Jaxson's A B-Ball STAR!

Jaxson had his last basketball game of the season last week. He continues to get better and better and we are proud of him for playing each year.

During his last game he stole the ball from another player (YAY JAXSON!). Too bad the other player didn’t want to let go and Jaxson ended up lifting the kid off the ground. As the kid hung from the ball helplessly the audience roared in laughter.

You teach those kids who’s boss Jaxson!

On a side note:  I wasn't able to go to any of Jaxson's games because they always seemed to be during nap times.  Considering it takes a little over and hour to get there, an hour to watch the game, and a little over an hour to get back it wasn't hard for them to interfere with Elsha's naps. 

James on the other hand went to every single game.  I also asked James to take pictures of every single game but got pictures of just one.  I'm super impressed with the pictures he did get though!  Thanks hun for the pics.  I sure wish I could've been there.

Playdate with Belle

Last week we had Belle over for a couple of hours.

(Yup last week... I'm behind... I don't even want to talk about our scrapbook)

The kids thoroughly enjoyed playing with each other.   It was a very busy couple of hours.

We snuck our binki's out... sneaky girl

We hid in closets...

We rode horses...

I love how they are all going in different directions in this picture.  It is a perfect example of the chaos that is my home.

We had fun playing with light switches...

And rolling around on the bed...

which also can be used for a jungle gym...

We had contests to see who could jump the highest...

Xander wins... he has no fear!

And we all joined in on the fun!

On your mark... Get set...

JUMP!

We also went up and down the stairs a million times! 

I was pooped

Nighty, Night

Elsha's nap time is fairly consistent.  She eats lunch then happily goes down for a nap.

EXCEPT for Mondays and Wednesdays.

She sure sleeps funny.  That can't be comfortable for her arm!

Why Mondays and Wednesdays??

Xander goes to school twice a week. 
You guessed it; on Mondays' and Wednesdays.

The bus picks Xander up between 10:45 & 11:00 at our house.  Elsha says her "Bye's" and waves from the window or door until the bus pulls away.  She then heads to her room and asks for her "Kiki" (Binki).  She sleeps the entire time Xander is at school.  If she happens to wake up before he gets home she calls out "Xa" over and over wandering the house looking for her big brother.

They eat lunch shortly after Xander's return and can be found snuggling on the couch when both are done with their food.

I am constantly amazed at the love these two show for each other.

Reading Time

James gets a couple of magazines a month that feature the latest and greatest in construction equipment and cars. Technically James is the recipient but he has to fight Xander for first dibs. Whenever we get a new magazine Xander grabs it and settles in for a good long look.  You might think he likes all magazines, but nope - he doesn't touch my Better Homes & Gardens.

He reads it for the articles though... Honest.

Career Path Ramblings...

Since I was young I have always loved looking at house plans. I remember the Homes section in our newspaper would feature different floor plans from time to time and I'd cut them out. I still have them somewhere, I'm sure. I would draw out my ideal home, picturesque creek and all. Some of them were pretty detailed. Pages and pages of custom floor plans filled my notebooks.  I would even explore the unfinished homes in my growing neighborhood as a youngster and imagine how they'd look when finished and what I'd do diffferently.

It wasn't until after I graduated with my Bachelors in Information Systems Security that a friend asked me why I didn't go to school to be an Architect. I didn’t have an answer for her. To be honest, it never even crossed my mind and I don’t have a clue why. I have regretted my choice in my degree ever since and have felt like I passed over something I’d be great at. But so goes life – right?? Some paths are taken and some are passed. I’m okay with that. I am very happy where I am right now. That’s what is important.

Today James called me out of the blue and asked me if I wanted to go back to school.

“Let me think, NO!”

He went on to explain that he knows that I am drawn to (pun intended) architecture both because I’ve talked to him about it and he notices my constant comments on people’s homes, remodeling projects, buildings that are beautiful, buildings that are just out of place etc. etc. etc. Maybe, he says, after the kids are in school I can also go back and get a degree in Architecture. With our construction business it would come in handy – we could be a design and build kind of company. One-stop shopping for customers, in a way.

Now it’s got me thinking…

Insert my Dad saying “Does it hurt?” or “Explains the smoke” here.

Right now I’m a MOM, with capital letters. It is the most important job I have, have ever had, and will ever have. I would never want to do anything that will diminish my ability to be the best mom ever to my sweet children… BUT, I also know that when they are both in school if things remain the same there will be two outcomes.
1. I will get my daily chores done and just have lazy days (not a very healthy option)

2. I will craft, decorate, and shop ourselves into the poor house (not a very financially wise option)

So maybe, just maybe it’s a good idea.  Something to think about any how.

Thanks for listening to me ramble!

Little Helper

James decided to pull out some plans to review tonight BEFORE the kids went to bed.

Brave, brave man!

Elsha and her extensive knowledge of letters and numbers *yup she knows them all* decided to help by pointing out each one.  She was such a big help!

Here she is showing off all her pride and happiness for all the "help" she provided and the "time" she saved.

(speaking of help & time she's currently on my lap trying to show me each letter on the keyboard.  Please ignore any extra letters that might be in this post. I'm not sure if I've caught all her little entries)

Grandma's Visit

Great Grandma visited this week and brought me lots of fun stuff to use while crafting. 

Elsha is such a ham for cameras now.  I don't know when it started really but she can't just simply smile - she has to squint and grin as big as possible.  Not complaining, actually I LOVE IT!

If you're wondering why I haven't done many posts this year this little kid right here is the reason:

(yup that's their messy faces & my messy floor - I'm just keepin' it real!)

He sees the camera and instantly want to take it.  James found my old camera and now he uses it so hopefully I'll be able to get more pictures of the kids now.  I already can tell you that all pictures of Xander from here on out will have him holding his camera.  As soon as he hears the lens on my camera he promptly runs to find his.  Ah well - I'll take what I can get at this point.  He gets pretty good pictures most of the time so I'm excited to see what he does when we head to the zoo this spring.

Fool Proof Plan

Want to know the trick to getting your husband to cook more often???

Here's Shanon's three part plan:

Step 1

While chopping & cutting be sure to nick your self on a fairly regular basis.

Step 2

Burn yourself whenever possible - not bad burns of course but just enough that you say OUCH and run to the sink.  I guess it would be fairly easy to fake if you don't already have the tendency.

Step 3

This step alone can provide immediate results.

Singe your hair over the stove.  Don't ask how to do this, I still don't understand how I did it myself! It's only happened once (today) but the results were fantastic.  I was immediately shooed out of the kitchen.

That's how my day's going... how's yours??