Pet Parade!

The Kindergarten classes at Jackson's school sent home a letter saying they were having their "Annual Pet Parade." That meant that you were supposed to use materials from your home and make a pet. Luckily, Jason and I were going to be out of town and Grandma and Grandpa Maupin were watching the boys, so we put this under their things "to do" while we were gone.
So....they decided to let Jackson do his project!! They are "old school" and believe that kids should do their own homework--imagine that!! This is proof that Jackson did it himself and he won the award for "Most Creative Pet!" I have to say that his teacher commented to me that she especially liked his pet because it was kid made! Way to go Jackson!!!
Oh....if you're wondering about Drew....he was just "so sad" that he couldn't be a part of the pet parade because he said he has always "dreamed" of being in it. In a couple of years, his dreams will come true :)

New York, Part 2

Guess who??? Tom and Suri were standing near us waiting for Katie to cross the finish line. Suri had a bottle in her mouth the whole time!! Isn't it time to give it up Suri??

In front of the ABC studios after our appearance on The View where we saw Jerry Seinfeld, Brooks and Dunn, and the ladies of The View!! We dragged Jason there, but you can see he is smiling because of the great give aways......he's glad he went now!
Amanda and I waiting to be discovered......
I was discovered and am doing the "mid morning break" saying...."More with Jerry Seinfeld when the View returns!" I thought agents would be knocking down my door after my debut, but I'm still waiting to hear.....

The BIG Apple!!

I am so proud!! My dad ran and finished the New York Marathon this past weekend. I love the way that he lives his life....he wants to live it to the fullest with no regrets. It was such an honor to be there to share his accomplishment! What a weekend! Here are some pics. of the race with much more to come......stay tuned for a MAJOR celebrity sighting.

Fright Night!!

What a fun night to be a parent....and a kid!! The boys had a wonderful time tonight and will be on a sugar high for the next few days....life is good!

Family Ties

Jackson and Drew love their cousins, Brandon and Alyssa. They are actually second cousins, but they don't know the difference! We went to KC this weekend and they came down from Minnesota to visit. What happens is that my dad takes all 4 kids while the women shop. When we come home, we hear all the tales from the day. Visiting 2 different pumpkin patches, driving down a "mountain" (remember, we're in KS) when the brakes go out and everyone has to scream, visiting a tiger farm, and eating ice cream, donuts, cider.....you name it! The kids always have a blast and are dirty, stinky, and happy at the end of the day. Thanks Papa and thanks to Brandon and Alyssa for fun memories!

A rare sighting......

Two brothers living in harmony!!!!!
I came into the kitchen after "sleeping in" (7:30 a.m.)and found these two little boys had quietly started playing a game together. Quiet, harmonious times like this are treasured in our home. I don't know what came over them, but I had to take a picture! They were so proud of themselves so I made chocolate chip, peanut butter chip, banana pancakes. Everyone was happy!

Mad Scientists!!

Well, we had a family shower this weekend, so the whole family was here! As you can see, my dad brought the boys lab coats and scientist glasses (we call them "nerd" glasses) and the boys loved them!!
My dad had lined up some experiments for the boys with mentos and diet coke. Here they are drilling a hole in the mentos and stringing them on a string. Look at the intesity in the scientists eyes. Pretty high tech if you ask me.....
The joy that they got watching the coke shoot into the air and spray all over their prized lab coats was priceless. First it was magic tricks, but now experiments are gonna my dad's new thing.......a new science experiment every time. Wonder what he'll come up with next.....

MOPS GONE WILD!!!

Don't be scared.....We're not putting out a video. MOPS stands for "Mothers of Preschoolers." This is what happens to moms when you let loose a group of moms in another state without their children. We didn't have to cut anyone else's food, wipe anyone else's nose, or pick up after anyone......it was great!!
We went to Orlando last weekend for a 3 day convention and had a great time. There were 8 of us that went from our MOPS group and we had a great time.
The boys stayed at home with Jason and he called in his parents for backup (which the boys loved!!) It was good for him to have a taste of my life as he ran around driving people to practice and games, making lunches, and getting the boys to school on time. Remember.....he had his parents here to help. I know he could do all of those things without them here...he's such a great dad.
At the end of the weekend, I was supposed to come back well rested, right?? Wrong! I was exhausted when I got home, but encouraged and refreshed as a mom....ready to face the next day.

Catchin' Up...

School is in full swing now and Jackson loves it! He is one of those kids who loves structure and wants to know what's expected of him. He follows rules (at least at school) and wants to do his best, so that's why he is enjoying school. At least for now.....it's only the 2nd week! He also loves to get silly! Here is a picture from a "Silly End of Summer" party that we went to. The kids were supposed to pick anything they wanted to from the box, but it had to be silly. Here are the boys with their buddies, Powell and Pierson. They had a great time.
In other news, we had a nice visit from Grandma and Gandpa Maupin this weekend and Grandpa brought the boys jumping beans. Here are the boys watching their beans jump and having races with them.
Halloween is on the boys radar now.....they know it's coming. We started getting magazines with Halloween costumes, games, decorations in it and here they are pouring over the choices! They both have their sharpies in hand because I told them they can circle what they like in there and then we can order something that they picked. So far, on the top of the list are fake eyeballs and glowing skeleton bones. Are they boys or what?? Oh, and yes, Jackson got into the spirit by wearing his last years Halloween costume to breakfast that morning :)

First Day of School!

