Beach Bums!

I know it has been several weeks from my last blog, we were on vacations, yea!!! We went with 2 of Ryan's bothers and 1 family friend to Fort Morgan, AL. That is 15 miles west of Gulf Shores. Let me tell ya, white sand, beautiful water! We had a blast. There werew 15 of us, but we never got cramped for space. We stayed in a house with plenty of room. Lots of stories, I will share them throught the week with you.
My story today: Ryan lost his wedding ring on the beach! And yes, he found it the next day! His wedding ring is a little big for him (we have already reduced the size once, we should probably do it again to save this from happening again!) He forgot to leave his ring at the house, so when he got down to the beach, he placed in on the cooler. Our SIL took it and placed it in the cup holder of a chair moving it to higher ground and an area that had walls. Well, at the end of the day Ryan left it in the chair at the beach. I told him 3 times to go back down and get it, his reply, "When we clean up tonight, I will get it." Clean up time and the boys came back, suddenly Ryan realized he didn't get the ring out of the cup holder before they "threw" all the chair into the area under the tent. Several of us went back down to look, a couple with a metal detector helped us for over an hour look, still not luck! We all went up to the house. The next morning, Ryan and his brothers started digging around our area with their hands while we were hanging on the beach, Ryan found it in about 20 minutes, AMAZING!!!! I was thinking instead of that tent he wanted for Father's Day, another ring was first! Anyway, from that day to the end of our trip, Rich (Ryan's brother) was in charge of his ring! Eric (ryan's older brother) lost his wedding ring (and found it) at Doug's (another brother) wedding on the beach.

Crazy Boys!

Benjamin helping me roll out and bake 24 pizza crust for church Wednesday night!
Carter is standing on a toy truck balancing himself!
Carter is our "free spirited" silly boy!

Wow, what a week. Ryan went out of town on Tuesday, this was my first week out of school, plus I cooked dinner at church on Wednesday night. It seems this week has lasted forever! I do have several stories from the boys this week.

Benjamin: He is my little helper, he loves cooking in the kitchen. He pulls the chair to the side of the cabinet and he pretends to cook. On Tuesday, together we rolled out 24 pizza crust and baked them. He thought he was in heaven. He especially like to play with the spatula and act like he is flipping pancake. Today, we were eating lunch on the deck, Benjamin drops a part of his ice cream on the deck. He lays down on the deck and licks the ice cream off the floor. This is before I could do anything! We are starting to potty train or at least acknowledge that there is a potty in the house. He says he wants to go, but then stage fright hits when we step up to the plate. We have a bucket of toys he gets to choose from when he does finally go, and any tips on potty training would definitely help!

Carter: Other than the fact he wants his pacifier in his mouth 24/7, he is growing like crazy. He is starting to say more things. On command from older brother, he will "moo" like a cow. It is pretty funny! He is teething with the bottom molars now, fun times. But I have to say the funniest thing (don't know if it is appropriate for me to think this is funny) happened this week at McDonalds. I took the boys to eat there on Tuesday night when my kitchen was covered in pizza crust and tomato sauce. We had a nice meal and then the boys got down to play. Another family of 4 chidren were there too. The mother went and got ice cream for them, and the kids ate it in the play area. (Side note: okay mom, not the best place when other kids are around to let your kids eat ice cream in the PLAY AREA, at least sit down at the tables) Carter saw it and went following the kids around with his tongue out of his mouth. Finally Benjamin saw it and asked for ice cream, I knew there was no way around not getting ice cream. Plus, ice cream is a great way to end such a delicious meal at Mickey D's! So I put Carter and Ben in the small area to play, checked the counter ( no one there) and took off quickly with my money. I looked back, boys were good and playing. I was gone less then 2 minutes. When I walk back in the room, I find the smallest girl in the ice cream family crying with mom holding her and the ice cream was missing a portion of it. My sweet, precious, innocent little Carter had tackled her, bit her on the arm, and swiped the ice cream! Yes, I said it, my little man went to war for ice cream. This was truly the first time I have ever been embarrased by either of my children. I didn't know what to say. Thank goodness the mother thought it was no big deal. She even made the comment, I don't think he actually bit her, I think he just put his mouth up to her arm. Like I said at the time, I was mortified. On the way home, I started laughing out lous. Leave it to my kid to take another child (smallest girl for that matter) for ice cream!

