Katy Carnival

On the Friday night before Easter we took Amberly and Trent with us to go look for shoes at Katy Mills Mall. When we drove up we saw a big carnival in part of the parking lot. (Elizabeth was at work and Eyn was over at a friends house) We surprised Amberly and Trent and stopped at the carnival. Talk about childhood memories! Darin and I both have bad memories of nausea at the last "cheap" carnival we went to. We let Trent and Amberly each pick a few rides to ride considering we didn't have very long to stay. (4 tickets per ride, $1 per ticket. Expensive!) Well, we had a lot of fun and Amberly and Trent really enjoyed themselves.

Trent really wanted to ride the "Scary" rides, and that is exactly what he did! He always looked a little apprehensive before getting on the ride, but he loved them! I loved his facial expressions when the ride first started to go. We really thought he was turning green a few times!

Amberly absolutely loved this Ferris wheel! She said she could see everything so high!
This next picture is what Amberly looked like after she rode the next ride.

Trent really wanted to ride this ride and Amberly didn't think it looked that scary. I guess she was wrong! Every time it came around we could hardly see her because she was as low down in the seat as she could get! It was funny because the ride would come to a near stop and then start up again. I don't think she ever thought it was going to end! When she got off she practically ran into Darin's arms and didn't want to let go for a little while. I don't think she'll be getting back on one of those again!

Spring Time in Texas

On Friday we went on our yearly search of the bluebonnets drive. I love the wildflowers every year and love to take pictures in them. This year we have had a hard time finding a time to go see them. We had a short window of opportunity on Friday (between Trent's Scout Hike and Elizabeth having to be to work) so we hopped in the van and took off. We saw many fields of blue, but not like we have seen in the past. I know we haven't had much rain so far this year, so they aren't out in abundance. But they are sooo beautiful! I know that my children don't particularly enjoy this excursion each year, but I'm happy that put up with it and try and put on a smile for me!

Trent beautiful Bluebonnets
Amberly was walking among the bluebonnets when I caught this shot of her. I loved how the breeze was blowing her hair and dress.
Dad having fun as usual! (It is Easter time!)

Elizabeth

Eyn

Darin

This is where I would have put my picture if I liked it. But as you can tell, it is empty. Being that this is My blog I choose not to add my own picture. :)

I love bluebonnets! It is one of my favorite parts of spring in Texas!

Spring Break - Lunch with Dad at Williams Tower Falls

We had a great spring break this year! I think we all needed the break! Each day I really tried to at least do something special. It wasn't always grand, but we did something to get out and have fun!

We decided one day to go and eat lunch with Darin. He works close to the Galleria area so we picked up Subway and went over to the Williams Tower Falls. It was wonderful!! The weather was perfect to be outside and the cool breeze from the falls felt great! I always have to take pictures (which not everyone appreciates, but they do endure it well at times!). Everyone enjoyed climbing up to be high beside the falls. (A little too high for my liking!)Story behind this picture - Eyn didn't really want to climb to the top of this. But, he did it to make mom happy. Everyone else had to jump up, sit down, get up, jump up, sit down... all the way to the top. These steps were wet, so... wet steps cause wet bums if your having to sit down. So.. Eyn looked at it and leap frogged up the entire thing and didn't get wet at all! Long legs are good for many thing!!
Having fun!

I was really disappointed in this picture. Someone offered to take our picture and the auto focus button accidentally got pushed. It would have been a great shot of all of us together!

We had a great time visiting Darin for lunch and I think he had a great break from work! He was quite jealous of our week off! Luckily he had that Friday off so he could play with us too!

I had to have this one last picture before we left the park.

Rodeo Day!

Every spring Houston goes Rodeo crazy! Houston hosts the largest livestock show and rodeo during March and the entire area is in a buzz over it! Our kindergarten had a Rodeo Round-up so they spent the morning doing cowboy games and had sooo much fun!! The entire school was able to dress up that day too. Trent was given a special treat for dressing up. We keep hoping to go to the large rodeo in Houston, but we always fail to go. Bummer! We will get there! They have awesome concerts every night. Elizabeth has been able to go a few times with friends.

Cowboy Trent Cowgirl Amberly
Amberly had this picture taken during her kindergarten rodeo. She had so much fun! They got to rope a cow and had a tortilla throw just to name a few of the fun activities they did.

T.M.E.A

The Seven Lakes High School Chorale Women received the highest honor that can be bestowed on a high school choir in the State of Texas. They were named the 2009 State Performance Choir by the Texas Music Educators Association. This amazing honor is equivalent to going to the state championship in a team sport. A panel of judges heard over 100 CDs and chose the Seven Lakes Chorale Women to perform at the 2009 TMEA Convention in San Antonio. Elizabeth has been an active part of the Top choir since her freshman year. It is an incredible accomplishment. They were able to travel to San Antonio in March to perform. I can not even describe the amount of work these girls and their directors have put into this this year. It has been exhausting for all of them, yet so rewarding. Their directors, Shannon Carter and Julia Cooper, have made it a wonderful experience for each of the girls. The sound that comes out of this choir is amazing! I have been brought to tears many times while listening to them. I asked Elizabeth the other day what she was going to miss about high school and she said Choir. She has loved it. Especially this year. The bond of unity this group has is wonderful to be a part of. Congratulations on a great year!

Chorale Women in the Rotunda

Chorale Women in the formal performing dresses. They look beautiful!
We feel incredibly blessed to be part of such a wonderful organization!

Pinewood Derby

During March our scouts held their annual Pinewood Derby. It is always an exciting evening for all the boys and their families. This year marks Trent's last derby since he will soon be 11 and moving into Boy Scouts. It will be strange not going to cub scouts anymore.

