Happy St. Paddy's Day!

2010 Houston Saint Patrick's Day Parade

This past weekend, Jackson and I invited our friends, Rachel and Matt, along with their three children to ride with us on a WWII firetruck with The Bluebonnet Brigade.

A Houston tradition, the 51st annual Houston St. Patrick's Day Parade 2010 was presented by the Houston St. Patrick's Parade Commission. The two-hour event has historically been one of the largest parades of its kind in the U.S. and included 127 entries to delight the Irish and Irish-at-heart. The parade started and ended at Minute Maid Park in downtown Houston and was Free to the public.

We had a lot of fun - I am glad that Jackson and I are able to participate in events like these, but more glad to be able to share the experience with others!

The pictures I took may look a little grainy or the color may be a tad off because I took them with my cell phone.

How cute is this guy here??

This picture doesn't do these beautiful cars justice.
I can't even remember how many DeLoreans there were, here you can see clearly see 6 of them.

Yellow Antique Fire Truck

I really liked this float (it's all the sparkles, I'm sure, lol),
but the lighting of the sun made it hard to see in the picture.

Jackson and I sitting on top of the truck waiting for the parade to start.

Jackson's School Picture - Kindergarten 2009

Just look at how cute he is. I mean, really! I know as his Mother, I'm horribly biased, but can you blame me?! Just look at his eyes! "Lady-Killers", I call them.

He's grown soo much since last year! I can't believe my Little Man will be turning six years old in just a few short months...(sigh) Where does the time go??

Happy Hooky-Day!

On Tuesday the 4th of August, we decided to play Hooky...

That's right, I told my boss that I wouldn't be coming in, Jack took his regularly scheduled day off, and we kept Jackson out of his last day of Summer Camp at his school so we could have one last "Hoo-Rah" as a family before Jackson started Kindergarten.

We told Jackson that we were going to take him to Splashtown, but before we went to the water park, HE got to decide where we ate for breakfast, since it was his special day. So he chose IHOP because that is his favorite restaurant in the whole wide world!

It was so funny to watch him eat his pancakes too! People watching him must have thought we starved him or something because after he so delicately poured each and every one of the syrups displayed on the table (there was at least six of them) on to his pancakes, he literally inhaled them! He had strawberry syrup from his lips to his ears!

Jackson was a little bummed because usually IHOP has someone there making balloon creatures, and today that person must have not been working. After we finished our meals, we practically had to roll ourselves out to the truck. We ate like kings!


Splashtown is such a fun place to go during the week in the Summer-time. We are lucky that we live so close, maybe 30 minutes (if that!) from the water park.

We were smart and printed our tickets from home so that we could bypass the ticket stand at the front of the park and just we just went right in. This method makes things so much easier for everyone, and you get to start having fun just as soon as you get your personal items in your locker! We all put on our 45 block sunscreen, and we were ready to get wet!

(Click on the picture to enlarge map of the Rides and Slides)

Jackson now meets the height requirement of 48 inches to get on the rides/slides. For a five year-old little boy, he's pretty darn big! The first slide we went on was called the Texas Free fall! It's five stories of heart pounding, side by side free falling excitement. Daddy went first, then Jackson, then me, and let me just say, OH MY GOODNESS! Jack and I both screamed...but not Jackson. No, he was either very brave, or too scared to scream! I think maybe it was a mix of the two. This slide was one of Jackson's favorites!

Then, we swam into the Wild Wave Pool. It's about a half-million gallons of water and every 30 minutes or so waves surge through the pool just like at the beach, only without the seaweed! It's great fun for the family, and is really nice for kids of all ages. They also have life vests available for free!

The Blue Lagoon Activity Pool, Tree House Island, and the Guadalupe River (Lazy River) were also a lot of fun. Jackson was swimming underwater all by himself in the Lazy River and he also hitched a ride on Daddy's back a few times. Tree House Island is a three-story play area with climbing nets, slippery slides, and a huge 1,000 gallon bucket that tips over periodically and blasts water over anyone and everyone who is standing below!