World's Best Husband

10 Wonderful things Ryan has done for me this past 2 week:

1. Had Merry Maid's come (deep) clean our house for Mother's day.
2. Let me open and wear the earrings I ordered for myself for Mother's day 2 weeks early.
3. Let me sleep in, he got up with the boys (this is my best treat, I hate mornings.)
4. Planned and cooked dinner last night (5/21).
5. Took me shopping at the Harold's outlet this weekend in Austin!
6. Took the family out for ice cream (we love doing this).
7. Met my mother half way to get the boys and I, so we could stay longer at my mother's house (he had to get back to church).
8. He always takes care of mowing the lawn. I don't even have to worry about taking up this task!
9. He let me choose the movie last week from Blockbuster!
10. He cleaned up everything that was on the floor in the bathroom (most of it was his stuff, but he still did it, YEA!)

Finally an update!

First of all, I have forgotten my camera the past 2 weekends when we have done really fun stuff! For Mother's day, we went to Jacksboro for R&R. The boys love going to J-town because they get to see Mum's and Grandad. Grandad is Carter's #1 buddy. He will watch him and then run to him. They boys played in the sandbox and threw rocks and sticks at the shed. Ben calls it throwing the baseballs. London was there to keep everybody in line. The 3 had such a great time. Mums even put pennies in the sandbox. My boys had no interest digging for money, they would rather throw things. London was digging to China trying to find the money. It was great to be with the family over the weekend.

This past weekend, the boys were shipped back to J-town, and Ryan and I went to San Antonio! Ryan earned a trip through his company, the trip was to the Hill Country Hyatt. We had a relaxing time in the country setting. I even had time to lay by the pool for a couple of hours. On Saturday, I went to Austin to see my college friend Ann. (She is the twin that had twims last August if you remember past blogs about her.) The twins are growing, I can't believe how big they are getting. They were so sweet! Ann, send me pictures so I can post them!

We are getting ready for summer. I have 1 day left! This past year has been such a great experience being able to stay home part time. I love teaching and being a mother, this truly has been the perfect job for me! I am looking forward to a fun filled summer with the boys.

Yummy Treat

Bedtime snack

Benjamin and I had a great time on Tuesday night dipping strawberries in chocolate for his daddy. He would run back to the room and say, "Daddy, don't come in here, we are making you a surprise." Ryan had no idea what it could be especially because chocolate was dripping down his face! Benjamin wanted to dip the strawberry and then eat it right then. He didn't like the waiting time and putting them on a plate. Poor little Carter was already in bed, more strawberries for us!

Merriman Camping Trip

Group picture with all the campers!
Group picture in front of the lake.
Aunt (Re)Becca with Benjamin
2 prego's Rebecca on left 16 weeks, Melissa on right 12 weeks! What will they have???

Benjamin is really big into distinguishing if someone is a boy or girl. So I asked him what the 2 aunties were having. He thinks Rebecca is having a girl and Melissa is having a boy. He says, "Mommy, girl in her tummy." I am already getting the boy vibes for Melissa, but I can't get a reading on Rebecca. We will find out in about 3 weeks though. Doug and Melissa are waiting until birth (November), which I think will be exciting too. I don't have any good stories about the camping trip because I didn't go, all I know is both my boys had a great time! I will be looking forward to going next year. Especially because between the 2 new little ones, I can hold a baby the entire time!

Family, Fun, and lots of Desserts!

London loving on Carter during a break from her soccer game!
London & Carter after church!

