Annual Family Pictures - Done!

Hello! I know it's been a little while - here's an update at the Fisher House. Not much to update really.  Mark is still waking up early and is usually very cranky.  I've been waking up very early to make sure I have time to pack the boys' lunches and help them get there stuff together before school.

We had our family pictures taken on Sunday.  I'm not sure how it's going to turn out.  I don't have high expectations since I probably have a better camera than the guy who took the pictures. I can't expect much from a $19 Groupon deal, right? But dude was super nice and was there earlier than our appointed time so we didn't have to wait around. All I need is one decent shot for our Christmas cards. The boys were really good during the whole session.  Mark loved saying "cheese"- which is not a good thing really because it makes him look constipated.  TMI? 

Yesterday, I took Mark to story time and he had so much fun! He was dancing, singing, talking, and playing along with everybody else.  And of course I did not have enough storage on my iPhone to take videos of the cutest moments of his life. Oh well - I need to start bringing the Vado with me everywhere.

We are hoping to make it to the pumpkin patch this weekend! We missed it last year because Marky was still so young and the older boys didn't really seem excited about going. This year, Mark is to perfect age and he get super excited when he sees the pumpkins. 

Three-Day Weekend

So I started this post yesterday morning and barely got in 4 words before little man woke up.  He's been tough lately. Actually, all my kids have been a little tough lately - Michael has initiated his "tween" years attitude and almost everything is a fight.  Again, I will live through it but he's a tough pill to take sometimes. At other times, he's as sweet as can be.  My little Matty is still my sweet little boy and he still kisses me before he gets on the school bus, even in front of his friends.

We had a pretty busy weekend - Michael had a soccer game in Dallas on Saturday, Matthew had a baseball game on Sunday and we drove into the city to visit the Perot Museum of Nature and Science on Monday.

We had a great sports weekend.  Michael's team won their game 6-1and Michael scored TWO goals. We were so proud and he was so excited.  He played really well, obviously!

We thought Matthew's game would be cancelled because of rain, but we got it in before the storm.  They played the team that beat them pretty badly last week.  This time, the boys did great! They won 21-18 and Matthew was the winning score! He did not strike out one time and caught a line drive! Even the coach from the other team high-fived him on that catch!

Mark also had fun at the game making a mess with sidewalk chalk with a group of girls.  They wanted nothing to do to with him at first and then relented because he kept bugging them to let him play too. He is a persistent little monkey and it paid off!

Since the kids had the day off and it was going to rain all day, I decided to take them to check out the Perot Museum.  We had to make reservations to get in and the earliest time available was 12 so we started out there later than I would like.

The museum was amazing and it was huge- 5 floors of exhibit halls.  We only made it to the children's museum and the engineering hall before Michael and Matthew complained that they were hungry. So we left after an hour and headed back home, but not before stopping by our Sonic to pick up some lunch.  Both boys had TWO corn dogs and lots of tots - so I guess they were REALLY hungry! It was a pretty good day.

My little "tween."  We got him his iPhone last month and those earbuds are in his ears more than I would like them to be.

Waiting for Matthew's game to start

Playing with the veggies at the children's museum.  Matthew was so sweet to his little brother.  He made sure that no one was taking Mark's stuff.

Working together to build a structure that will withstand an earthquake

More fun at the museum!

Rory Meyers Children's Garden

Mark and I hosted our weekly playdate Friday morning at the Rory Meyers Children's Adventure Garden at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden. I was so impressed with the place.  Everything was so well thought out.  We didn't get to explore it as much as I would like to because we had to be home in time to pick Matthew up from the bus stop, but my boys could spend the whole day there.  It was so much bigger than I thought it would be.  There were several sections with different educational themes, and most were interactive. There was a water play area that looked like the boys would enjoy.  I can't wait to go back with the other boys!

Before we went to see the children's garden, we hung out at the Pumpkin Village, which was also amazing. This is the 3rd year in a row that we've been there and, every year, I am in awe of all the beautiful pumpkins! Who knew there were so many different types?

My family membership expires this month so I'm going to have to remember to renew!

Here are some random pictures from our morning.

This is a view from the deck of the huge treehouse - bonus, it has an elevator so it's totally stroller and wheelchair friendly.

The giant flowerpot!

History

In honor of my birthday and for me to walk down memory lane a little bit, I thought I'd do a little history lesson on me.  I actually did not come up with idea - I read Tara's post at The Furr Four and thought it would be fitting for me to do s history post since today I turn 37.  Yikes, 3 more years until I hit the big 40.

Since I'm a little older than Tara, I'll start from 14 years ago when I graduated.