We also went on the Rip Qurl (I have no idea why it is spelled that way!) and Big Spin, both of which remind me of toilet bowls being flushed, Space Rapids, and the Tornado.
I have to admit, the Tornado was a pretty great ride! We rode in a quad-raft, and I was lucky enough to be in the position that made me face backwards pretty much the entire time, and it was scary! The ride begins on a platform set 75 feet in the air, then riders are set in motion down a 132 foot long tunnel and thrown into the giant open-ended funnel splashing back and forth on 5,000 gallons of swirling water. I seriously thought we were going to fall out of our raft because we went up so far on the sides of the funnel!

I really enjoyed taking the day off to spend with my husband and soon-to-be Kindergartner and our 'Family Fun Day' certainly was a lot of fun, but after four hours at Splashtown standing in long lines with the sun beating down on us in 107 degree heat (with the heat index), we were spent!
Jackson passed out pretty much once his seat belt was fastened, and I sat in the passengers seat looking back at his sweet little sleepy, sun-kissed face. Jack and I reminisced about how little he used to be, and how there are times now that when he moves a certain way, or when we catch a glimpse of his profile, it takes us back to the day he was born!

There are times when it makes me sad to think about how fast the years have gone by, especially knowing that I can never get that time back, but more often than not it makes me happy to see how much he's grown over the years. He's turned out to be quite the charmer - he's very intelligent and also very handsome.


We are all very excited for Jackson to start Kindergarten and I will post very soon to tell all about his First Day!

Our Busy Weekend

I will start with yesterday, and work my way back through the weekend. I am most proud of this one anyway!

Jackson can now ride a bike without training wheels!!!

I was milling around the house picking up and folding laundry (towels) in the living room yesterday after I came from from the Bridal Extravaganza when Jackson returned from the movies with Mimi and Pappy - they went to go watch G-Force. Jackson said the movie was "really awesome!". Jackson asked if it was okay if he rode his bike in our cul-de-sac while I finished the towels, and I said that would be fine. I started to go outside to help him open up the garage door, but he insisted that he didn't need my help, and that he could do it all by himself. Jackson waited for me to get completely inside the house before he opened the garage door to bring his tricycle out.

I had just about finished the towels when he comes back into the house telling me that I NEEDED to come outside right away and watch him because he could ride without using his training wheels. To be honest, I thought he meant that he finally found his balance on his bike and didn't need the assistance of his training wheels...boy was I wrong.

I go outside, not to find his tricycle, but rather his BIG bike that looks like a dirt bike that we were saving for him for when he got a bit bigger. The bike is easily 40 pounds, and he wants to show me that he can ride it. (It was then that I realized why he insisted on him getting his bike out by himself.) My heart must have been beating 90 to nothing as I was steadying the bike for him. Once he got situated, he began pedaling and made two circles around our cul-de-sac, and then went straight to the last mailbox without falling at all!

Giant tears filled in my eyes, and I ran over to him telling him that he was the Coolest Boy I knew, and how happy and proud of him I was! We ran inside and got Daddy so he could see too! Jack was so proud of him, and he went straight out to remove the training wheels off of his other bikes so we could put the other heavy bike up. I think it's too much bike for Jackson to be safe on...especially since he's just figured out how to ride without training wheels.

We are soo happy for him! He said that he's going to practice every single day until he doesn't have to wear his safety pads...I told him that it's going to take a lot of practice before that happens.

(I just wanted to note that once he came out and told me that he could ride, I immediately put his pads and helmet on. He fussed and whined and cried until Daddy, yes Daddy, said that he didn't need to use them. We explained that they protected him in case he fell, and he still insisted that he didn't want or need them, so he took everything off except for his elbow pads.)

Congratulations Jackson! You're getting to be such a BIG BOY!!!

The Bridal Extravaganza - July 2009

On July 25th and 26th, I was a model in the Bridal Extravaganza for Ventura's Bridal. I'm the second from the left. There were several fashion shows over the weekend for different bridal shops and designers. The gowns that I got to model were so beautiful! MUCH more expensive than my own wedding gown cost! My Mother came with me to help out backstage, and I was so happy that she was there. It's not very often that she and I get to do something together - just the two of us.

I got five blisters on my feet the very first day (Saturday) because Mom and I didn't know where to park, so of course we chose the parking lot furthest away from where we actually needed to be. By the time we walked to the Convention Center, I was limping (and complaining). I had to suck it up for the show, and if I do say so my self, I did pretty well. I didn't trip, or wince in agony while on stage. When I got home that night, I could barely move!