First of all...I realize that the picture of Jackson is sideways, but I don't know how to change it, so if anyone knows, let me know!!
Today was Jackson's first day of Kindergarten! The past couple of days, he's been very excited about going. Since the meet the teacher night, he's been very impressed with the lockers and computers in the classroom. Today, as we walked to school, I told him that I remembered my first day of kindergarten. Then he said, "I remember my first day of kindergarten too--today!!" He laughed and he was in good spirits.
When we walked up to the school, we saw his friend Will, who will be joining him in kindergarten, so we snapped them together.
When he got into the classroom, he put his backpack in his locker (who he shares with Jensen, who we thought was a boy, but ends up being a girl!!) and they were to sit at their table and draw a picture of anything that they wanted to. The classroom was so quiet. I couldn't believe it! No one was talking to one another---I'm sure that will change when they all get to know each other.
Last night, we reviewed where everything was in his backpack...lunch, snack, water bottle. They eat lunch at 10:30!! Can you believe that? So, we have to send a water bottle and snack every day.
It was a fun morning and if you think about it, say a little prayer for him. He said he might be a little scared today....that's what he told me last night. I told him it was okay to be scared and that a lot of other kids were feeling the same way. Say a little prayer for me too......tomorrow, we cannot walk them to the classroom. They have to walk in the school by themselves. MUSHY MOM MOMENT ALERT.....I just cannot believe how time has flown by and how big he is. Not in size, but in character and independence. He is a great little boy and has made our lives so much more fuller. I am just so humbled and privleged to be his mom :)

Random thought from Jackson......

The scene: Lunchtime today

Jackson: After lunch, will you measure my toungue?

Me: OKaayyy, suuurree???


Who knows?

Where the Wild Things Are.....

My parents were visiting last weekend for my birthday and we drove to Glen Rose to a drive-thru safari. It was great!
You must stay in your cars, but you can have the windows rolled down and you can see that the animals are well trained and have no problem sticking their heads in your car and drooling all over the place! The boys thought that was the best.
Halfway thru, you can get out of your car on top of this hill and eat, roam around, and visit the petting zoo. Drew loved brushing these goats and they loved him too! Everytime he would stop brushing them and walk away, they would follow him.
WE saw giraffes, zebras, rams, and all other sorts of 4 legged creatures. We had a great day and the boys really got into feeding all of the animals and Drew even named all the deer "his boys." Everytime he would see some, he would say, "There's my boys!"

San Antonio Sizzle........

OK...It is HOT here in Texas!! We went to San Antonio last weekend and took the boys to Sea World. Mistake #1--going to Sea World on a Saturday. Mistake #2--going to Sea World in August. We learned our lesson and will take note the next time we go. Despite those mistakes, we had a great time. On Friday, we got to the riverwalk and ate dinner next to the river. Then, we took the boys on the boat ride tour thru the canal. Jackson hung on every word that the tour guide told us....it was like he was 20 years old or something. Drew waved at the people on the bank and asked when it was going to be over.
Here are the boys faces the first time that Shamu jumped out of the water. Jackson was in silent awe with a big smile on his face. Drew spontaneously started clapping and laughing. It was so fun to see the joy on their faces. They loved all the shows and Jason and I were impressed with the quality of the entertainment. We loved it too! Now, here is one of the Shamus. There are 4 of them, so you never really know which one is the real Shamu. Jackson kept asking me which one was Shamu. We were a little confused on that.

I think Jackson is going to be a roller coaster nut....Drew, not so much. Here they are waiting in line for the Texas Splashdown which is like a log ride. Drew wanted me to cover his eyes the whole time and his little heart was beating so fast. Jackson couldn't get enough! He wanted to go again and again. He even went on some other roller coasters that Drew couldn't go on. He missed the cutoff for this big one, The Steel Eel, just by one inch....so he's hoping next year he'll be tall enough.
School starts in a few weeks so we're just trying to enjoy the last bit of summer that we have left. Jackson is very excited about Kindergarten and both the boys have their backpacks and lunchboxes picked out. Very important stuff for a 3 and 5 year old!!

Tennis, Anyone?

Jackson has had tennis camp all week. He took lessons last summer and fall and he really enjoys it. The coach makes it really fun for the kids and they do a lot of games while working on skills. Jackson was especially proud because two days in a row, he won the game "King of the Castle." This is a game the kids play at the net and practice their volleys.
Today was the last day and it was game day. The boys and the girls had a race to see who could run down the court balancing their ball on the racket. Check out the concentration on Jackson's face--he takes competition seriously! The girls won though....they took their time and it payed off.
Jackson is running like crazy in the game "Adios Amigos"...don't ask me why they call it that. They have to run around the court and the coach tries to hit them with the ball. The kids love it.
Check out what Drew does while Jackson is sweating on the court. He watches ants. He learned the first day that there was a large ant population near the tennis courts and that if you dropped any food, they would come. So today, he brought a snack for his "pets" and he watched how they carried the crumbs on their backs. When he's not tending to his pets, he's begging to go and retrieve balls that the kids have hit. He can hardly wait until he can take lessons when he turns 4.
Finally, the kids have like 1 minute to run around the court and pick up all the balls and Jackson figured out how to get the most balls in one trip. He had a great week at camp and can't wait to do it again in the fall.