Scorpions Game

At Alex's last haircut, Bangz Hair Salon, the salon we go to, gave him two free tickets to the Scorpions soccer game tonight. They have season tickets and they sometimes give them to customers. Alex was excited at the thought of going to the game and made plans to go with a friend. Fast forward to this week when Alex made other plans with friends. We didn't want the tickets to go to waste, so Patrick planned to go in his place. Patrick asked Natalie to go with him to the game. Natalie has definitely been feeling better. When her back was bothering her, all she would want to do was stay at home in her room, reading or watching videos. She's been much more social lately, so she agreed to go with Patrick to the game.

What a fun night for Patrick and Natalie! She was asked to do some sort of soccer challenge during halftime. Patrick and Natalie were chatting with some friends they saw there, including her neighborhood friend Paige, who was there with her family. Someone came by to ask if they both wanted to participate in this challenge. Paige didn't want to do it, but Natalie with her renewed enthusiasm said "sure". Patrick said it seemed like they had a hard time finding girls to participate, and the girl that asked them got her friend to be the third girl for the challenge.

Patrick said that after Natalie agreed to do this, she got a little scared that she would embarrass herself or whatever, but she still did it. It apparently happened so fast that Patrick wasn't able to take a good video. The girls started at midfield, dribbled through five cones, and then took a shot on goal. Natalie's soccer ball was the last one to get in the goal. She placed third out of the three girls, and got a free T-shirt and a $25 HEB gift card for her efforts. The winner got a $100 HEB gift card.

Patrick was happy that he got to go down to the field with her, and our friend Angela, Paige's mom, snapped this photo of the two of them. Patrick knows he is lucky that his teenage daughter still enjoys spending time with him, and this was a nice father-daughter experience.

I just have to say a big "Thank you!" to Bangz Hair Salon for those tickets!

Howdy Night

We got home around 1pm yesterday, driving in through isolated thunderstorms, with one stop for lunch at Buc-ee's. We got in the house and started unpacking. Patrick had not bothered to stop the mail, so we had all of our mail for the last week shoved into our tiny mailbox. One of the pieces of mail was a card identifying Eric's teacher for this coming year for third grade. At the bottom was some info about Howdy Night (better known as Meet the Teachers Night) being yesterday evening at 5-7pm. We already knew that Alex had plans to meet up with some friends and Natalie had a swim practice for her new swim club, so this was just one more thing to do.

Alex went with me to the grocery store to get some staples like bread for sandwiches and milk. I then drove him to his friend's house across town with the plan that Patrick would pick him up later in the evening. I then went to the gym. After a week of eating out and being freer with snacks, I needed to get back on my regimen. As soon as I got home, Patrick and I put Eric's school supplies into his backpack, and Eric and I headed to school to meet his new teacher.

I can already tell that Mrs. S will be a fantastic teacher for Eric. She said to him, "That's Eric with a 'C'? My first name starts with a 'C'." Her first name is "Cristi". She graduated from Roosevelt HS, where Anthony graduated from and where Alex is going now, although they likely did not have the magnet program when she was there. She has two boys who go to Churchill HS which we feed into and where Natalie plans on going next year. The best part was how organized she was.

Last year, our biggest complaint with Eric's teacher was how disorganized she was an how hard she was to communicate with. Mrs. S had an info sheet telling parents which school supplies to label and where to put them. Some items went in their desks, some items went into a plastic box on top of their cubby, and some items were grouped for use by the whole class. I had to fill out the usual paperwork regarding how my child went to and from school (bus, car, or walking), and contact/ emergency info. Two sets of instructions were at the bottom of the info sheet. One told me to text a phone number and she will automatically be able to text us with important info such as permission slips being due. The other set of instructions gave her email address and instructed me to email her with Eric's name in the subject line so she would know who the email came from. I thought this was brilliant. She would automatically have access to her students' parents though email and text messages.

After we finished in the classroom, there was an area outside the third grade wing where there were big paper fish on the wall, one for each third grade teacher. There were markers nearby and Eric wrote his name in Mrs. S's fish. I thought it was interesting that he chose an orange marker and that he wrote his name nice and big. We saw some friends in the hallway, one of which seems to miss Eric a lot, but none of his "friends" are in his class. He knew some kids in his class, but they weren't already his "friends" or the kids he usually played with during recess. Eric said himself that he would make new friends, so I'm not worried.

We went out to Whataburger for dinner and then Baskin-Robbins for his favorite, Rainbow Sherbet. We went home and got him ready for bed and it was already after 7pm. Meanwhile, Patrick had taken Natalie to her swim practice where she apparently had a hard workout, but one that she was able to do. She met some new people, and Patrick said her coach seemed like a good one. While she was at practice, Patrick picked up Alex at McAllister Park nearby then they all picked up Whataburger for dinner also before heading home. We had a long and full day, but "Howdy Night" is definitely an appropriate title since we are now saying "Howdy" to our new school year, as busy as all the school years before!

