Hocus Focus

Another week - gone. Wow. It seems as if June has just spiraled out of control with so many intentions, so many events and so many spontaneous happenings - some I had control over and some I didn't. It's hard to believe that we have been out of school for a month. Slow down summer!!

This has been a good week. We have recuperated from the hospital stay - it made us a little lazy (Trey and I). The kids went to VBS every night with their Mimi. This is the first year I did not teach and selfishly, I enjoyed the time at home without the kids. The house stayed clean for about two and a half hours each night :). I went shopping and bought some new things for the house but as soon as I think I know how I want to decorate, I get overwhelmed and can't focus on what I need and where I need things for. I had a garage sale on Friday and made a little money to take to First Monday next weekend. Today, I stayed home and laundered the sheets and then we went to Lowes to buy all the door knobs and some lights for the new house. Then, we met my parents at Chilis. Now, I am marking things off of the house list and trying to focus on what else there is to buy and what to do.

Jared hopes that we are moving in in about 4 weeks. We are down to the tedious work: painting/staining the cabinets, countertops, trim staining and installing, painting doors, staining the concrete, upstairs flooring, paint the exterior and installing plumbing fixtures and electric fixtures. As organized as I like to be, it is driving me crazy that Jared jumps around from one thing to another. I would like to make the list and for him to follow it. Ok, so I am organized and controlling. He has done such a great job so far, I should not worry about his order of events. I just know that I am ready to pack and move.

Not much else to blog about. Hope you are all having a wonderful summer :0)

Swimmin' and Singin' - celebrating pop star style

Ashlyn's 5th birthday party was celebrated at her Nana and Pop's house. She wanted a Hannah Montana party and although I hesitated going with this girl's face on the cups and plates, we went with this theme and she had a blast.

Here is Ashlyn's party

in pictures...

It was a swimming party with some

Hannah Montana karaoke on the stage that Nana and Pop built.

"Amber Alabama", Hannah's "best friend" came to entertain the girls (and boys) while singing with those little faithful fans the most popular songs that this pop star sings.

A guitar cake and the birthday girl ready to make a wish.

It was all Hannah, all the time.

Here are the A girls in action ... and that was how the party ended.

** be sure to see the blog below, I am playing catch up **

five. 5. FiVe.

On Thursday, June 19th, our baby girl turned five. Where have the years gone? It seems like just yesterday she was the brand new baby girl with the big pink bow that I had always dreamed of having. And then she was the mischevious toddler who was always into something, finally growing hair (curly hair), and always on the go. Then, the little girl who needed me to bathe her, to feed her, to get things she couldn't quite get to. This baby, toddler and little girl has become so independent and is always such a joy. It's so hard to believe that she has reached this milestone of being five. We love her so much and have been so blessed throughout the five years that she has been a part of our lives.

Through the years with Ashlyn

* Ashlyn Brooke * June 19th * 6lbs. 12 oz. *

* 1 year old * walking * loving * spoiled rotten*

* 2 years old * always into something * persistent * lots of fun *

* 3 years old * headstrong * mischevious * very picky eater *

* 4 years old * loves school and church * loves to sing *

FIVE * You'll always be our baby girl *

Ashlyn Brookie we love you more

and more each and every day!

going home

Well, after a huge scare and an emotional stay, we are fixing to be headed home from Medical City Children's Hospital. We have been here for 4 nights/ 5 days and are ready to be back at home.

Good news came that Trey's staph infection is not the most serious kind so he can take a pill 4 x day for 10 days. His little heel where the surgery was done looks great. To me, it looks like a big cigarette burn. It is healing nicely, according to the doctors. Until it is completely scabbed, he cannot be around a large group of children or get it wet. Other than that, he is a free boy.

We should be leaving here by 11:00 and I plan to go straight to the bath and the bed :0) What will I do without the beeping and constant interruptions of someone coming in?! I hope to sleep well :0) Trey, on the other hand, is more than a little spoiled...

Jared did not come back out here after he got off work at the station. He is at home painting and waiting on the cabinets to be installed. It's back to homebuilding for him.

We all appreciate your prayers so much. This healing has been a small miracle and we are grateful for that. We serve an awesome God!!

Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to Him be glory...
Ephesians 3:20-21

good news

Well, the infectious disease doctor came in 6:10 a.m. (two days in a row - man they get started early) and said that we need to wait 72 hours for the complete culture test so he would not recommend sending Trey home today. He also said an MRI probably isn't necessary with the healing that is happening. The surgeon came in about 8:15 and said that he would recommend he go home today and that we would need to come visit his office towards the end of the week. So now, the score is one to one. One no, one yes. When the nurse practitioner came in she said that she had been told he was not going home today because of the sensitivity tests (cultures being tested with the antibiotics) but he can go home in the morning. Yay! As much as I would love to go home today, I guess we will stay here and rest and make sure that everything is right before we take him home.

Trey was thrilled to get to stay another day. He has the portable Nintendo that he plays in bed and everything he needs at his service. Jared went to the fire station today so I am here alone. Let's just hope they don't bring out any needles because then I am out until it is over. Three kids later, I have never stayed for their shots, stitches or anything that might cause them pain. I cannot handle seeing my kids hurting. Jared is the hand-holder and comforter at these times. Thank goodness :)

Our prayers are being answered - thank you all for lifting us up in prayer and keeping us in your thoughts. Once again, we have been brought out of the valley and into the meadow.

Relief and Improvements

I went home today around 12:15. I had really hoped to get to talk to the pediatrician before I left but he still had not come by. I had the baby girl's birthday party to prepare for, so I headed to the house. It was so strange going home to the emptiness that had been for two days. It's hard to explain - it wasn't like coming home from work when no one is home, just an odd feeling. I was doing things randomly; shower, laundry, prepare for party, sweep, prepare for party, get dressed and ready and so on. My mind was going so many different directions with scattered thoughts and ideas for what to do. Usually, I am very chop-chop about doing things but wasn't this afternoon. Jared called and said he was going to go to the cafeteria for lunch and when he came back he called to say that he had missed the doctor. Wouldn't you know it. All Trey knew is that he would be on one antibiotic instead of two. I told Jared to locate the nurse and try to see what the doctor had to say or better yet, find the doctor. He said he would...after he ate. Men.

After he enjoyed his lunch and talked to the dr. here is the latest:
* The culture is starting to grow. (They took a culture from the abcess, put it into an incubator and wait for it to grow. When it grows, they place different medications on it to see which it reacts to and thus they can determine what medicine Trey needs. Isn't this amazing?! I have learned so much.)
* We may get to go home tomorrow but are not to get our hopes up because it may be Monday.
* The one antibiotic that he is on can be taken orally and this is what we need for a departure. Otherwise, we will have to stay for IV antibiotic until the infection is gone. They will know more as they work with the culture.

Ashlyn's party was such a success and I have a lot of blogging to do to catch up on her special day, stay tuned :0)

When I got back from the party, Trey tells me that he can get up and around on his own by putting pressure on the ball of his hurt foot and they have taken him off the IV drip. He still has the IV inserted for the medication. This has freed him up so much. He is all over this little room. His nice nurse brought him a Nintendo and a big TV to play. He is lovin' life!

What can I say except that our prayers are being answered. I have been given such a peace and Trey has been granted healing that only an amazing God can give!!

patience for the patient

Just wanted to post an update on Trey. He is doing great! No fever since yesterday morning, his foot isn't running a fever either - yesterday it was real warm to the touch. The swelling has gone down and the redness is disappearing. It appears that the antibiotics are overcoming the infection, yay! He is in good spirits - but then again, laying around, watching TV and eating in bed are all three ways that Trey loves to spend his time. He said he isn't really ready to come home.

We have seen the infectious disease doctor, the surgeon, the physician's assistant but the answer as to when we will get to go home comes from the doctor that we have not seen yet, the pediatrician. I am waiting patiently to see him. As soon as he visits, I will be heading home to get ready for Ashlyn's birthday party that is at 5:00. She was heartbroken when I told her we may need to change it, so - with Trey's permission, I am going to go home, get the party done and then come back out here. Jared will stay with him, so he is in good hands.

I must end this by saying that I have the best friends, aquaintances and family that a girl could ask for. Thank you so much for your prayers, your calls, your comments, your messages and your willingness to help. I appreciate you all more than you'll ever know!

trey-boy

Yesterday we came to Medical City Children's emergency room to have a blister/boil like sore on the bottom of his foot looked at. This all started as a splinter. The concern being the streaks that were coming from it and the pain it was causing. We went to the Care Now clinic first and they sent us here because of the extent of the procedure it would require.

I was a wreck on the way to the hospital. I don't do well with my children hurting or going to hospitals. And, it was Ashlyn's birthday. I was so torn.