The next morning, I drained my blisters, and they felt a million times better!!! I could actually walk again! For the Sunday show, Mom and I certainly learned our lesson and parked right across the street of the Convention Center. This time, our fashion show was earlier, so we were able to find a close spot in the parking garage. The Ventura fashion show was a HUGE hit! The crowd was really into the models, the dresses, and the music!

I had forgotten how much I loved the runway from my old modeling days... It was a really good feeling. I did, however, get tangled up in one of the wedding gowns..my last one to be exact. The changing area backstage is so chaotic that we don't typically get to see what we are putting on next...we just grab and go. I didn't pay attention to the length of my train, and when I made a full turn in the middle of the runway, the train wrapped all the way around my feet! Some women in the audience gasped and their eyes were HUGE! I guess they really thought I was going to fall! I didn't though (THANK GOD!). As a matter of fact, I walked right out of my little predicament. It took about three good steps, and then my feet were free, and the train was trailing off like it was supposed to behind me, and I played it off so well! When I got to the end of the runway, I grabbed the side of the train and fanned it out so that the audience could see how pretty the back was. It got lots of "Oooh's" and "Ahhh's". When I walked back up the runway, I made another full turn in the center, sort of to make up for my first mishap, and it was perfect! The audience cheered loudly, and I very coyly looked over my shoulder, gave a wink, and exited the stage!

After the show was over, the owner of the store gave me a very nice hand-written note thanking me, and telling me how much she and the audience liked my performance, and she asked if I would like to be a permanent member of the "Ventura's Bridal Dream Team".

Going to the Mall for Earrings, Hair Combs, and Trampolines?? Oh My!

I had to run to the mall this weekend to grab some last minute items for the upcoming fashion show for the Bridal Extravaganza. While we were there, Jackson and I saw this set up in one of the wings in our mall. It's some kind of "Euro-Bounce" thing. They hook you up to a harness that it attached to bungee cords. They raise the cords, and then you begin jumping - higher, and higher, and higher until it makes every 'rider' squeal like a girl! It was very funny!

I told Jackson to do a back-flip, and he told me that he didn't know how so I explained that he needed to tilt his head back and look behind him, and then swing his legs over his head. He nailed it the second time he tried! In all, he did five back flips, and one flip going forward. The man working the trampoline told me that front flips are much more difficult to do than back flips, and he was impressed that Jackson was able to do it!

It was so nice that this was set up in the mall when we went. I normally don't go shopping at the mall, but it was nice for me to be able to go to a few shops, and then let Jackson do his thing. Then I was able to go to a few more of my stores, and then we went to get some cookies. Breaking up shopping trips like this makes it so much easier when little ones are with you, especially when they don't like "long stores". Helps to keep every one's sanity, that's for sure!

Now, THAT'S talent!

Now, I know that I am horribly biased as a Mother, but I must say that I am so impressed by Jackson's talent. He has such a great imagination!

Just check out the tower he made! Have you ever seen anything like this? And the swirling turnpike...these are just wooden train tracks that he attached to his top drawer in his dresser. The entire thing is suspended by one simple attachment (his drawer) and somehow, the weight of itself didn't bring the whole thing crashing down! You can even see the two tiny rail cars he has positioned on the top of the track, ready to take off. Oh-ya...it worked, too!

I swear, if he doesn't grow up to be a politician or an engineer...

Jackson is taking Piano Lessons!

Jackson had his first piano lesson this weekend, and he LOVED it!. We enrolled him in the Suzuki Music Academy here in Houston, and he will have four half hour private lessons a month.

We have been waiting to put him in lessons for years now. To be honest, other than Jackson's apparent love for music, the biggest reason we put him in lessons is because Jack's mother, Evelyn (May God rest her soul), wanted more than anything for Jackson to learn how to play the piano, and in the end that became her last wish. After she passed, we inherited her piano. Jackson has always loved to pick at the keys, and create his own songs to put on 'shows' for anyone who will listen. I have to admit that it is actually quite soothing to listen to him play. He doesn't just bang at the keys, as a matter of fact, he never did. He is very meticulous and deliberate when he plays - and is very much a perfectionist.