Day Six--Salem

I didn't get to post this on Tuesday because the Wifi was wonky at the hotel and I didn't have my computer at Lisa's house--more on that later. We started out Tuesday with a visit to Lisa's house to pick up the kids, who had spent the night there yet again, and to say goodbye to Grandma who was leaving that afternoon. We also discovered that Sidney, at nine years old (ten in December) was indeed noticeably taller than Grandma now, and discussed how that has become a milestone with all the kids--getting taller than Grandma. We then headed to Worcester to pick up Anthony and head to Salem to learn more about the Salem Witch Trials.

There was a lot of traffic, and the trip took over an hour. We hadn't really researched where to go. I had just figured it was a nice day trip for the family. By the time we got to the Salem History Museum and parked, it was already noon, and the boys were hungry. The tours were every half hour, so we went ahead and walked around to find some place to eat. We settled on a place called Scratch Kitchen, and Natalie was grumpy, grumpy, and kept complaining how hot she was. Even Alex thought the temperature was fine in there, so we sent Natalie to go stand next to their big fan at the entrance. She came back in a slightly better, but still grumpy mood.

They had some interesting drinks on the menu. When Eric saw "Blueberry Soda" on the menu, he was determined that drink was the one he wanted. We were afraid that if he didn't like it, no one else would drink it. The drink was only about $2, but we didn't want to waste money. We worried for nothing. Eric enjoyed it, and the rest of us took a taste. Patrick said it wasn't necessarily something he would ask for, but it wasn't bad. The big boys had cream soda. I liked how the bottles looked, so I snapped this photo of the two types of drinks. Anthony had to add his special touch to the photo by peaking through the bottles. I miss that boy so much.

As we were walking back, we saw this interesting sight. According to the accompanying sign, this was artwork by Patrick Dougherty named "What the Birds Know". He has created artwork he named "Stickwork" that "blur the boundaries between sculpture, architecture, and landscape". His artwork uses tree saplings and this one was his first commissioned outdoor artwork that was completed May 2015. Eric enjoyed walking in and out of the sculpture and commented that it would protect you from everything except fire. I had to laugh at his statement, since obviously these structures would leave you exposed to the elements, not just "fire".

We joined the 1:30 pm museum tour. The first part was an audiovisual presentation, that told the story of the Salem Witch trials--how it all began, what happened, and the aftermath. We weren't allowed to take any photos during the presentation, and it was dark in there, so pictures wouldn't have been very good anyway. The second part was more of a talk about the history of witches, from respected individuals that knew how to use natural substances to treat illnesses to stereotyped green-skinned witches that rode on broomsticks (a la Wicked Witch from Wizard of Oz) to those who practice Wicca, a modern day recognized religion.

After the museum tour, we walked around a bit more. No one else seemed excited about going to any other museums. We did stop at this comic book store in the mall near where we had parked. They had this cool chess set made out of Marvel Universe characters. Alex took this photo for me with my phone camera. He loves tilting the camera to an extreme angle to make the photo more "interesting".

While in the comic book store, Patrick asked for directions to the Atlantic Ocean since it was so close to where we were. We lost Alex on the way there, but the rest of us saw the ocean. I didn't happen to take a picture because no one was interested in getting in a picture plus we had to go find Alex.

There was a pirate museum along the way, but again, no one was interested in going into another museum. Eric was interested in posing next to this pirate statue, however. He decided to stand like the statue, pretending to hold a sword.

There was a ton of traffic on the way back. Patrick decided to go ahead and drop Anthony off at his frat house so he wouldn't have to drive him back later in the evening. The trip took almost two hours, and then we still had to head back toward Lisa's house. The kids all wanted to stay there again that last night. We wanted to say goodbye to the cousins, but by the time we got there, we had just missed them. Luckily we had said goodbye that morning.

It was a good thing we ended up at Lisa's house. She ended up selling Braeden's crib plus his new toddler bed had arrived. Patrick was a big help taking apart the old crib and putting together the new toddler bed.

There's not much to tell about the rest of the trip. We came by yesterday morning to pick up the kids. We went to visit Anthony one last time and had lunch together, then we headed to the airport. Our flight was delayed, so we didn't get into Houston until around 9:15pm. We drove to my sister Cynthia's house and spent the night there then headed home this morning.

Day Five--Duck Tour

Today was probably our busiest day yet, during this vacation. Patrick picked up Anthony and Alex by around 9:30am so we could all meet up at Lisa's house. Braden was at day care and Derek was already at work. The rest of us drove to the parking garage at The Shops at Prudential Center. The garage was packed, so after driving around forever, we ended up using their valet service. We met Derek at the California Pizza Kitchen in the mall for lunch. Anthony was excited about getting to eat at CPK again.