We made it here, into a room and then it is hurry up and wait. They ordered antibiotics, an x-ray and an IV. He was great through the IV process, not easy for the mom though - I , of course, stepped outside. Thank goodness for the daddy and nana.

X-rays were done, no foreign object found - but then again, they said that wood does not show up in x-rays. Then we get word that the surgeon would be in shortly to talk to us. Surgery was not the route I wanted him to have to go. At 11:00 p.m. they told us that it would be about 4:00 a.m. before the surgery to drain the sore and remove anything they found. Ten minutes later, the surgeon's assistant came to get him. We were all in shock at this immediate timing. Trey's nerves along with the medications got the best of him - he was throwing up and having diarrea. This delayed the process but soon we were on our way to the holding/recovery room. It is so hard to be strong when all you want to do is cry. We got to the holding room, talked with the surgeon, anethesiologist and the nurse. Little bit later they gave him "happy juice" in his IV and within a couple of minutes, he was drifting off to sleep. This was devestating to me. I never wanted to have to see any of my babies put to sleep. I chose to leave while he was still responding. I needed to go be alone to shed some tears of love and concern that only a mom can shed. My dad and Clayson made it and it was time to be strong again for Clayson. I tried to hide my sadness best I could but I could see the same sadness in Clayson's big brown eyes. About 30 minutes after they took him down, the surgeon came and told us that he did great and that they had removed an abcess. This lifted some of the pressure but until I could see him, I was still anxious. Fifteen minutes later, Jared and I were allowed into the recovery room where Trey lay sound asleep with a big oxygen mask on covering his face. The nurse eventually aroused him with a cold wet washrag - he sat straight up in bed. As he came around, he mentioned that he wanted some coffee. Poor baby, he hadn't eaten or had anything to drink since lunch. He wanted to know if he was through and we could smile and say yes.

He was wheeled to the room with mom, dad, Clayson, Pawpaw and Nana right beside him. He was drowsy but in good spirits. Relief. In the room, we all settled in around him and enjoyed visiting with him until he drifted off to sleep. Then, Jared and I settled in to a twin sized hospital bed - no rest for the weary.

Trey had a good night, he only did odd things like sit up and look around a couple of times. We communicated with him and he responded normally. Nurses were in and out. I got up around 6:15 to call Mamaw and Papaw, back to bed until it was time to make more phone calls. The nurse said she was certain he would not go home today, so I decided to run to the house. We needed clothes, toiletries, the other kiddos needed clothes and preparations for tomorrow and I needed a shower. I went and got Ashlyn so that I could spend some time with her. She was quite cranky and confused...

Jared said that three doctors came in and here is the latest:
- blood test came back positive for infection
- ordering an MRI to see if there is anything needing to be removed and where the infection is
- infectious disease doctor is involved for precautionary reasons
- depending on the type of infection we may be here two days to a week

Trey took a good nap and is now up and enjoying the dry-erase board that his Mimi brought in his goody bag. Please keep our baby boy in your prayers.

celebrating

On Monday, we took the three A girls to Planet Pizza in Plano to celebrate Alex and Ashlyn turning five. This place is like the Penny Whistle Park that we grew up with. (Not near as cool, but our girls don't know any different.) It was $7.99 for unlimited rides and we ordered pizza for lunch. The pictures will take the place of words in this blog.

father's day adventures

We have celebrated Father's Day two weekends in a row. Here is a rundown of the celebrations. (I got this posting set-up idea from my friend Jennifer.)

*The first weekend was at my mother and father-in-laws. We celebrated birthdays and an early Father's Day.
* Jared's cousin came in from Houston that we haven't seen in about 7 years. She brought her sweet family: husband, 3 boys and 2 dogs.
* The 6 kids enjoyed swimming while we enjoyed eating and talking.
* My camera got wet and would not come on for about 6 hours. I was in a panic. I got online and ordered a new one but mine finally came back on. I was so relieved.
* We had such a great day and enjoyed the quality time spent with family.

* This past Saturday we went to Furrs. Even at 4:00 the place was packed! We had to sit at three tables.
* At Furrs we met both sets of my grandparents, my aunt and her friend and my parents for dinner. Jason also went. We were blessed with his presence :) My dad had to work on Father's Day and Jared needed to paint. * For those of you interested, the new Furrs is not cafeteria- style anymore, it is like a Golden Corral. They give you small plates so sadly you spend more time going back and forth to fill the plate than you do getting to sit and visit. (At least I do...) * Trey was evidently choking on a piece of steak and none of us knew until he coughed it up - poor baby!! * We ate and ate and ate until we we could barely move.
* Jared claims that they make the best chess pie ever. It is delicious!!