This weekend Carter and I surprised Brad, Robin, and London by taking a roadtrip to Kingwood! My mom already was planning on going, she flew down a couple of hours before we arrived. Ryan took Benjamin on a Merriman camping trip. I will blog with pictures later from that trip (waiting on pictures from the SIL's). I hadn't seen my sister or sweet London since Spring Break, so I decided what a good weekend to go down there. Mom had everything planned out just right. Her and London were going to treat Robin and Brad to a special dinner at Pappasito's (London's favorite place to eat). I was going to show up there to surprise them. Timing worked out perfect. I arrived at the restuarant as they were sitting down. I called mom and she took London outside to meet us. I wished I would have taken a picture of London's face when she saw us. It was worth the 4 hour trip down there. And then Robin came out to get Mom. When she saw us, she started crying! I mean CRYING!!!! We laughed because I don't think I ever seen her cry that much!!!! I was perfect. I LOVE eating out with my mother and sister because we always order DESSERT, usually 2 desserts and share. Friday night we had the Tres Leche cake and a Brownie Sundae (London's pick), I think Pappasito's make the best Tres Leche (my mom's matches it pretty close). After church on Sunday we went to Hasta La Pasta, after stuffing ourselves, yes we order more dessert! We had Carrot Cake (Brad's favorite) and Tiramisu. The tiramisu was delicious, I let the others eat the Carrot cake, I didn't want to waste my calories on it!!!!! We had such a great time spending the weekend together. I got to sleep with my London both nights, my mom took Carter duty! We got to watch London play soccer, her team is called the Ladybugs (boys are the Dragonflies). She loved on Carter the entire weekend. I can't wait until she comes and stays a week with us this summer! We were already making out our To-Do list for the week! I am looking forward to seeing her again for Mother's day. She is my little girl! Brad, Robin, and especially Mom, thanks for a FABULOUS weekend!

Through the Eyes of a Child

Benjamin in his cute outfit from Aunt Robin! This blog "Through the eyes of a Child" is for my sweet Benjamin. Every night before he goes to bed, he gets his special time (Carter goes to bed 30 minutes earlier). Usually it is with Ryan because he is the bedtime king, and I am with them most days so I am resting/watching TV. On the special times that Ryan is busy, and I get to sit with him; I try and soak in so many moments that become great memories. We were watching baseball, the Rangers, and talking baseball. We would chatter at the opposing team when they were up to bat. We would encourage our pichter to throw strikes, etc. We created nicknames for the Rangers (of course different from their given nickname). We had so much fun that bedtime got pushed back a little. Well the other night, Ryan and I were home alone. My mother had both of the boys and Ryan and return from playing in a golf tourney. So on Saturday night at 10:00, we were finishing up watching the Texas Rangers. What!!!! I started laughing and told Ryan, "You know, 3 years ago we would never be watching a baseball game." Now, we love watching baseball, especially the Rangers. Benjamin's love for baseball has made us baseball fans too. It is amazing what kids will do to you. I think I even caught myself calling the players by Ben's nicknames!
Carter in a beanie. Carter is my love bug, drama boy, game seeker, and game player. He loves to be playing with you. He loves to be held and curl up in your arms. He will throw a fit that makes you think he hurt himself. I had a chance to spend some alone time with him on Sunday. He love being the center of attention. He loves sitting in my lap and playing with my hands. Carter loves to be held, Benjamin wouldn't last 19 seconds being held. We can already tell, he is going to be our daredevil. He likes to play tough, but he doesn't like big brother to mess with him if it wasn't his idea! But, most of all he is a big mama's boy! Got to love it and enjoy it now!

Easter Family

Rylie (cousin), Granny, Ashley (cousin), and I at Easter.
Carter, Vaughn, Benjamin, & Dylan after church on Sunday.
Doug and Melissa getting Easter goodies from Ben and Carter. I bought the Valentine outfit for Melissa 6 weeks ago not knowing. I got a 0-3 month outfit for the baby. The baby will be exactly 3 months!
Rylie and I (her mom and my dad were brother and sister)
Ashley came in from college (Emery in Atlanta) to spend time with the family. She is helping the boys crack into their candy!

Finally Easter Pictures

Off for the Easter Egg Hunt at Mum's and Grandad's house.
Carter trying to "hunt" eggs from Benjamin's basket.
Easter morning at breakfast.
Benjamin on Easter morning.
Pictures before church!

