The Great Outdoors

We arrived at Hugo Lake State Park well after dark. No one was there to greet us or take us to our cabins. Our cabins were locked and it was pitch dark. We also realized that we were locked in the park and couldn't drive to find a hotel. It became clear to us that we were on our own for the first night. The kids were excited about the fact that we may have to all (8 of us) sleep in one tent or in the cars...Luckily, one of the dads said "Let's check under the mat" Sure enough, there were the keys!! We were in and our camping adventure began!
The next day was beautiful--very hot and no rain, so the kids took off down by the lake (which was right behind the cabins)and caught all sorts of bugs, climbed rocks, and tried to catch fish (no luck).
We turned on the sprinklers in the middle of the day to cool off and went to the swimming beach at at the lake. We slowed things down to play Emily's "Dora Dominoes" and then finally ended that big day with a delicious dinner prepared by the Meadows!
Of course, no camping trip would be complete without smores and glow sticks which the kids ran with in the dark like crazy for an hour playing all sorts of silly games with the glow sticks from ninjas to Star Wars......Sunday morning, we woke up to pouring rain, so we cooked breakfast on the screened in porch and lingered back there (remember we had a coffeemaker) for a couple of hours while the kids ran around in the cabins. Finally, time to pack up for the wet trip back home. Jackson and Drew call the Meadows kids their "camping cousins" and can't wait to go again next year. We all came home with smiles on our faces from a great weekend!

Into the Woods......

Bug Spray.....check.
Tent......check.
Marshmallows.....check.
Coffee Maker.....check.

In case you're confused, we are heading to Oklahoma with some friends for a weekend of camping! Once we heard that we had electricity at our campsite, we HAD to bring the coffeemaker! We'll be roughing it with a little creature comfort from home. Stay tuned for pictures and stories!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

For the past two days, the boys have been asking me if it was Mother's Day. So today, they were so excited to give me their presents that they had made at school (loved the homemade keychain and painted whale!!) and serve me breakfast in bed! They loved being "servers" and could not let an opportunity pass to argue over who was the "best server." I don't know what the rest of the day holds, but I am so thankful to be a mother and cannot remember what I did or what I thought about before I became one. It is such a honor.
I also want to thank my mom and mother-in-law for being loving, encouraging, and inspirational examples of mothers!

Just a quiet lunch.......

Three days a week, it's just Drew and I. We have our routine of running errands (going to Target), going to LifeTime Fitness, and then having lunch at home. Jackson doesn't know it, but on those days, we eat lunch in the family room while we watch a movie!!! It's such a treat for Drew to eat off his little tray and get to pick any movie he wants--today, we watched Sesame Street. I usually try to squeeze my plate on the tray with him and we just enjoy Elmo. Life is good.

Flying High

My sister gave Jackson a Butterfly Pavillion for his birthday in January. Well, we finally got around to sending off for the creepy caterpillars which we got 2 weeks ago.We watched them turn into their chyrsallis and then they emerged into beautiful butterlies! It was quite a sight (there was a lot of blood involved, who knew??)Anyways, today we released our 10 butterflies into our backyard. The boys got to hold them and they flitted around our backyard until the boys finally chased them away.

I wear my sunglasses at night........

Drew is at the age where he insists on doing odd things for no apparent reason. Some days, he must carry his "computer" (a calculator) with him everywhere, other days he insists on being called "Velma" from Scooby Doo, but tonight........he wanted to wear his sunglasses to bed. Oh, the mind of a 3 year old......

Spanish Lesson

SETTING: In the car, just Drew and me.

DREW: Mom, I know my first Spanish word.

ME: You do? What is it?

DREW: Latte'!!!!

A few too many trips to Starbucks with mom???

Easter with a twist of Thanksgiving.........

I say "Easter with a twist of Thanksgiving" because this Easter was COLD!!! We couldn't believe it when we walked outside the day before Easter and there were snow flurries?!?! Come on, we live in Texas! Despite the cold, we had family visit and got to spend some great time with them.
My parents and my sister came to visit and for Easter dinner, my cousin, Chris and his wife Jenifer came to help celebrate!
Every year, when I get the boys their Easter shirts, Jason will usually make a comment on them because they will be something out of the ordinary that they wouldn't usually wear. This year, they were dubbed "The Barbershop Twins" because he thought they looked like those guys that sing in a quartet. I thought they looked like little easter eggs and they were so handsome.
After dinner, the boys had their own sort of easter egg hunt for the adults. Drew "hid" his easter candy for us to find (which meant it might be "hiding" in the middle of the floor) and Jackson hid some eggs for us to find. So, I can say that the adults as well as the children had a great Easter!

