Crazy Winters

They said it was crazy ... but we went anyway! The road to Dallas wasn't all that interesting, much less dangerous! But this was a cool tree I spotted on the Oklahoma side. There wasn't as much ice as in my front yard, but enough to claim some winter action!

My new favorite quote ...

"Why not go out on a limb? That is where the fruit is." - Mark Twain

Or in our case, this weekend ... that is where the ice is! I have been CRAVING snow boots or even just hiking boots so I can go take photos of this winter wonderland without being a danger to traffic. The prairie areas are amazing ... some with tall grasses that look like crystal sheaths, some with intricate branches reflecting on a sea of glass, even the fences and the patterns shining and sparkling ... WOW.

Crazy Kids ...

OK ... so we have ICE now? Oklahoma has had two "little" winter storms and I'm being accused of bringing it! WHO ME? I try to tell everyone I'm from Georgia, but this northern prairie girl is somehow known for her snow-laden upbringing instead of her recent stint in the south. But can you believe my son? He was out "skating" on our lawn today in FLIP FLOPS (while his sister was in army boots)! Crazy kids.

She remade the video ...

Evidently my video production was TOO tame! I laugh. What's wrong with Cookie Monster? She wanted to decorate with hearts and have better music (that Hilary would like, and definitely NOT Sesame Street)! How do 7 year olds get so sophisticated?

Girl Scout Cookies ... this is a first!

Even though the weather prevented the big Cookie Kick Off, my little Brownie had ideas of her own about getting the word out about Girl Scout Cookies. She had the thought to send ecards to family and friends and wrote the little letter she wanted. Then we took pictures. She was pretending to "camp" inside my light tent. She picked out the ones she liked (minus a few vetos from Mom) and she gave me her list of pictures for her very own ecard. She wants to save the wild ones for her ecard to Hilary Duff. So, if any of you know her email address, feel free to leave a comment! LOL

Though video clips were still on her list upon going to bed, I told her we'd save those for Hilary, too. And while she went to sleep, I took her little handwritten letter (I wish I could have it show up in the titles in her handwriting - it's so cute) and put her ecard together. So, to our friends and family, here comes the newest little cookie salesgirl to hit the town ... drum roll please ... (you can click on the video player image below):

Did you know that Girl Scout Cookies aren't just a corporate fundraiser? I always thought they were. But the girls actually get cookie credit for what they sell, and they can use it for camps, uniforms, patches, trips, all kinds of things within the Council. Pretty cool! And it's nice for me as a mom to know my child is not just expecting to go places, but is learning to work and help make her own path toward the things she wants to do. And there's also a lot more to Girl Scouts than I ever realized. It's all about leadership and building confidence in girls. But I'll get on my soapbox later. Or maybe I'll blog about it in my other blog: I'm A Girl Scout!

School Assembly ... in the SNOW!

It's snowing AGAIN ... and I wasn't so sure I'd be able to make it to her school, but I braved the weather and arrived intact! That sounds so weird from a northern girl now living in the south! But down here, it's as if snow equipment doesn't exist! I was absolutely floored when I heard that residential streets are cleared by ...... (drum roll) ...... the residents! Anyway, I was surprised to find so many parents at the school (until I realized they were coming to remove their kids a little early). My daughter kept looking and looking and finally found me in the wings taking photos ... she was VERY happy, especially when she found out she could come home with me after the assembly. I don't own a snow scraper, so a CD cover had to do when we got to the car and it was already icing over! OK - new shopping list: gloves, scraper, earmuffs.

Brownie Delight ...

FINALLY! We are back to Brownies after a holiday and weather delay! The little girls are so cute. Mine was the "Helper" for the evening (they each have jobs for each meeting) and got to cover for 3 people who weren't there. She LOVED that! My little helper.

After the big meeting, we all went out for pizza (big brother included - who provided some teenage comedy for us adults) and had quite a time with two other friends and their moms! Our waiter was fun and the girls had a great time trying to give him "cooties" ... but the quote that came from the back seat on our way home was accidentally hilarious: Her little voice rang out, "I liked touching Dave! That was fun!" Oh boy. I caught my breath, "WHAT???" Those words from my 7 year old? Ahhh ... the cooties. We burst out laughing when the realization hit! Innocence is so precious.

NO PHOTOS ALLOWED!

Tonight is a night of mourning ... over hair. My son had a haircut coming, and if you've seen the blog, he had plenty of it. I had thought we would be taking a photo of a 3-4" reduction in hair, but plans went awry when the stylist basically gave him a BOWL CUT! At least a 2nd stylist stepped in to help shag up the style a bit. And I went on an emergency Wal-Mart run to get some hair products. Unfortunately, I gave all mine away when we moved or we would have had a plentiful stash of goo. So ... I have a feeling he won't be very visible in front of the camera lens and I don't blame him. I really feel sorry for him. He had the longest, coolest hair in school and now he feels like a dork and wants to hide for 2 months.

It's tough to ask a teenager to see past the exterior. Granted, a person should be valued for what's inside, but I have a feeling kids can be ruthless. As a mom, I can see all kinds of opportunity in this ... I want my kids to be confident and enjoy who they are regardless of what the rest of the world thinks. But I also want them to enjoy how they look as well. So ... I'll drag out what's left of my arsenal, get up early, and see what we can do to make his hair unbowl and hopefully get a messy, maybe even cool (is that too much to ask?) hairstyle going tomorrow.