* Sunday, we went to Martin's Mill to my aunt and uncle's house. It is always so much fun to be around everyone and let the little cousins play.
* We ate, played with the baby and I had a photo shoot with baby Nathan.
* Molly brought a triple racing slip 'n slide and the kids had a blast. It was so funny. I was tempted to run and slide in my clothes, but I thought better of it. I did not want to hurt myself :)
* Ashlyn wanted to fill up her little pool so they were back and forth between the pool and the slide.
* It was a fun, hot afternoon in east Texas.

* When we got home, my mom noticed that Ashlyn had a lump on the back of her leg. My brother said that it looked like a cyst. My mom went into panic mode, I did not want to think about - the unknown is always scary. My mom took her to a friend's house to let her look at it, I called the pediatrician's office and another friend that works at Children's hospital and between the three we came to the conclusion that it did not warrant a trip to the emergency room but it was important to closely monitor. I researched online and for once I came up with a positive diagnosis - Baker's cyst. It is a common occurence in active children that will go away on its own and no treatment would be necessary. This was confirmed at the drs. office today, such a relief!

to each his own

Hey guys! Summer is well under way. What unnerves me a little is that the first two weeks have gone by so fast. We've had a great time getting our summer started and here are some things we have done and what summer means to each of us.

* We have been swimming at Nana and Pop's; been to the Harbor with girlfriends; been to Cicis, the waterpark and to feed the ducks; I have been to two half day trainings at school; we've worked on the house; Jared turned a year older; we've celebrated birthdays and Father's Day with the Davis crew; we went to the Turner's for grilled hamburgers; we've met our new baby cousin Nathan and loved on him and Clayson has had baseball games. Whew! They say time flies when you are having fun - there is no doubt about that. We have been having lots of fun. There is much more fun in store for summer 2008.

Clayson: summer time to Clayson means being with his daddy. Clayson loves to be with Jared no matter what he is doing. The minute Jared's alarm goes off, Clayson gets up and gets dressed so he doesn't miss anything. Sometimes, he even gets the coffee going because he knows how much his daddy loves coffee to get his day started. Clayson is not a late sleeper. In fact, he requires very little sleep. No matter what fun activity I have planned, he would always rather stay at home with Jared. It is such a neat relationship that they have. He also enjoys going to spend time with his Nana and Pop at their house or at their work. He looks forward to the time that they are home so he can be with them. He also likes when he can go over and help his Pawpaw outside. He is currently into skateboarding. Clayson was such a help this week as Jared painted the house. He kept the paints coming as the cans became empty. He's a grown up in a kid's body. This weekend will finish his baseball season.

Trey: watching TV, playing Guitar Hero and sleeping late are all a part of Trey's summer routine. There is no alarm that he is interested in! He is one that requires a slow start - a little cartoons and a bowl full of cereal and some more cartoons are needed to jumpstart his day. He is not a big fan of being hot so he will stay out until he breaks a sweat. Then, it is back to the couch for a little r & r. He does enjoy swimming and does not mind hanging with me. I am glad that he still acts like a kid and wants to do kid things. We call him our "couch potato". He enjoys lounging at Mimi's watching Alvin and the Chipmunks over and over again.

.Ashlyn: She is all about sleeping late - and I do mean late, like 11:30ish. Most nights she stays up late but even if she goes to bed at a decent time, there is never a before ten wake-up. She loves her sleep! There have been mornings that we have had to be somewhere and how I wake her up is crucial to making sure it will put her in a good mood (once she starts whining, it takes a very long time for her to stop). I turn the AC up so it is not as cool, turn the cartoons on and say her name to call her out of her sleep. Then, I usually go get ready and try to call out to her to see if she is awake. When it starts getting close to time to go, I tell her she better get up and get her babies ready if she plans to take them. (She usually has their clothes set out and bags packed because they go everyhere with us.) This is usually a for sure bet that she is going to get up and get going - Sunday mornings prove to be the hardest with the real early start. So, sleeping late is what summer means to her. She likes to make mud pies, to play in her room and always wants to swim. It was funny because the first week I was off she always wanted to know where we were going the next day - she wasn't used to not having anywhere to go but now she likes to be at home. She misses Mamaw and Papaw and enjoys when it is a day she gets to go over there. She also loves summer because she has a birthday to celebrate!

