It's Wednesday already...

This week seems to be flying by. The boys were out of school on Monday and we had a nice day. We met friends for a nice breakfast and then went to the Aquarium (yes again). We spent a couple of hours there and then Connor talked us in to going to the Museum. We do have memberships at both places so that helps. Connor had brought along some fossils he wanted to have analyzed just in case. The people at the museum were very nice about it and took our fossils and labeled them. They said they would get back to us in a couple of weeks.


These are the fossils we took to the museum

Connor is reading a book that Grandma bought him for his birthday. It's called "Cruisin the Fossil Freeway". It was written by the curator of the DMNS (Denver Museum of Nature and Science). He is giving a lecture about fossils in a couple of weeks and we are going to try to go. Connor would love to get his book autographed..I don't know if that will be possible but just hearing him in person will be interesting. The illustrator of this book is Ray Troll He lives in Alaska and he does kind of far out drawings of nature, mostly fish but he illustrated this fossil book. Connor says "he's kind of a hippie". haha

Alex's Zoo Field Trip

On Friday Alex's class had a field trip to the Zoo. Mark had the day off so he went with us too. It was a nice day for it. Started out a little cool but warmed up. The kids did a little class and they brought out a few animals for the kids. One was a milk snake which most kids enjoyed touching but some didn't. Then we walked around a little while and found a nice place by the carousel to have lunch. Then we walked around the rest of the Zoo. It was a fun day.

Congratulations Tamara and Mike!!!!

We found out a few days ago that Mark's sister (and mine) and her husband Mike are having a baby girl in September. We are so happy for them and can't wait to have a new baby in the family... We know they will be the best Mom and Dad a Little girl could ask for. Hang on Mike and Tam you are in for the ride of your life. With all of it's ups and downs, having kids has been the best thing Mark and I have ever done. We are so excited for both of you!


“What Is A Little Girl!”

She's a bundle of sweetness,
brightness & fun

The beauty of springtime,
the warmth of the sun

She's Innocence covered with mud,
sand, & soot

She's Motherhood dragging
a doll by the foot...


She's a composite picture of
giggles & tears

Of tantrums, excitement,
amusement & fears

A bundle of mischief
and often a tease

A creature of moods
not easy to please...


Who'll capture your heart
with her pixie-like grin

Or chatter and beg till your
patience wears thin

But obedient, naughty,
mischievous or coy

She's Mom's little Darling &
Dad's Pride & Joy.

Did you know today is Earth Day??

I didn't but Connor sure did. He told me that after school he was going to go into the open space behind our house and collect garbage. He asked what I was going to do for Earth Day...after seeing the blank look on my face (I hadn't even had my coffee) He went to the marker board and made a check off list for everyone in our family to pick up litter. He is our little "tree hugger". haha.. I am proud of him that he is aware of the environment. He loves nature. I wouldn't be surprised if when he grows up he lives somewhere where he is surrounded by nature.

busy weekend...

Wow, finally a moment to catch our breath. It's been a busy weekend and it's only Saturday! Yesterday Connor and Alex both had football practice. Then off to our schools "Spring Fling". It was at South Suburban Family sports center. They have laser tag, bumper cars a climbing wall and more. The boys had a great time but we were there until after 9:00, then Alex's friend came home with us for an unplanned sleepover. Then up this morning for another FB practice at 9:00 and games at 10:00.

After the games we came back home for a little while then I took Alex and his friend to a birthday party. I watched them swim for a couple of hours and then drove them to the birthday boys house for a sleepover. They were having 7 boys over... I feel for them!

While we were at the party Mark took Connor to Dinosaur Ridge. They had a nice hike, found some nice rocks and got a lot of sun. Connor was very happy. He added the rocks to his museum collection.

I hope we all get a good nights sleep tonight... I doubt Alex will. He will probably be a bear tomorrow but that's the way it goes sometimes.

bye bye snow...

The snow was really pretty. Mark went outside last night and took a few pictures. It's warming up today though so it's all melting. It's supposed to be really nice by the weekend. Should be nice for our football games on Saturday.

Alex has really been wanting to take drum lessons so I checked around and got a name of someone who does lessons. I spoke to him today. Alex starts May 7th. I'm kind of excited for him because he has always really loved the drums and he does seem to have some natural talent..I know that sounds like such a mom thing to say but it's true.