We had Duck Tour tickets for 1:30pm. After lunch, we walked around nearby, in Copley Square, Trinity Church, and then the Boston Public Library. Of course the library was a big draw for all the big readers in my family.

They had a cool empty room in the library with this big fireplace feature. I had the kids do their random posing again, like the other day when they did that near the harbor. I liked the other photo better, but this one was still fun. Notice Natalie's huge smile. I love it when she smiles. We didn't have too much time at the library before we had to head to our Duck Tour.

This is the photo that they made us all pose for before we got on our vehicle. I had to buy it because everyone was in it, including me. :)

I took one more photo because I wanted a better picture of the boat vehicle. As you can see, it was rather large, and held 40 passengers (10 rows of seats). The driver was also our tour guide. He was dressed like a "Joker" from a card deck. When he started telling jokes, apparently Eric turned to Anthony, who he was sitting next to, and told him, "His jokes are like yours."

The temperatures got up to 91 today, so it was pretty hot outside. At least there was a nice breeze while we were driving around the city. At one point we drove into the Charles River and there was no breeze at all then. Patrick and I found it amusing that the local meteorologists on the TV news kept defining a heat wave as "three or more days in a row where the temperatures are 90 degrees and above". In other words, every summer back home is a prolonged heat wave. If they can make fun of us in the winter and how we handle snow and ice (the infrequent times we actually get snow or ice), then we can definitely make fun of them in the summer.

This is the Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge that we kept driving around. It is apparently the world's widest, cable-stayed bridge and has ten lanes of traffic. Our tour guide said it was designed to symbolize the old (looks like the Bunker Hill Monument) and the new. I thought it looked really cool and I ended up taking several photos of it at various angles.

The tour was about 80 minutes, and it was a really nice overview of the city of Boston. I did not realize before the tour that the finish line of the Boston Marathon is permanently painted into the pavement. We don't have time during this trip, I think, but the next time we visit, we will have to do the Freedom Trail.

We stopped for frozen yogurt on the way back to Lisa's house, a refreshing treat after a busy, hot day. In the evening, Derek's dad and step-mom brought over an entire meal that she cooked at home, packaged, and transported. It was great to meet them, and so convenient for us. They even brought cookies for dessert.

After they had packed up the leftovers and went home, we realized that Anthony would not be seeing Grandma tomorrow, so we decided to go ahead and get a picture of all the kids with Grandma, who leaves for home tomorrow. Grandma told me that she's glad she came for a visit. It's been nice to see how well all the kids get along together. In fact, Griffin was happy that Alex was spending the night with them tonight instead of at Anthony's, because that meant that the boys could sleep in the basement.

Day Four--Rest Day

I didn't take many pictures today, so I'm sharing this photo from last night's dinner. Eric was going around hugging everyone, so I stopped him to take a picture with his siblings. We really enjoyed hanging out with Lisa and Derek and their kids. After dinner, Patrick took Anthony and Alex back to Anthony's frat house where Alex spent the night. They were well on their way there when Derek texted Anthony that Alex had forgotten his luggage at their house, but there were heavy thunderstorms, so it was too late to go back. Alex just borrowed some of his brother's stuff instead.

Lisa, Grandma, and the kids all went to church this morning, so Patrick and I decided to stay around our hotel. We took a really long walk along busy highway that our hotel is on (Highway 20) and along some of the side streets. There were some large houses near there and the area is thickly wooded and picturesque, so it was kinda cool. Patrick picked up the boys and we all met back at Lisa's house for lunch.

Everyone except for Grandma, Anthony, and me went swimming at their gym pool in the afternoon. I couldn't resist taking a picture of Anthony and Eric when Eric was sitting in Anthony's lap before they went. After swimming and showers, we headed back to Worcester. We took the whole family plus a couple of Anthony's friends, Julia and John, to dinner at the Boynton.

We had about an hour wait for a table. Alex got the Buffalo Wings appetizer and didn't really want to share, but he did end up giving one piece each to Anthony, Natalie, Eric, and me. Eric was so hungry that he kept nibbling at his one piece over and over again until it was picked clean. After dinner, we walked back to Anthony's frat house where Alex is again spending the night. This time he remembered to bring a change of clothes.

We also met Anthony's friend Liz, who apparently thinks Eric is adorable. She was back at the frat house visiting, and she came out and started hugging everyone. When we left, Eric in turn gave everyone a hug.

Tomorrow we're planning on taking one of the Duck Tours. Grandma was resting up today so she would have enough energy to walk around again.