My Mother came with us to his first lesson, and she and I both wanted to stay in the room to observe. I could tell that our presence was distracting Jackson's focus from his instructor, so I suggested that Mom and I leave the room. We waited in the lobby for about 20 minutes. After his lesson was over, he came skipping down the hallway with a HUGE smile plastered to his face! He was so excited, and said that he had a lot of fun learning the keys.

His instructor is Mariblanca De Pujadas, and she has quite the resume! Apparently, she was a child prodigy at the age of two, and began performing as a soloist, touring several countries in South America before the age of five!!! She studied with many prestigious master teachers, and eventually did her post-graduate work at Julliard School of Music in New York. She has over 35 years of teaching experience, and her students have been winners in many competitions and have also performed as soloists with symphony orchestras.

During the private lessons, students of an early age are taught the value of reading music, understanding note values and music theory to be able to understand the structure of music. Also, the student develops strong rhythmic skills as well as good sight reading skills. As the young student advances, he is introduced to the basics of music by learning scales, arpeggios and cadences for the development of technique and musicianship. Ear training is also emphasized as its an important tool to learn to recognize musical tones, chords and rhythmic dictation among other valuable things.

I am going to the store this afternoon to try and get "Key Cards" that identify each of the white keys on the piano so it will make it easier for Jackson to learn each key. If not, I'm not opposed to getting little stick-on letters to label each key, lol!

Easter Egg Hunt

Today is Jackson's Easter Egg Hunt at his school. I was actually a little disappointed in the selection of Easter Baskets they had at Walgreens. There were plenty of baskets clearly designed for little girls (ex, princess, pinks and purples, and small baskets that looked kinda cheap), but mostly sports-themed baskets for the boys. Since Jackson doesn't play any sports, I decided not to get him a themed basket. Instead, I found this wicker basket (durable for an egg hunt) that was fairly big (to collect a lot of eggs...) and the colors weren't to "girl-y".

***NOTE TO WALGREENS***

IT'S NOT JUST LITTLE GIRLS WHO PARTICIPATE IN EGG HUNTS, AND NOT ALL LITTLE BOYS LIKE SPORTS!!!

Each student was to bring a dozen plastic eggs filled with candy, stickers, or something fun. These eggs were the largest I could find. I wanted to get big eggs because Jackson's Primary class has younger children (ranging from 3 years to kindergarten), and I wanted to make sure that there would be big, brightly colored eggs for the younger ones to easily see and grab.

I will take pictures (not of the egg hunt since I am at work...grr.) of his loot when we get home and post them here.

I hope he has a good time, and that the weather holds up!

From the Mouths of Babes...

FREAKIN' ADORABLE ANSWERS!

This is a cute idea. Copy this note, ask your kid the questions and write them down exactly how they respond. Tag me back if you haven't done this, I'd love to hear your answers.

ALL ANSWERS ARE FROM JACKSON, AGE 5.


1. What is something mom always says to you? "Don't climb on the couch."

2. What makes mom happy? "When I do good things for her"

3. What makes mom sad? "When I don't listen to her."

4. How does your mom make you laugh? "When she tickles me, and when she bounces me."

5. What was your mom like as a child? "Hmm...Um...I don't know."

6. How old is your mom? "Um...umm...I forgot."

7. How tall is your mom? "Like, if I had a measuring stick I would know."

8. What is her favorite thing to do? "Play with me."

9. What does your mom do when you're not around? "Work on the computer."

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? "Because she works at an oil company. (or be a Hannah Montana look-alike.)"

11. What is your mom really good at? "Numbers, because she always helps me with my math."

12. What is your mom not very good at? "Umm...Be a cable-girl."

13. What does your mom do for her job? "Works for gas and oil."

14. What is your mom's favorite food? "Probably Cinnamon Rolls."

15. What makes you proud of your mom? "When she gives me a hug."

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? "Thelma from Scooby Doo."

17. What do you and your mom do together? "We play, and I help her clean up the house, and do school work."

18. How are you and your mom the same? "We both have white teeth."

19. How are you and your mom different? "We don't have the same colored robes, and she doesn't like to eat candy all the time."

20. How do you know your mom loves you? "Because she gives me hugs and kisses all the time, and because she has a heart."