Jared: (wouldn't he kill me if he knew I posted this picture... and no, he is not into the mime business) Summer to Jared means that we are home everyday and probably throwing him off his normal schedule. But, more than that, this is the time that Jared plans on finishing our house. He has been such a good "construction manager" and kept the ball rolling since April. It was just this past week that we ran into our first kinks but we are trying to get all of that straightened out. He has spent this week painting, hence the photo. He was able to borrow a sprayer and what would have taken a few weeks has taken only a few days. It is so exciting to see the end in sight. He has worked so hard to keep things going and to make it just the way we like it. It is getting so hard to pry him away from the house and get him to do anything. In fact, it is next to impossible. I am thankful that he is such a hard worker and know that soon we will all want to be home enjoying all of his preparation and hard work.

Me: To me, summer means a time to take a break from work and to spend time playing. I have to admit that I enjoy sleeping late, too. I stay up late because I find it to be my time to closet eat (mom's know what I am talking about), watch TV without interruptions, and browse around on the computer. It is my down-time and I look forward to it. I love to swim and spend time with my friends and their kids. The hardest thing for me is to save money when all I want to do is shop and go out to eat. I am trying to get myself into a routine as far as housework, laundry, a day out and other things on the to-do lists that I love to create. But, I do like to kick the routine and be spontaneous at times. Schedules are sometimes overrated! I am having a great summer and love the ages of my kids as they are all so independent and easy to take along :) This will be an especially good summer as we work our way out of 860 sft. into 3800 sft. I can feel the space already!!

Kickoff to Summer

It was the best way to kick off the last summer before our little girls appear to be all grown up and take off to kindergarten in the fall. We had a big girlfriends and little girlfriends afternoon to remember.

We met over at Allison's and loaded up in Jennifer's car. This is never an easy task with three booster seats in the back and the seats overlap the buckles so it takes at least one mom and three kids to figure it all out. Not to mention that the lucky mom is coming in from the back, leaning over the seat and probably sweating in the meantime. The middle seat has two car seats and a mom and the driver and front seat rider are the least inconvenienced :0) Allison and I took turns in the front. Fifteen minutes after arriving, we head to Rockwall for a picnic and playtime in the spray plaza.

We may be a little spoiled but we all want different things to eat. We go to a place called Which Wich to get Jennifer and Allison a sandwich but they are way too crowded so we head toward McDonald's. On the way there I spot the Taco Bell / Pizza Hut and decide that pizza sounds good to me. We pull in line with four other cars and order a variety of mexican food and italian food. Then, we head under the highway to McDonald's for the rest of the crew to choose what they want. Here we hit the lunch rush again, joining six other cars in line. Everyone is starting to get very hungry but we wait patiently until we get to the Harbor.

We pick out a partially shaded area on the grassy ampitheater, lay out our towels and realize that the grass is wet so we move to the stage and sit on the steps. The stage was the girl's best friend for a few minutes as they momentarily went into Hannah Montana mode and posed every which way that she might have. Then , they remembered that they were hungry and sat down to eat and try to keep the wind from blowing away their food and drinks. (The wind was the only challenge of the day but it did keep it from being unbearably hot.)

We enjoyed the lunch and then the girls were ready to head to the water. The fountain only sprays every 15 minutes and it wasn't time yet. Ross, Alex, Anna and I went out onto the docks. The water was so choppy that it felt like you were in a boat. Ross thought this was so much fun. I could tell by his giggles. After "riding the waves", we walked along the pier and the girls hung out hoping to get wet from the lake waves.

Finally, the sprayers came on and off the children went, except for Ava. Alex and Anna ran straight to the middle of it all, Ross started on the outer sprayers but it did not take him long to get right to middle, Ashlyn must have gotten sunscreen in her eyes because she needed the wet towel and kept rubbing her eyes and Ava stayed by Allison's side. She did not want to get wet. Squealing, giggling and running was the twenty minute episode. When the water went off, they laid in the middle part and looked for it. Here is the fun they had during round one.




The sprayers went off and we thought we would wind things up and head to the bakery. The girls had other things in mind, like going back to the pier and getting wet again and going to ride the "scary ride" - known as the floating docks. So, we piddled around some more until the sprayers came back on and let them enjoy this running, splashing and squealing freedom once more. (It was funny because Jennifer had the girls out in the center singing "America" and as they finished the water came on - they thought it was because of them.)

