Chevy Traverse Mommy Madness - We're on the Squad!

I have been anxiously awaiting the day when I can announce to you that we have been chosen to be a member of the Houston Chevy Traverse Mommy Madness, Mom Squad. TODAY IS THE DAY!! Five Houston Mommy Bloggers have been chosen to drive a new Chevy Traverse for 8 weeks and share their experiences through pictures, video, and blog posts online. Make sure to check back often to share the adventure with us. There will also be opportunities for you to win an hour massage and even a Girls Weekend Getaway! Mommy Madness begins next Monday, April 20th. Follow along here as well as the Houston Mommy Madness site. I will have many more details for you after we pick up the vehicles. Stay tuned.

Spice up the Hunt

Since the restaurant was open for both lunch and dinner today, Papa Joe went in early this morning and was able to come home around 5PM. This meant that we could have our family Easter Egg Hunt tonight rather than tomorrow. Finding eggs is always fun, but I wanted to put a spin on things, to make it a little more than just running around the yard picking up eggs. This year, and probably many more years to come, our hunt was a photo scavenger hunt. I took 12 photos from around the house and made a 4 x 6 image for every two photos. (See below)

After picking them up at the one hour, I cut them is half and hid them in sequence around the house, leaving one out to start the hunt. Hidden next to each new photo was a filled egg. The fridge photo was the first one. Cam had to take moment to process the directions, and then she was off - dashing down the stairs squealing. From the fridge, to the side table, to the pantry, then upstairs and around some more...so much excitement!!


The last hiding place contained an egg (of course) and a picture of the front of our house. As she ran downstairs to head outside, Papa Joe asked her what she thought would be out there. Thrilled, she said, "An egg and another picture." Instead she found a brand new scooter waiting for her. Off she went, down the driveway. What a great day!

Red Dye 40

Yes, it finally happened. With a two year old, and a home that is almost entirely carpet, the odds are against us. Although the lighting is different, and the carpet is still wet in the photo on the right, this is a accurate representation of the near miracle. I found a great tip online from chris_g, carpet cleaner.

Red Dye Removal (Kool-aid, gatorade, etc.)
-Make a solution of half ammonia, half water
-Preheat an iron
-Saturate the stain with the solution
-Soak a white rag with water until it is dripping wet
-Place the rag over the stain
-Place the iron over the rag (It will sizzle.)
-Hold the iron in position for 20-40 seconds. Make sure not to burn the carpet.
-Reposition to a clean place on the rag and repeat the ironing step if necessary
*This will also work on a stain that had dried in or been there for a long period of time.

The Dream in Your Heart

Today, more than any other day, we are reminded that anything is possible, to never let go of our dreams - our hearts desires. 'Be a victor, not a victim. Fan your flame. Your dreams will come to pass.' (Joel Osteen)

For your viewing pleasure: Got Talent? You tube has disabled the embedding on these videos so you will have to follow the link to watch. Enjoy!

Our Special Visitor

After running on Thursday night, my second run without the stroller, the kids and I headed to the airport to pick up my Mom. She was able to reroute her business trip return flight to join us for the weekend. The four of us got up early Friday morning to join my running group for another run. My Mom, opting to walk, graciously pushed the kids in the stroller. This was my first run off a track; it was wonderful. My running partner thought we were running about 11 minute pace. This is HUGE for me, especially considering the humidity and that it is only my second week or running. :) I am glad to have the next three days off from running, my legs need a rest. Running stadium stairs before Thursday night's run really put me over the edge. Later that day my wonderful Mom splurged on a BOB stroller for the kids and I. (This is my gift for many holidays to come, including my b-day.) Running with the Sit n' Stand has been torture, really. We took it out for its first spin Saturday morning. Perfect!

Want to WIN A BOB? Submit a video of your dancing baby and you could win.

We made our second trip to Build a Bear Friday; Cambry made a horse. She gets so excited about the whole process. She was an expert this time and made sure the lady knew what to do next. Saturday we had an early dinner at Joe's new restaurant and then headed to Lakewood Church to see Joel Osteen. I wasn't sure what to expect, but had a surprisingly moving experience.