Christmas Surprises

So many surprises! So much waiting! It's the best time ever! Our Christmas was extra special because my mom and step-dad had all their kids together for Christmas for the first time since they were married! We've got plenty of photos, and a few highlights are in a web album:

Christmas 2007

Christmas Cafeteria Style ... a first for me! Best part? No cleanup! Worst part? No leftovers!

Christmas came early! Sigh ... when you have to spread the holiday between families, it's almost impossible to keep Christmas pinned to one weekend. The kids have been going head-to-head with their cool new toys ... but even I have Christmas early! You can see part of it in the background. My parents gave this new little homeowner (ME!) $$$ and I now have curtains and a table!

I don't recall ever BUYING curtains on purpose (other than an odd chance one here or there on clearance) ... I guess I moved often enough and mini blinds were quite the comfortable standard. And from my first auction last night? I have my first "wood" table! I feel so grown up now.

But I think the most special early surprise is Kevin's HUGE disc/plate/whatever (also a wonderful find from the auction - I'M GOING BACK!) with the most unusual "carving" and inlaid copper. It might be made out of pewter? I don't know, but it really is unique.

The best part? Now I'm starting to feel like I'm finally moving in! This is the first furniture of Oklahoma. I didn't bring anything substantial from Georgia. The living room furniture is a gift from mom that has been passed back and forth since Jeremy was a toddler, so that doesn't really count. VOILA! My "cinnamon bun" table (the legs curl at the bottom) is the first real piece.

I have to admit I'm a little too excited about this ... well, maybe not "too" excited. But it's a new sensation for me!

Weekend in St. Louis ... it was Christmas for the kids, work for me and for K both (though it seems more like play to take pictures), and honestly pretty emotionally exhausting! But we all survived, waved goodbye at the airport (K was going on to Florida for more business meetings), and drove 6 hours back home. Now that the kids have had a taste of Christmas, I feel like I've officially climbed the big holiday slide and hit the "no turning back" point! WHEEEEEEE ... This time next week, IT'S CHRISTMAS EVE!

The Arch in St. Louis was a new thrill for me. I had never been up inside of it - WOW - is that amazing or what! K and I traveled our little pod to the top and I was SO relaxed that I think I could have napped and been quite happy! It offset the stress of the day. That sounds strange, but it really did. We took our time and were able to watch the sun begin to set at the top and see an amazing sky deepen into nightfall.

This was another one of my thrills this weekend ... an EAGLE! I was between appointments, standing by a river, and was getting ready to get into the car when I saw "a bird" and almost thought, "Nah, I'll won't take more time. I'll just hop in and go." But for some reason, I couldn't resist and decided to pop a couple of photos as I stood in the car door while the bird flew overhead. I couldn't see it this close, of course, when I was taking it. But I had my telephoto lens on and was curious to see if i could follow the bird and have a clear image. The thought crossed my mind, wouldn't that be cool if this was an eagle? I squealed out loud when I looked at the photos. AN EAGLE! How amazing is that?

Annie! Look what I found!!! I laughed and thought of you today, courtesy of skateLAnd (and Wonder Bread - I was in their parking lot with K when I noticed the sign). LA-language still lives! Oh the good (and very silly) times we had. You're a treasure!

My two happy goonies ... "Little I" is about to experience her first varsity basketball game (under the wing of Mr. Sports Writer). I thought she would be enthralled with the cheerleaders, but to my surprise she now wants to play basketball!

My first Christmas Party with the Girl Scouts ... and I had to steal to come away with this ornament! (Actually, it was stolen from me first, and I was able to creatively steal it back once another turn had passed ... I'm working on the guilt.) But how cool is that? My first Christmas in Oklahoma (note the date) with K! It's romantic! And considering our "Santa Talks" lately, it's the perfect ornament. Come to find out, Pier 1 has a series of these. They are handpainted from the inside! We may have started a tradition!

My laugh for the day ... I found a girl with a belly button in the cheese curds! 

It was winter concert time tonight. The bands did GREAT. The advanced band was awesome. The only complaint (from my son) was that they cut out the hard piece. But since the parade was cancelled because of the weather, we got to hear that piece here - impressive cadence and all! GREAT JOB BANDIES! (I hope that's a "good name" to call them ... not always sure with Kevin's teasing!)
Click on the clip below to hear them (the video itself is terrible - sorry - but you'll get a little Christmas cheer from the band and even see my handsome young man at the end when they stand).

My cousin's twins! I think I'm starting to figure out which is which. It sure is nice to have a school function and be there with family!

The decorators were hard at work tonight ... well, not all of them. Daisy isn't a lot of help! 

Look at this craziness! OK - let me grab my camera. "NOW GO GET SOME JEANS ON!" 

Sledding

There's nothing like a day of sledding! There's a hill near us, and it was worth it to navigate the uncleared roads to get there! Naturally, I have a whole album of photos (click the square photo for more) ... but I have a good reason. I wanted Grandpa to see his sleds in action. My little one figured out how to steer hers and had a ton of fun. My son looked like a model out there - until he landed spread eagle in a puff of snow!

It is still a winder wonderland today. My mom laughed at me via email (if you can do that) and told me I have been away from the north too long (I grew up in North Dakota and Minnesota). I told her how I woke up the kids early yesterday because I saw the bright sun and didn't want them to miss any snow time (just thinking things would start melting). Back in Georgia, we were lucky to have snow at all much less overnight! 

Can you believe this is OKLAHOMA? Grandpa visited recently and brought the 2nd sled (a project he was doing for the kids) ... and it looks like it came just in time!