Happy 5th Birthday, Jackson!

Today is our son's 5th Birthday. I consider this to be a Milestone Birthday because he is officially a "Big Kid" now. It seems like yesterday that I held him in my arms, would rock him to sleep, and hold his tiny hands to help him walk. Now he is independent, opinionated, and very seldom "needs" me anymore. (sigh...I miss being "needed". I have shed tears all morning long.)

He has boundless energy (except when he is watching his shows), and LOVES to play chase games around the house, or his all-time favorite, "BOO!". That's where he literally sneaks around the house when you least expect it, waits for just the right moment, and then either grabs you or just jumps out of nowhere to scare the bejeezus out of you! He finds great humor in this. I can't get too upset at this though...I started it. He's a quick-study, and certainly has managed to cause my heart to beat in my throat a few times, lol.

Sometimes he gets the sillies, and it really takes all of me not to get too frazzled, but mostly he is a complete joy, and I thank God that He has blessed us with such happiness.

He had his 5 year-old check up with his doctor last week, and he is (as always) in the 97th-99th percentile for his height and weight. He's 3' 8 3/4" tall and weighs 52 pounds. Recently, I had to go and buy more uniform pants for him because within a matter of weeks his size 5 in boys are too tight. So now he wears a 6...and a size 1 in boys shoes. He is indeed going to be a very big-boy! He also had to get FOUR shots; one of which was his flu shot, and he was none-too-pleased about that. He said to me with giant tears in his eyes, "I told you I don't like needles! Why did you let her poke me so many times?" Talk about a heart-breaker.

We also had his Parent/Teacher Conference this week, and his teacher told us that Jackson is doing amazingly well in class, and noted the night and day difference in his behavior from the Summertime to this Fall Semester. During the Summer, Jackson was getting in trouble in class, A LOT. We're talking 5 time-outs a day, kind of misbehavior! Jack and I tried to be understanding of the phases he may have been going through at that time and the emotions that all of us were feeling after we lost Sanford, our Neo-Bull Mastiff, but enough was enough and we were forced to take drastic and creative measures where his discipline was concerned. I am extremely proud to say that it has been six weeks since Jackson has had any problems at school, and he seems to really enjoy his new-found position as the "Teachers Pet".

His teacher also told us that he is really good at Math and Reading. That makes me happy because I struggled with Math when I was young. He is learning how to build a solid foundation in understanding math concepts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) by using both concrete materials and manipulative's. He is beginning to bring home work where he is writing out each number 0-100! As far as reading goes, he is learning with a phonetic approach, and he sounds E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G out, and it is precious as can be!

I really can not give enough praise for the Montessori environment. He's been attending a Montessori School since he was 18 months old, and it truly has done wonders for his desire of learning, his self-esteem, and his socialization.

In case you don't know about the Montessori philosophy of education, it's basically the idea that all children carry within themselves the person they will become. In order to develop physical, intellectual, and spiritual potential to the fullest; the child must have freedom – a freedom to be achieved through order and self-discipline. The only valid impulse to learning is the self-motivation of the child. Children move themselves toward learning. The teachers prepare the environment, direct the activity and offer the stimulation, but it is the child who learns, who is motivated through work itself to persist in a given task. If Montessori children are free to learn, it is because they have acquired an inner discipline from their exposure to both physical and mental order. This is the core of Dr. Montessori’s philosophy. Patterns of concentration and thoroughness, established in early childhood produce a confident, competent learner in later years. Montessori education teaches children to observe, to think, to judge. It introduces children to the joy of learning at an early age and provides a framework in which intellectual and social discipline go hand-in-hand.

To my sweet, wonderful son on your 5th Birthday.

You are so very special to us and loved in every way!

God gave me a precious gift
the day he gave me you.
You've brought such love and joy into
my life and lots of laughter too.
The years have passed so quickly
for it seems like yesterday,
your tiny body was cuddling mine,
and in my arms you lay.
We may not always get along

and at times we disagree,
but always know how loved you are
you mean the world to me.
As we celebrate this special day,

We wish the best for you,
may your life be filled with happiness
and your hopes and dreams come true.
You may be growing up
but forever you will be,
my sweet thoughtful little boy
that God gave to me.

We love you very much, Little-Man!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy