Secret Friend

The walk to the mailbox is always a hopeful one for the girls of Casa Doyle.  The excitement over potential cards, letters or packages never wanes.  

Today, a mysterious envelope arrived for Grace.

It contained this note

and something green.

and now, only six more dollars to save for her........

What is Grace saving for?  

Will she get it or will she blow her money on a spectacular Mother's Day gift?

Tune in to find out.

a PS--all the girls thought the envelope was from me.  They were convinced and would not believe that I  was not the sender until I showed them the postmark.  To the mysterious sender-- whoever you are--Grace is very grateful.  She sends a big thank you and a huge hug!

Special Visitors

The one big advantage of living in Texas, far from family, is that we occasionally get visitors.  We love having visitors.  Not only is it wonderful to wake up to new faces in the house, but it provides the opportunity to see our home anew as we give tours and show our guests the ropes of life in Texas.

My parents were last week's special visitors.  And though we truly enjoy our time with them in Woodstock every summer, we also love to host them.  I have a lot of photos of their visit--the highlight was Madeleine's Confirmation.  Today's batch is from our trip to Build a Bear where we bought them each a birthday friend--I mean--gift.

 Paka appears to be debating between a bear and Hello Kitty

Mia was one of his consultants.  I assigned two girls to each grandparent which worked well.

 These bears have more wardrobe options than Paka himself.

What to choose?

 Selecting a sound

The girls sang a song to go with each bear.  Paka got "Almost Heaven" and Grandma's sang, "We love you Grandma, oh yes we do..."  We always go for the personalized sounds.

 Paka's choice

 and Grandma's

Mia ended up doing dual-consulting as her sisters did their own wishful shopping

 Time to stuff the bears

 and add a little heart--or a lot (here, hearts for Paka's bear)

and Grandma's

 Mia makes a wish on her heart before adding it to Grandma's bear

 "Choose these Grandma!"

 Grandma takes great care in dressing her baby

 Paka's bear--Louie

 and, she matches--Serena

(The bears were named for the characters in Trumpet of the Swan by EB White)

Making the birth certificates

The rest of the story?  Louie and Serena are living happily ever after.  I bought them a tent for when my parents take their camper on the road.  I also bought them underwear.  Neither of my parents prioritized that article of clothing and I was, frankly, quite shocked.  Because as everyone knows, no one wants to be in an accident wearing dirty underwear.  Or worse--no underwear.

This outing was truly a blast.  Build a Bear gets high marks from me.  They were terrific all the way around.  We took our time and left very happy with our purchases.  Now, the only one without a bear of his own is Chris.  And he has a birthday coming up.......hmmm....

More about our week with Grandma and Paka coming soon!

Rodeo Houston Part III

bevy of beauties with Steve Trash, the children's magician/ comedian

 a favorite trick--first we tried to blow the top block over, then we poked it...

 finally....success!

 Sorry for the crotch shot but Ella and Sophie were so cute riding the ferris wheel with Daddy, 

I couldn't miss it.

Mia and G rode with me.  Grace urged us not to move much...I think she may have been a bit nervous.

 rock wall princess

 tall enough!

 big fans of the elephant ride...brings back memories

 No trip to the rodeo would be complete without TREATS!  Mia got a caramel apple, Sophie and Grace chose snow cones and Ella, cotton candy.  The girls gave up sweets for Lent and Mia was worried about breaking her resolution.  I would have been proud of her either way but was glad to see her be able to take a break, enjoy the moment and pick back up where she left off.  Too often, an all-or-nothing attitude can keep a person from doing good.  A break now and then does a body good I think.

 a sweet ending to this rodeo series

We went home and lived happily ever after....

P.S. I took a lot of video of the "Mutton Busting" show we watched.  It was very cool and worth seeing.  My plan is to work on the clips a bit to post here and show you what it is.  Stay tuned....and remind me :)

Rodeo Houston Part II

Here, a series of lunch photos of Mia and her dad.  They have a very special bond as I think comes across in this small collection.  Mia is, truly, a Daddy's girl.

And that KU shirt?  Must have been lucky.  Still, I felt sorry for the Purdue coach.  I picked KU to go all the way though and I am happily leading our bracket challenge. That's a story for another day though....

Rodeo Houston Part I

Making Friends

Despite the mild Houston-bashing in my last post, there are certain things I love about Texas.  In fact, all of the things that people normally associate with Texas--cowboy hats and boots, country music, enormous pick up trucks--are favorites of mine.  And of course, the rodeo. 

Friday was full of family fun.  We started at a performance of The Velveteen Rabbit.  We knew the novice actor who played the boy but the rest of the cast were full-time actors for the company.  The play was done in the round and was very impressive.  To prepare the girls to really understand and enjoy it, we had listened to the story several times and discussed some of the themes and ideas--the meaning of "real" and "love" among them.  I love discussing literature with the girls.  They are critical thinkers in the making and I always come away from our conversations feeling both humbled and proud.