Go, Rockhounds!!

Yes, you heard right...Rockhounds is the name of Jackson's baseball team. The last 2 seasons it was the Red Sox, but the kids think Rockhounds is much cooler. If you're "player in the zone". you get your own dogtag--how cool is that?
Tonight was the first game and Jackson played 3rd base and got a good hit both times at bat. The boys have come a long way from when they started. They at least kind of pay attention to what's going on instead of picking grass out in the field.
What they're really into is the snacks and drinks afterwards. It was our night to bring snacks and Drew could hardly wait to pass out the snacks to the big boys. Then, he proceeded to run the bases which has become a little tradition for Jason and him after the games. He's gearing up for his own team "just like his brother's"
Unfortuntely, it started lightning and thundering in the middle of the game, so they called it. It was a good start to a fun season!

Pizza and Movie Night

Tonight, we had a "make your own pizza" and movie night! They boys were soooo excited to do everything themselves. Here are some step by step pictures of what they did--in case you ever need to know how to make a pizza! What movie did they pick??? Scooby Doo, of course!

Fun in the Sun!!

Wow--what a trip!! We had a wonderful week on Captiva Island, Florida!Here are a few highlights of our trip. I have so many pictures, so I will post some more later this week. One of the MAJOR highlights was that Jackson caught his 100th fish!! This was something he had been working on with my dad for about 2 years. On the last night, the owner of the restuarant we were at made a presentation to Jackson with a trophy with a fish on top. The whole restaurant clapped for him and he hid behind me until the fuss calmed down. Then, he proudly held it on his head (see pic.) and walked around the restuarant showing people. He can hardly wait to take it to school for show and tell. Now, since Papa (my dad) helped Jackson catch his first 100, he will now start to work with Drew who, at press time, has 10 fish :)
Another day, we did took kayaks thru the mangrove jungle where we saw jellyfish, crabs, lots of fish, racoons, and many beautiful birds. The boys loved that!
And, of course, the beach!! We had a beautiful beach next to our house and the boys couldn't get enough of it. They really got into digging holes and making sandcastles this year.
On a low note, Drew and I brought sickness to the trip. We came with little colds that turned into major bronchial issues and then pink eye for both of us! By the end of the week, we went to the island doctor and everyone got a round of antibiotics--my dad included. I hear my mom isn't feeling so hot now either......sorry!
All in all, it was a great trip and we are so blessed to be able to see the boys experience so many interesting and new things. They are great travelers and we were all sad to leave......we can't wait for next year!

Stinky Situation

Jackson's bathroom is decorated with in a duck theme which I did when we moved into this house. Tonight, after bathtime, I asked Jackson if he thought I should make his bathroom more of a older boys bathroom. He thought about it and then said, "Yeah, make it really smelly."

This and That...........

Spring has sprung here in Texas! This is my favorite time of the year when everything is starting to bloom and you get an extra boost of energy! We enjoyed the weather by going to the park with our friends, Pierce and Jade on Friday afternoon. The kids enjoyed their first ice cream treat of the season and ran around a lake at a park by our house. Here, they rested for a minute before we hit the trail again.
Jackson has become my little helper in the kitchen. I love it when he sits at the island and talks with me when I'm cooking. We have some of the sweetest conversations there. Saturday morning, he wanted to make eggs all by himself, so I supervised while he cracked and scrambled the eggs. He did awesome and I'm just realizing how much he can do by himself if I let him. I guess families with 10 children depend on those 5 year olds to do their share of the work! I need to take advantage of his helpful spirit and let him tackle some things around the house. I'll keep you posted on how that goes:)
Jackson got this toy called "The Claw" for his birthday. It's like one of those toys at the arcades where you put your money in and you can NEVER pick up the toy. The claw just gets a hold of it, but will never bring it to the top. This one is filled with candy that just drives the boys crazy because they just can't get it!! It is fun to watch, but has the most annoying music that it plays over and over, so we have to limit our time on that toy.....
So, that's what has been going on in the Maupin Household. We are going to Florida next week, so I will have some great pictures of that trip, I'm sure....keep checking!