Our Princess and Her Easter Hair

Needed a Papa Fix

Cam still has such a hard time when Papa Joe is at work. She gets very emotional about it almost daily. So today, as a surprise, we stopped by Papa's work to visit. She could hardly contain her excitement. Here they are, goofy as ever. Thanks for helping us get through the day Papa!

Because...

Because I think it's cool, and because I am getting better and better at using my little camera...I thought I would share.

Hippity Hoppity Hunting

(An appropriate face for the occasion :P) We went to our friend's house today for an Easter Egg Hunt. What a blast! 15 moms and twice that many kids running loose in search of treat filled eggs. The trill was enough to make me think we should have such a hunt many times a year. I have something fun up my sleeve for our own hunt at home on Easter Sunday. (more later on that)

Bluebonnet Tour, 2009

The kids and I are exhausted after an eight hour bluebonnet tour about 50 miles west / northwest of Houston. We had a wonderful time out in the fields and the sun. It hit 88 degrees out where we were. We were traveling with a group of 18-20 photographers, some amateur, some professional, a couple (myself) wannabe. Every stop was more beautiful than the next. The spring wildflowers attract people by the thousands. We were fortunate to be guided by a native Texan who knew just the right back roads to take so that we could experience the beauty of the painted, rolling hills on our own. Here are some shots from the day. (Sorry, no more details today. We are off to rest.)

A Dose of Daily Irony

Today was day two of our mission to register the vehicle and obtain a TX driver's license. (#2 on the cons of moving list) It can't be that bad right? Maybe, if you are waiting in line by yourself and you brought your ipod along. :P I, on the other hand, had the children in tow. Let's just say it was an adventure. Did you know that you need to make four stops to accomplish this mission, meandering through the queue area maze in all but one place? What is the technical name for that maze they put up anyways?

Warning: Standing in line can cause extreme boredom, annoyance and even rage. (CNN) My daughter made it through each of those stages several times during our adventure. I am not sure why I expected anything less. hehe.

Here she is mission accomplished! I let her have the plates because when we finally did make it to the window at our last stop, and the lady handed over those metal rectangles, Cambry said, "Ughhh. This is exactly what I have been looking for. Thank you." Right then and there I forgot all the trouble we had earlier in the day.

The other thing that totally made me laugh today happened in the parking lot of DPS - the driver's license division. Just as we were backing out of our parking space, Joe Schmo comes flying into the parking lot in his rundown astro van. By this time I have hit my breaks and am watching the in rear view as he has one hand on the wheel and is bent over looking for... I lay on the horn just in time to see him look up and hear his tires screech to a stop less than an inch behind my car (just guessing). I pulled forward to let Schmo by. And where did he pull his car into? The 'Park Here for Driving Test' lane. My guess is the testers already saw his display through the bay window out front and will just go ahead and mark him as fail right now. Thanks for that. lol.

Here are a couple more shot from the day. 1) Boston waiting in line all morning. I tell you, not much rattles this guy. 2) Boston during what should be nap time. 3) Cambry in the tea cup on the carousel ride at the mall. She was spinning so fast I was sick just watching.

Thanks for checking in with us. Until later - A

Rockin' the Point and Shoot

After our playdate, we stopped by another park to take some photos. I must say, I feel like I am getting better at my new skill everyday. (Boston was sleeping, so these shots are just of my lady.)

On the bottom two are the 'before' and 'after' post processing on a shot I happened to capture the other day. We were busy trying to get out of the house to go play with our friends, so I asked Cambry to help me. She is wonderful when it comes to helping out with Boston. She has been practicing feeding him. I was putting on my face around the corner but could still catch this precious moment. She was stroking his head, telling him how they are friends, and what they would be doing together for the day.

Duck Diner

After three attempts, during three separate weeks, we finally hosted our first Mom's Group Meetup. Yeah! We went to MJP park, another of our favs, to feed the ducks. Duck Diner it was called. Rather than post more of the same pictures (kiddos looking cute while 60 enormous ducks engorge loaf after loaf of bread), I have added a couple of cute shots from the playground later that morning. Later in April will be our second attempt at Bubble Blast, our Mom's Group Bubble Party. Let's hope the weather holds out this time.