We are all looking forward to summer. The boys are going to play tennis a couple times a week for a few weeks. Their PE teacher does lessons in the summer. The boys really like coach and it's very reasonable so they should have fun. We are doing it with a friend too so that's always fun. Alex is going to play baseball. His first game is June 7th. I think I might check into some fossil hunts or classes for Connor. Does anyone know of any? We are planning to visit Mt.Rushmore this summer. We have heard there are some fossil museums in South Dakota not too far from Mt. Rushmore. I think it's mostly mammoth fossils but Connor would still enjoy it I think.

I will be off to pick up the boys soon. We need to make a stop on the way home to get Alex a new mouth piece for football.

I wanted to add I tried another new recipe yesterday it's "Easy crock pot french dip". I'm not a big french dip person but it was really good and all three boys liked it!! It's always a challenge to find something everyone will eat. I will post the recipe on the right hand side of the blog in case any one cares to try it........it's yummy.

Would you believe it's snowing again??

Yesterday you would have thought Spring was here for sure and Summer was just around the corner. It was 80 degrees yesterday and now it's snowing. Everyone I know is sick of the snow and I am too but It's not so bad when you know it can't last much longer. I'm sure the moisture is good for the ground too.. but still, it's getting old. (or maybe I am).

Mark has been busy this week. He seems to be doing good. His arm still bothers him at times but it is getting better. He says "wow my arm feels a lot better when I wear my brace". I say "imagine that"!!! I know the brace slows him down and gets in his way but I'm sure the doctor would say "you must wear it for it to heal". I'm not a doctor so I wouldn't know..haha Maybe I could recruit some of you to help me convince him.. Mom, Dad, anyone?? help.

Connor and Alex have testing this week so no homework..yeah! Connor had a little last night but it was make up work from when he was sick. I forgot how much I loved fractions..ha That's okay I will take fractions over algebra any day.. Mark will surely have to take over helping when it comes to that. (Not that he doesn't help now, he does).

Alex has been complaining that there are two girls in his class that keep "being mean" to him. I've been trying to help with it just by saying "try to ignore them" or let the teacher know but he asked me this morning if I could talk to his teacher because it was really bothering him. The odd thing is he's been in class with these girls a long time and there has never been a problem. Anyway I spoke to his teacher and asked her if she knew what was going on and she said both girls have crushes on Alex. She said he is popular... (with the girls I think she meant). I guess he is kind of cute, not that I'm bias or anything. So I guess Alex in interpreting it as mean but maybe they just want his attention? I don't know but she promised she would talk to the girls and keep an eye on things.

That's about it for today. I'm trying a new crock pot recipe for French Dip. It smells really good cooking. If it turns out good I will put the recipe on the blog. Have a good day!

Sunday

We had a good Sunday. It was really nice outside. The boys played outside all day. They are pretty tired now. Mark and his Dad worked on the minivan (our catering vehicle) for several hours today. It's really too old to put very much money into, but we are trying to "limp" it along. It's 10 or 11 years old and it has been a good vehicle for us. It's just wearing out. Mark is very tired and I'm sure Dad is too. Thanks for your help Dad. I know Mark really appreciated it!

One of the things the kids did today was play on the trampoline. They wanted to turn the hose on and spray it, which is something they do in the summer but it wasn't quite warm enough today. Our neighbor/friends were over too. They all really wanted to get wet so I ended up using warm water in buckets and pouring it down on them from the deck. They all loved it but were soon cold and wanted to put dry clothes on.







Photography courtesy of Helen C.

Saturday

I'm happy to report everyone is happy and healthy today. Connor is feeling much better. Both boys football games were cancelled due to snow on the field. I think it was good Connor wasn't out there in the cold after being sick. They were both disappointed though.

We had a pretty low key day. We relaxed this morning and went to the movie this afternoon. We saw Nim's Island. It was pretty good. Alex really wanted to see it, Connor wasn't sure but he ended up enjoying it quite a bit.

Mama said there would be days like these... or something like that.

The weather's been cold and snowy, it's tax time, AND Connor is sick!
Other than that everything is great. Actually it's not that bad, we have a lot to be thankful for. The weather is supposed to clear up by Saturday. We finished most of the tedious tax stuff today. Connor is on the road to recovery (I hope). He has the flu. Fever, sore throat and aches. He was getting bored today so I take that as a sign he's feeling better.