It has been 2 very crazy busy weeks, but finally I found a little time to blog. Ryan had to get the boys ready for church on Easter morning. I told him to take pictures before church, he did a great job. This was the best picture from Easter. Carter was getting sick and not in the mood for pictures. We later found out he had a ear infections, I would be unhappy too!

We had a great Easter Holiday with family. All of the Rye family minus Aunt Lana joined us in J-town for Easter on that Saturday. We had a Easter Egg Hunt with the small kids then, but the older cousins had to have their hunt on Sunday. I think it was because they didn't want me to steal the money out of the eggs. Growing up at my grandmother's house, I used to take the money out of the eggs and leave the egg with candy for the little cousins to take. I didn't think they need money, I was the one at college that needed laundry money. Saturday night we went to Ryan's parent to have an Egg hunt and dinner. Then we spent all day Sunday with the Merriman's too. We had some exciting news. We have another Merriman baby on the way. Doug and Melissa are expecting their first baby in November. Yea, with Eric and Rebecca being pregnant again (October due date) that means 7 & 8 grandbabies now. I will try and attach pictures from both of the family get togethers later. I rounded out the week with working on Wednesday and taking students to a conference Thrusday and Friday. I am now resting!!!!

Smart, Funny Boys!

Benjamin playing with bubbles!
Just a swingin'!

Each day the boys amaze me more. I can't believe that Carter understand as much as he does. That little guy has us fooled. He knows everything we are talking about; and if he likes what we are saying, he does it! He was crawling across the floor, and I said, "Carter, stop, stand up, and walk. You know how to walk, stand up and walk." Carter stops, looked up at me, and stood up and starting walking. If I ask him to go get the soccer ball or football, he does. It just amazes me how much their little minds work! Benjamin is excited about baseball season. We are full force hitting the bat, that is his favorite thing to do. He is such a funny little man. He will be the class clown, I wonder which parent he got that trait from. I can already imagine the parent/teacher conferences. Once they meet Ryan, I bet they will not be able to say anything else! For example today at lunch, Ryan was trying to get Benjamin and Parker (one of his friends) to stick their nose and ear into their ice cream cone (free ice cream and kids plate at Dickey's on Sunday). What normal parent would encourage thier child to get ice cream all over their body????

Las Vegas

Pamela at The Cupcakery, a friend from J-town!
Ryan and I in front of the Monte Carlo
The gardens at the Bellagio
Paris Hotel in LV at night
Chocolate egg at the Bellagio

This was our R & R vacation to Las Vegas, we went with friends from from Tech, Courtney and Jeff. We had a blast! We were there 4 days. We ate lots of good food, I got to lay out by the pool 2 days, and did a little shopping. I went to see a friend from high school, Pamela. She owns a cupcake store in Vegas called The Cupcakery (check out her website), she hooked us up with 2 dozen cupcakes that were delicious! The only problem our flight was delayed 2 hours Saturday night, so we didn't get in until 2 am! Thanks Mums for staying up!

Carter Update

Carter enjoying the ribs!
Carter just waking up from a afternoon nap at Mum's.
Changing clothes after bathtime.
Carter going fishing with brother!

After 6 weeks of knowing how to walk but choosing to crawl instead, Carter is finally walking! YEA! I think he finally realized that walking is just as easy as crawling! I will send out a video of him walking later to the family, friends I will spare you the entertainment! He is such a happy little boy, lots of smiles and hugs. Carter loves all kinds of playing balls and ballons. He is such a great little eater, eating almost all day long! He is starting to like the trains, but he mainly like driving pretend cars! Carter loves being outside, and he cries and cries when you bring inside!

Benjamin update

Ben getting his first haircut - other than at home!
London and Ben at Mum's house over Spring Break!
Benjamin eating ribs! Grandad makes the best ribs in the world!
Check out the tie! Benjamin getting his surprise before church on Sunday.

Ryan and I went to Las Vegas over Spring Break leaving the boys behind! It was hard being away from them for 5 days, but the trip for me was relaxing! Benjamin is still into Cars, we almost have all the little cars; still working on a few. He has a train table in his room that he loves, James (above) is his favorite because it is red, and he is excited that baseball season is here!!!!