed a second time. So, after all these years, we ordered something different. When we got home and I was putting the pizza away, I remarked to Paprika, "It would be the saddest thing if this pizza was even better than the kind we'd ordered for all these years." His reponse: "I have no regrets either way." And that's just one of the many reasons that I love this guy.

Love the Liberry!

2008-10-13T19:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Nana and I took the girls downtown to the central library for Libraryfest. (Paprika stayed home to mow the lawn....he's awesome like that!)The organizers did a great job of providing activities for children of all ages...we stopped by the coloring table where Sugar took the opportunity to hit Nana up for some glitter crayons this Christmas,

Spice played with some foam blocks, then

tossed bean bags through the 'Rocky' board

while Sugar continued to work on her masterpiece.

Don't know where all this artistic talent came from.....must be the recessive genes coming into play! It's certainly not from her parents.

We also got balloons! We love balloons! Balloons are SO much fun! Until they fly away...which they always seem to do before we can get them home. Why is it that no matter how careful you try to be those little suckers always seem to escape???

Our Little Picasso

2008-10-05T13:13:00.000-07:00

All of a sudden, Sugar has started doing some really nice artwork. It's like she just noticed the lines and started coloring inside them without being prompted. Just look at this:

I may be slightly biased, but that's pretty darn good for a four-year-old in my opinion!

A Fair to Remember

2008-10-04T19:08:00.000-07:00

Everybody sing along: Our state fair is a great state fair! Don't miss it! Don't even delay!

Well, Paprika and I took Sugar 'n Spice out to the great state fair of Texas yesterday. As you can see from this photo, Sugar got her first 'professional' face painting done while we were there. Let's just say that I won't make the mistake of giving her free choice of any design that they offer next time. And I won't assume that the sign refers to tickets instead of fourteen. actual. dollars. Ah well, lessons learned. She basked in the admiration of almost everyone we encountered after she was adorned with her butterfly design, (which was well-deserved, if you ask me) so I guess there are worse ways we could've blown that amount of money.

Spice was a much cheaper date this time

around. She wanted to have her turn in the make-up artist's chair, but since I knew that she'd never sit still for the amount of time necessary to complete any design they offered, I told her no, that she'd get her turn next year. She gladly accepted this rainbow bandage as a consolation prize. What a little trooper! Somehow I don't think I'll be able to pull that off for much longer...

We sampled one of the 'new-this-year-fried-delicacies---chocolate covered strawberry waffle balls. OH MY! YES! They were an experience in tas-teee! Not what I expected, but YUMMY just the same. I also had a plan in place to also try this year's

winner (chicken-fried bacon), but was unable to accomplish that goal due to the fact that the very idea of chicken-friend bacon was apparently unbelievably appealing to hundreds of thousands of people who waited in line while they cooked the treat one or two slices at a time. Okay, maybe it wasn't that bad, but it certainly seemed that way when I was standing in the hot sun with two cranky preschoolers while Paprika was off on a mission of his own. I know when I'm beat...

We had a great time at this year's fair...although I've threatened to leave the Sugar 'n Spice at Grammy's house next year...I'm sure memories of the aching back and utter exhaustion that goes along with the trip will fade and I'll relent when fall rolls around again next year.

I Used To Be Smarter (Before I Had Kids)

2008-10-02T18:38:00.000-07:00

On the way home from church last night, I had the following conversation with Sugar when we stopped to look at a neighbor's Halloween decorations:

Sugar: Where are the shooting stars?

Me: I don't know what you're talking about, baby.

Sugar: Well, Daddy knows about shooting stars.

Me: Yes, he does. Daddy is very smart. He knows about alot of things.

Sugar: Yeah, but you're not. Right, Mommy?

A Random (?) Act of Kindness

2008-09-27T19:29:00.001-07:00

We took the girls to the Log Cabin Village in Fort Worth this afternoon for the annual fall harvest celebration. We stopped at the IHOP for breakfast on our way where, much to our surprise, a gentleman in a purple Alcorn State University t-shirt who was eating breakfast with a girl that I assume was his daughter, paid for our breakfast! The waitress came to our table after he left to let us know that he covered our tab. Yes, he did! Very surprising since he had to endure a good 45 minutes of restless preschoolers at the table next to him. Anyway, it made our day...and I immediately began thinking about how I could pass the kindness on to someone else. Isn't it funny how we tend to pass on whatever we receive, whether it's kindness or cruelty? Considering all that we've received from our heavenly Father we ought to be passing on much more kindness than we do....or at least I do. Maybe you guys are better about that than I am. Maybe if we (I) spent more time focusing on what I've already been given, instead of all the things that I want, it would be easier. Who would have thought you could get a life-lesson alongside your order of pancakes?

The girls had a great time at the Log Cabin Village. We saw candles being dipped, dinner being cooked over a fire, and a blacksmith at work. We got to grind corn, rope a 'cow' (or in Zoe's case, a cowboy!), and split wood. It was a great day all around!