Police Patrol

Today at lunch, Jason told Drew to stop whining. Pretty soon, he did it again and Jackson promptly informed us of it even though we were sitting right there. Jason told him the we would "police" that behavior so he should worry about it. Jackson looked a little concerned and then asked, "Are you going to fingerprint us too?"

Sharp-Dressed Man

Jackson had picture day at school today and they had to wear their "Dress Uniform." This is the 3rd time he's worn it and he likes to wear it. Especially the velcro tie....This morning, I told him that he didn't have to wear the coat until he got to school and five minutes later, he walks out with the coat on. He loves it!! All he needed was a briefcase and he would be off to Wall Street!

Weekend Getaway!

Jason and I spent a wonderful weekend in San Antonio with our dear friends, Shawn and Jenni Meadows. Jenni and I were sorority sisters and lived in the Kappa house together (she was the pres. and I was vice-pres.!!!)We were celebrating Jenni's birthday with a weekend trip! We happened to be there on the anniversary of the Alamo siege and watched a re-enactment which was pretty cheesy and we all kinda laughed thru it. Mostly, we ate and ate and ate!!! The best was just hanging out with them and talking about everything under the sun.
Our next adventure with them will be our 2nd annual camping trip with the kids. I will definitely post pictures of that because many people can't believe that we do it.....I will have proof!

Love is in the air.....

Today was a big day for us! The boys were both very excited about their Valentine's parties and I was able to make it to both. Drew's class decorated cookies and then passed out Valentine's. Drew could not believe that his friends kept giving him V-tine's. Everytime someone would put one in his basket, he would say "For me?" with a big smile on his face-he just thought this was the best thing ever! The other moms and teachers were cracking up. It was pretty funny.
Jackson's class got to enjoy the chocolate fountain that my in-laws gave me two Christmases ago. It has proved to be a huge hit for class parties! Of course, all the kids had chocolate everywhere, but it was fun. Jackson couldn't wait to get home to pour over his V-tine's and check out all the candy he got.
For dinner, we went to PeiWei. We had to find someplace that would be as fun as Chik-Fil-A (for the boys) and as good as Bob's Steak House (for us), so that was a good compromise. The boys went to sleep happy tonight as they were showered with cards and gifts from their grandparents. They will surely have sweet dreams :)

Serious Business

This morning, Drew and I worked on his Valentine's for his class. He took this very seriously. I would say the name of the person and he would carefully look over all the choices of valentines and decide on one for whatever reason....but careful not to give the boys any of the pink ones. Then, he would look at the assortment of candy and decide which one that person would like saying, "He/she will love this!" He is such a considerate friend. He even wanted to make one for his swim teacher and soccer coach. He picked Backyardigans valnetines, of course. He has been loving them for a long time now and was even one of the characters for Halloween. I will miss those Backyardigans when he grows out of this phase. Jason and I will have to keep some of the movies for us to watch when these days have passed :)

Our BIG night out!

We took the boys to see The Harlem Globetrotters last week! Jason and I both remember our parents taking us to see them when we were little, so we wanted to experince that with our boys.
Snacks were a high priority of the night. Both boys seriously considered and weighed all their options. Jackson decided on cotton candy and Drew got popcorn that was almost as big as he was. This was all very exciting!
I snapped a picture of them as they watched the Globetrotters first come out and do all their tricks. Drew participted with the crowd with clapping and cheers, but Jackson sat in a quiet awe. Their reactions go right along with each of their personalities...it was kinda funny.
We did leave at halftime because both the boys were tired. Their snacks were gone and the excitement had worn off a little. Jackson followed the game for a while and by that time, Drew was crawling around on the sticky floor making funny faces with the kids behind us. All in all, it was a success and I think the boys will remember the great snacks they had (and maybe the globetrotters too:).

Snow Day

On Friday, we woke up to a beautiful blanket of snow! Not enough to close schools, but just enough to have some serious fun. While Jackson went to school and hoped the snow wouldn't melt before he got home, Drew and I went to my friend Renee's house for coffee and a playdate! As you can see, Drew and Jadyn had a great time in the snow and Drew's shoes were soaking wet when we got in the car. Unfortunately, by the time Jackson got home, the snow was mostly gone. He was happy though because they had a snowball fight at school and he hit the teacher with a snowball! I was a little mortified until he said that she threw one right back at him :)