Fourteen Years Ago (1999)

 - I was 22 years old and had just graduated from Santa Clara University in June with a Marketing degree

- After graduation, I went traveling all over Asia and Australia with my girlfriends for a whole month- Hong Kong, Tokyo, Bangkok, Phuket, Melbourne and Sydney

- I met my future husband

- Started my first "real job" as an Account Coordinator at an advertising agency

- Lived in San Mateo, CA with 2 other girls who were very nice, but we lost touch

Ten Years Ago (2003)
- I was 27 years old

- We welcomed our first little boy, Michael, in March!

- I've been married for 2 years

- We were living with my parents to save money for our first house in Morgan Hill

- I was working at my second job in Palo Alto after being laid-off from the advertising agency

Eight Years Ago (2005)
- I was 29 years old

- We welcomed our second little boy, Matthew, in June!

- We bought our first home less than a year ago in Morgan Hill, 5 minutes from my parents

- I was still working in Palo Alto

Five Years Ago (2008)
- I was 32 years old

- We made the BIG moved to Frisco, TX 2 years earlier (this is the first time I have lived outside of Northern CA)

- Experienced Texas snow for the first time!

- I was working in Irving

- My hubby and I went on vacation to Maui without the kids for the first time

Two Years Ago (2011)
- I was 35 years old

- We welcomed out 3rd baby boy, Mark!

- I was still working in Irving

- I was driving a Honda Odyssey (Loved that van!)

- We went to St. Thomas that year for our annual family vacation- I was 7 months pregnant! My brother, his wife and my sister met us there.  One of my favorite vacations.

Now (2013)
- After moving back to CA for a short while, we decided to move back to Texas and settled on Southlake.  We've been here for 4 years.  In those 4 years, we welcomed another baby boy, Mark, in November, 2011

- I decided to quit my job and stay home with my boys

- Visited CA for 3 weeks in summer and hung out with my family and my first ever nephew. We also celebrated Matthew's 8th birthday there.

This has been a year of adjusting to new responsibilities and situations, accepting new realities and facing some challenges. Some adjustments have been easy and others have not been so easy.  I'm looking forward the rest of this year and see what is in store for us!

Has It Been That Long?

I've kind of taken an inadvertent hiatus from posting, haven't I?  Blame it on my little monkey.  He's been waking up very early so my power hour for getting things done disappeared.  As I'm typing, I hope that he stays asleep long enough for me at least finish this post.

Hes' been so clingy lately and I think maybe it's his age.  He wants me to hold him ALL. THE. TIME. I know that this is only a phase, but it is a very aggravating phase.  It's so hard to get things done!

Anyway, we've had a good week.  Last Friday, the boys got their progress report and they are doing great! Michael is making As in all his classes except for an 89 in Social Studies (and this is because he didn't have his folder organized for a folder check - he scored a 50% out of 100% so this brought his grade down).

Matthew made all As, except an 85 in Math.  We told him that it was good, but we know he can do better especially since he scored a perfect 100% in Science. I'm so proud of my boys!

On Monday, Mark and I went to get my car washed at the dealership in Grapevine so I decided to check out the Heritage Botanical Garden and Park because it was close by. I have to say that Grapevine has the best parks around.  Everything was so clean and play structure was the perfect size for toddlers! We ate our lunch and then Mark played for a little over and hour! He loved it and has finally decided that he's not afraid to go down the slides anymore.

Once he was done playing, we walked around the Garden until 5 minutes into it and I got 2 mosquitos bites.  Then WNV fears took over and we high-tailed it out of there.  I hate when it's so pretty outside and we can't even enjoy it because of the nasty bugs.

Yesterday, Jennie and Grandpa kept Mark for a couple of hours so I can go to the school and unpack the trinket inventory for the Spirit Shop opening on Thursday. And then there was a PTO meeting - uneventful, but I felt like I needed to be there since I'm on the Board and haven't been able to make it yet this year.

Grandpa took Matthew to baseball practice yesterday. Matthew has improved so much since he first started.  He had two games last weekend and only struck out once. The best thing about baseball is that he's actually excited about it.  He doesn't always want to go to practices, but when he's there, he has so much fun and he loves to play the game, especially when he is doing well.

And I can't end this without saying that I am so thankful for the cooler weather! Even though we have to cover ourselves in bug spray when we go outside, I'm relieved that it doesn't feel like we are stepping into an oven. I actually got to wear my boots on Saturday at Matthew's baseball game!

Here's my little slugger! He's so skinny and cute!

Last Friday, Mark and I went to a playdate at the Ft. Worth Zoo. It was a perfect day to enjoy outside and we got to see the baby elephants. Mark also loved feeding the birds in the aviary.

It was so chilly on Saturday that we finally broke out the sweater and jeans!

 I love his little expressions...

Playing in the playroom at the car dealership while we waited for our car to get washed.

We explored the vegetable gardens at the Heritage Botanical Garden.  Then Mommy got bit and we had to leave. Thankfully, Mark was spared.

We watched the cement mixer and construction crew put in some sidewalk. Mark seemed fascinated with the big trucks and the big noise.