Above pictures are taken out our back today. The picture below is of zinnias (my favorite flower) I added it just because it gives me hope that Spring will return soon.

Sunday...last official day of Spring Break

We mostly spent the day relaxing and trying to get ready for school Monday. Connor had a science test to study for. He seemed to do well on the review but we will see how the test goes today.

We decided to take a bike ride. We have a trail close to our house. It's called Wildcat Ridge. It leads up to an overlook with an amazing view. You can see all of down town, the mountains and the tech center. It was perfect weather and we had a beautiful clear view. The boys rode their bikes and I actually walked. Connor stopped several times along the way to look at and collect rocks. I had a pocket full by the time we made it to the top. I found an antler which the boys were excited about. (We brought it home, not sure you are really supposed to take things out of the park..shhhhh, don't tell anyone).

Saturday

It's hard to believe Spring Break is almost over. It has gone really fast. The kids will be back in school on Monday and back to our regular routine.

They both had football games this morning. Connor's team (The Seahawks) lost by only 2 points. Connor got to play Quarterback and made a couple of really nice passes. Alex's team (The Panthers) lost by 2 touchdowns I think. They played well but some of the players they played against seemed really big for their age group. That's okay it's good practice.

The "boys" decided to get their motorcycles out for the first time of the season,(Yes, even though Mark has a fractured arm) they rode in the backyard a little. By the time I got my camera out Connor had already finished so I didn't get any pics of him...

More Spring Break fun...

We had a fun day at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. I think Connor could go there at least once a week and never get tired of it. We met one of Alex's friends from school. We saw an astronaut show in the planetarium. Of course we went through the prehistoric exhibit. There is so much to see. We find new things every time we go.

There were a couple of stations set up through the Prehistoric exhibit where volunteers for the museum show the kids fossils, dinosaur bones...etc. It was kind of funny to watch Connor because most of the information they share with kids is very basic for someone like Connor who has loved and studied dinosaurs, fossils, rocks etc.. since he was about 4 years old. (I'm not bragging, just sharing..haha) He was very polite (I was proud of him) but they soon realized that Connor knew a lot about the subject and one older man really enjoyed quizzing Connor on different fossils and bones. He was impressed with Connor's knowledge and to tell the truth I was too. It must be nice at such a young age to have a passion for something that you just can't get enough of it.. I hope it continues. Maybe he will someday be a paleontologist.

Alex also loves the museum but I think his passions lie elsewhere, mainly with music. He loves his Ipod and listens to it a lot, especially every time we get in the car. He likes a lot of different kinds of music. Anything from 80's and 90's rock, Lyle Lovett to Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers. I haven't quite been able to bring him over to country music but I'm working on it!

I love sharing about our everyday life with you all. I would love to hear from you if you are reading this. Even just a quick comment would be great! Thanks.

Still on Spring Break...

We are having a nice Spring Break. On Monday we went to the Aquarium. Grandma got to come with us. She had never been there so the kids enjoyed showing her around. It's one of their favorite places. Yesterday we went bowling and swimming. Tomorrow we are going to the museum. They have a new Astronaut exhibit in the planetarium we are going to see.

Mom left yesterday. We sure miss her, but we had a good time with her while she was here. She came skiing with us, watched the boys football games and just hung out with us. I'm sure by the time she left she was ready for some peace and quiet. Thanks for coming Mom. We miss you!

Mark's health update...good news..not an April fools prank...

We received some great news yesterday and I wanted to share it with everyone. Mark had labs (blood work) done a couple of months ago after his radiation treatments. Without getting into all the details the doctor had some concerns about his white count and other results. He thought it was probably due to radiation but wasn't sure so needless to say it has weighed a little heavy on our minds. Well, a few days ago he had another workup done and we found out yesterday everything was back to normal. His oncologist did say that Mark needs to have some more testing done with his Hydrocephalus. The main thing he needs to have done is a spinal tap. He's really looking forward to that..NOT.


On another note, Mark injured his arm while skiing. He had it x-rayed today and he has some small fractures. I don't think there is much they can do. It will just have to heal.

Thank you all for your support and concern regarding Mark through his health ordeals. I will try to keep you updated.