After the play, we enjoyed a healthy lunch (in preparation for rodeo fare) and headed to Reliant.  Below, our day in pictures.  It was relaxed and fun.  We missed Madeleine who spent the day celebrating a friend's birthday.

The (free) tram from the parking lot was a favorite ride:)

Mia's nod to Señor Pence

I told the girls ahead of time that they had to earn their rodeo treats by smiling for mama
They're always pretty good models but they really earned their treats on Friday!

Mia and Grace, underfoot

The rodeo was a goldmine of great backgrounds for photos.  Here, one of our stars.

Follow along for more rodeo fun next post!

Velveteen Rabbit pics:

Patience is a Virtue

Wow--is it ever hard for me to be patient!  I am a classic oldest, type A personality.  I not only know how things should be but am sure I can speed up the process.  I have a hard time waiting and trusting God to bring things about in His own time.
Chris and I have often referred to our Texas years as "our time in Egypt".  You may recall that in the Gospel, an angel told Joseph in a dream to take his family to Egypt to avoid Herod's murderous rage against the new born king.  I'm sure that time was painful for all of them, especially Mary, as she was disconnected from her community, living among strangers and waiting for God's call to finally go home.
That's us.  Chris and I know we want to be back on the east coast, within an easy drive of my family.  To be honest, the east coast is home even without my family.  My entire self misses the seasons.  I miss the snow and all of the photos I haven't taken of my babies bundled head to toe for winter fun.  It is time to go home.
And yet, we wait.  We need the job that will allow us to move with Shell.  Chris is confident it will happen and I trust him but it may take up to a year.  And I am so ready to pack up today.
Back in my younger days, when I needed a change, I moved.  I packed my little red Ford Escort and headed off for the next adventure.  If there is anything more liberating than hitting the road after shaking the dust from my flip flops, I don't know what it is.  Still, these days, I am not looking for the next place, I am looking for the place.  I am ready to find the home base from which our kids will fly off to seek their ways in the world.  I'm not looking for adventure so much as a place to put down roots.
I think, looking back, Houston will be my least favorite place to have lived.  There are a lot of reasons for that but the most important is one I simply have a hunch about.  I don't think God has allowed us to get comfortable here because He has other plans for us.  Very special ones.
I know I have to be patient but I am very excited.

My Daughter the Dog

Favorite outfit for obvious reasons

You can't understand Ella without taking into account her intense love of dogs.  Some kids are captivated by animals in general, but with Ella, it is the dogs of the world who matter most.  When I told her it was time to leave Grandma's house the other day, she dug in a bit saying, "I don't want to go where there are no dogs."  Better than that was when she filled us in on the fact that, before she was in mommy's "tummy", she lived in a dog kennel.  Hmmm.....Assuming for a minute that she is telling the truth, I see Ella in a new light.  Perhaps it is her doggy or puppy-ness that makes her so eager and friendly.  She is playful, cute, funny, lovable and easy to be around.  Anyone would want to adopt her.  No wonder she likes dogs so much.  She has more in common with them than with most humans!

Have a great week everyone!  We will--it's spring break!  Yippee!

Be Mine Valentine 2012

The Grand List

 How I love Valentine's Day!  It is a day made for romantics, poets, troubadours and--me.  I am a word person.  I love words.  And I believe in the power of words--and communication--to heal all that ails us.  Especially families.  Who doesn't need to hear, "I understand you", "I forgive you" and "I love you"?
So, every February, I am on the lookout for supplies to make the cards that will carry our missals of love to family far away and close by.  I drop a very large sum of money at Michaels on everything from stickers to ribbon to lots and lots of glue.  I love it.  It's almost as much fun as buying school supplies.
This year, we made an especially impressive array of greetings.  First, we made "The Grand List" and picked names.  My first card was for Brendan and I went all out.  It had a guitar theme and included a picture of Mr. B jamming.  It wasn't hard to fill a page with all the things I love about him.  I just wish I didn't have to wait eleven months between hugs.
Chris made a card for our other,  next-oldest god child, Rachel.  Of the two of us, Hallmark would definitely hire him.  He did a very creative and professional job.

Sophie was a grand artiste.  She took this very seriously and did her best work.

Chris at work.  Ella helps.

Stickers!

Madeleine invited friends over for Valentine making, lunch and treats
and mustaches!

card for cousin Jonathan

people by Sophie

Chris' cards:

Chris' tradition is to make the girls fairly elaborate cards using photos and magazine cut-outs.  They are simply wonderful and I know the girls will treasure them forever.  This year, he got a late start and stayed up half the night completing the task.

 Madeleine's gifts to me.  Precious hija.

My valentine.  Best gift.

If you mean it, share it.  Say it.  On Valentine's Day and every day.  Why not?