We ended the day by going to the bakery and getting cookies. The poor men in there trying to have a business meeting probably had to put their thoughts on hold for the 20 minutes we sat in there with giggly girls and strolling toddlers. It was back to the car, back to the buckling and back on the road.

The afternoon was amazing and will be one that we remember for years to come. We love each other and we love that our kids love each other. We truly would not have it any other way.

Are you gonna eat that?

Tonight, in between fighting off bees and cleaning trash from the new house, I decided to cook a good dinner. That urge doesn't happen very often. My first thought was fried chicken using crackers and eggs. Jared thought we should bake the chicken to keep it healthy. I got online to find a recipe for the fried chicken, (Jared was outside or he could have told me what to do - he is the cook), but could not find one quick enough so I went with his idea to bake it. I only had to bake 3 because the boys were not home. Jared wanted his salt and peppered, Ashlyn and I like lemon-pepper. I got those going, put the potatoes in the Wal-Mart sack and put them in the microwave and fried the okra. (Thankful to have something fried. What's a meal without something fattening?) As I was cooking, I started reminiscing about how my menu has changed over the years.

Dating years 1994 - 1996: Jared would come over and my specialty was Schwan's chicken strips and french fries. I did not know he did not care much for fried food. That's what happens when you start to fall in love you will do anything for the other person - he ate fried food and I went into his room where he kept a huge snake. We also frequented McDonalds and ordered the double cheeseburgers and french fries. He let me have his fries most of the time. I learned that he did not like Burger King so we settled for McD's.

Married 1996 - Fire Academy 1997: We lived in a travel trailer with mini-cabinets, mini-refrigerator/freezer and mini-stove/oven and microwave. I did not think there was more to a meal than Hamburger Helper and beans. If it did not come out of a box, chances are I did not know how to cook it. I did know how to throw together some spaghetti, though.

Fire Academy 1997 - College completion 1997: While Jared was at Fire Academy and I was living with his parents and going to college I ate Ramen Noodles daily. Ralph, D'Uan and I enjoyed these but Jared did not want to eat it when he came home on the weekends so his mom would usually bake chicken, I'd make a salad and we would have baked potatoes and beans. I loved this meal. I remember one time Jared made chicken parmesan and to us that was gourmet.

1997 - 1999: We moved into our first (rent) house and did not realize what all went into establishing a kitchen. Our first trip to the grocery store was to the Kroger in Balch Springs. (This was before there was a Wal-Mart nearby.) We had to have everything from salt and pepper shakers to meat. We liked Kroger because they doubled and tripled coupons. Some of my first memories are of the late nights that we went grocery shopping. Here I continued to bake the chicken that I soaked in italian dressing and had sides. I also made chicken gravy with toast a lot. I did not like to cook because it did not come natural to me. I think we continued having Hamburger Helper and spaghetti until Jared finally told me how much he did not want these things anymore. To this day, he prefers not to have any of these type of meals.

2000 - present: I don't feel my cooking has come very far. And, Jared has become pickier. He does not want casseroles and these are my favorite things to make and eat. Don't get me wrong - he will eat whatever I cook and never complains - but I know that he would rather have something better. I feel that my menu is so limited because I am picky and cannot ever get any new ideas. I love cooks. com and visit there when I need something.

I was inspired to write this blog just because I was thinking about it as I prepared dinner. A dinner that still brings back good memories of living with his parents while we were trying to grow up, go to college and adjust to being married.

Down & Dirty

The kids kicked off their summer with a little water and a lot of dirt! I had just come home from my last day at work and decided to lay down on the couch and watch TV while the kids were outside with Jared. Next thing I know, Ashlyn is coming in the house asking me if they can take a mud bath. I catch a glimpse of her and notice that her legs are covered in mud. I got up and followed her to the "mud pit". All three kids had created a swimming hole, if you will. They were quite a sight! But, how could I get mad? They were laughing, playing together and having a fabulous time. So, I went back inside to get the camera - this was definitely a photo opportunity. Here is what was going on...

All Jared and I could do was watch in amazement as they had fun doing this. The dirtier they got, the more they enjoyed it. The stucco guys were keeping one eye on their job and another on these rugrats we call our children. As hot as it was, this probably looked refreshing to them. We let them bask in the mud for a bit and then it was time to call it quits. They do clean up nicely :)