Trent and Darin did a great job on the car! It's amazing how quickly it came together and how good they've gotten at it!

Building the Car-The wheels are always the hardest part!Last minute touch-ups at the church before the race. They waited to put the weights on until we arrived to make sure they got the correct weight.
The race - They got to race their cars on each track so everyone raced 3 times.

Car parade- Each boy walked around the track holding up their cars for everyone to see. Each boy then received their awards. Way to go Trent! You did great!!

D.A.R.E Graduation

All the 5th graders in our school district have the honor of being part of the DARE program. It is a wonderful program led by one of the Katy ISD police officers. It is more than just about drug prevention, it teaches about making good decisions that will help them grow up to be healthy, safe and secure. Each one of our children so far has been a part of the program. I think it's a great program and I'm thankful that the schools offer it here.

Trent and the officer who led their group this year. He was great!

Trent posing with his certificate and a picture of the DARE mascot.
All the 5th graders singing the DARE song. I love this song!
Eyn and Amberly enjoying the program.
Trent receiving his certificate of completion. The teacher in the middle back is his homeroom teacher Mrs. Gutierrez. She is awesome!
DARE stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education. I love the song the kids sing which teaches what they learn in the program. In the song it says DARE stands for:

D - I won't do Drugs

A - Won't have an attitude

R - I will RESPECT myself

E - I will EDUCATE

It's a great program where the kids all take a pledge saying that they will remain drug free and to help others not fall in the trap of making those wrong choices.

100th Day of School

Catching up:

On February 10th the Kindergarten celebrated the 100th day of school. One of the fun things they got to do was dress up as if they were 100 years old today. They had a parade throughout the school for the older grades. It was a fun day at school doing fun activities around the number 100! Amberly wore an old shawl that my grandmother had made for me when I was little, some long pearls that belonged to her Grandma, her hair was pulled up and back and just looked cute!

We love our school! They are always doing fun and exciting things to make learning great!

District Champions!

Eyn's Basketball team won the District Championship! What a great season they had! He had to work extra hard this year to come back after breaking his elbow over the summer, but he did great and we're extremely proud of him! At the end of the last game the head coach came out and asked all the parents to remain sitting for a minute because the players had a special recognition to make. He then told us it was parent recognition night and that they wanted to show their appreciation to each of their parents for their support during such a great season. Each one of players then came out carrying orange roses (school colors are orange and blue) and letters. They presented each mother with a rose and each father with a letter they had written to them. It was very touching moment watching these young men present them to their parents and then hugging and kissing them. Eyn was attacked as he not only hugged his mom and dad but got a "hugful" from Amberly, Trent and Elizabeth. One of those "moments" that stick forever!

Eyn also just completed a 6 week teachers/priests Stake basketball tournament. He was awesome! It was so much fun to watch those boys at church play! You see a different side to them when they are on the court and don't have the pressure of their coaches. Eyn loved this tournament and I think is sad it's over except for the fact that most of their games started at 8:00 a.m. on a Saturday. Gotta love it!

Happy Birthday Dad! (Paw Paw)

Today would have been my Dad's 72nd birthday. I just wanted to take a moment and post a few favorite pictures of him and share a few memories. Next month it will be 7 years since he died. Our family continues to miss him and are thankful for the good memories we have.

This was my Dad's Senior Class picture. He was a great student/athlete. I know that Eyn got his Athletic abilities from my Dad.

Dad always had a hat on. He had quite a collection of them!
One thing is for sure, my Dad loved his Grand kids and they loved him!

The last few years of my Dad's life were quite tough. The last year of his life was spent in a lovely nursing home in a house. We were so blessed with the people there that helped take care of him. These pictures were taken on one of our visits. During his last year he rarely spoke at all. My greatest memory of him during this time was on our last visit to see him. Darin and I walked in from one direction and he was eating lunch. He looked up and saw me and didn't acknowledge me very much but from the other direction Elizabeth had walked in and he turned and saw her and his face completely lit up in the biggest smile I think I've ever seen. Everyone in the room was astonished because and we all knew that he definitely recognized his precious granddaughter! It was a moment instilled in my heart forever.

We love and miss you Dad (Paw Paw)!!

Happy Birthday!!

The "Miners"

Basketball season has started for Trent. He's on the "Miners" team. You may ask "Who are the Miners?". I looked it up and it is actually the mascot of the University of Texas at El Paso. (UTEP) Whoever they are one thing I do know is that Trent's team is doing GREAT! They have won all but one game. Trent really likes his team. All the boys on his team all go to our school. It's so much fun to watch Trent and see how much he has improved over the years. He's quite aggressive and a great defensive player. They have a hard time scoring off of him. He's also become one of their top scorers. Keep it up Trent!

Spartan Basketball

One of my favorite things to do is watch my children do well in what they love doing. For Eyn Basketball is what he loves. He loves the NBA (especially the Rockets) and he loves to be on the court. Over the years it has amazed us to watch him as he has gotten better and better at it. I can still picture him out in our driveway playing with the "big boys" in the neighborhood. Now, he is probably a good 6-8 inches taller than most of those boys and could take them all down! Every time there is a game my heart begins to race and I am so excited! I love it!

A few weeks ago we played Clements in Sugar Land where Darin took these pictures. It's sometimes hard to take pictures because we get so into the game we forget!

Eyn Going up for the shot. Taking some free throw shots after being fouled under the basket.
Going after the rebound.

Basketball at the High School level has been lots of fun. He practices usually 3-4 hours a day and has usually 2 games a week. We have been so impressed at our school with the team spirit. The players stand up and praise each other. The support and encouragement they give each other is amazing. We watch the other teams and it's just not there. I'm so thankful that Eyn is a part of such a great program!

Go Spartans!!