Day Three--Walking In The City

My brother-in-law Derek took this photo last night at dinner. They grilled chicken and steak for us and then all the kids stayed over there overnight. The boys slept in the basement. The girls slept in their room upstairs. Grandma slept in Braeden's room. I'm not sure what time they all went to sleep, but Eric was acting tired today. Natalie was in her usual mood, so I can only assume she got the usual amount of sleep.

We drove into the city today, and we did LOTS of walking. Eric kept complaining that his legs were tired. Alex and I explained to him, at one point, that what he was feeling was "tired", and that he didn't have to say "my legs are tired". He can just say "I'm tired". Eric made a claim a couple or so weeks ago that he doesn't know what being tired felt like, hence the conversation today.

The kids got on these metal structures that looked like bent pieces of metal--"like a laptop" as one of the kids described. I thought it made a nice backdrop for a photo, although I probably should have repositioned myself so the water wasn't in the background. I was not able to get them all to get together, but I like the "spontaneous" look of their poses.

We got to the Boston Tea Party museum and none of the kids were interested in going into the museum at all. The cousins didn't want to go because they get to do that stuff in school field trips all the time. My kids just weren't interested. It was a hot and humid day, although still not nearly as bad as back home, so we took a break from the weather by at least going into the Boston Tea Party Museum gift shop. Of course, the kids found the toy "weapons" like the pop guns and the plastic knife that retracted when pressed into a surface--so that it looks like the knife blade is going into that surface. The girls were happy to pose for me using those weapons.

Of course my kids were not interested in posing for pictures, but Teagan was very willing. This is a statue of Samuel Adams in front of the museum, and she was happy to ham it up for me by posing like the statue, complete with somber facial expression.

We walked all around the Boston Harbor area, and then into the North End a bit. We had lunch at Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Wow, that place was super crowded, but it was nice because they had a variety of different foods to choose from. It was also nice that eventually we were able get a place to sit--eventually expanding to the whole table. There were twelve of us, after all.

Most of the kids ate pepperoni pizza. Sidney had some Beef Teriyaki with noodles. Teagan had chicken pot pie. Grandma and I split a lobster roll since we weren't interested in a huge meal. Eric was more focused on having ice cream for dessert, so I was happy to oblige. He had the mixed berries gelato and I had the coffee crunch gelato. Interestingly, they would only serve two or three scoops, not singles, so he ate his gelato first then I finished mine. Patrick had a Chocolate Truffle Bomb that was very tasty. Almost everyone had a little bite, and Braeden loved it. Alex said, "That's the most I've seen Braeden eat--ever."

We didn't have any idea what this was, but it seemed to be some sort of sculpture made out of what looking like netting and suspended above one of the nice green spaces that they have in the city now. Anyhow, it was kinda cool, so I had to take a picture.

They had some of sort of design exhibition, and this was one of the exhibits. Grandma was happy to stand next to it for a size comparison. She commented on how her sunglasses hid whether or not her eyes were open or closed.

There was another exhibit that looked like a cool playscape to climb on. It was made out of wood and metal and even the adults were tempted to climb on it--except that there were signs that said "Please Do Not Climb." Really? Eric just looked at it and asked why they would put up such a structure and not allow kids to play on it.

I always love taking photos like this one, usually with people walking away from me, but we definitely had a large group. Grandma and Eric had a hard time with the long walk, but they both kept up with some rest periods.

Patrick picked up Anthony this afternoon and now we're planning to all go out to dinner together--a nice relaxing ending to a fun but exhausting day.

Day Two--Hanging with the Family

Anthony needed to take a train at 2pm into the city to go to a concert tonight and Grandma arrived for a visit this morning. This meant that this was going to be a low-key day for us. Patrick and I exercised at the small gym at the hotel, then had breakfast. Natalie spent the night at Lisa's house last night. Eric and Alex were with us at the hotel. We dropped them off at Lisa's house, then headed to get Anthony.

Anthony conveniently "ran out of food" right before we arrived yesterday, so we went to the grocery store with him to get some supplies. He's been living at the fraternity that he belongs to for the summer. He can use their kitchen, including part of their big refrigerator and freezer. He bought a big package of chicken breasts and Patrick and I helped him divide them into separate packages so he can cook them separately.

There's been some construction at his fraternity house AGAIN this summer. There were so many problems last year and he had to move into a completely different and temporary location last year. That was such a nightmare for him and his fraternity brothers. We hope that this construction will be done before school starts, because we don't want him to go through all of that again.

We went back to Lisa's house, and Grandma had arrived and brought this "Cheesehead" hat for Braeden. Braden was busy putting it on everyone else's head. Eric was so busy watching something on the iPad that he didn't even notice the hat on his head, but I got the picture for evidence.

We spent a lot of time at Lisa's just hanging out and letting the kids play. They all get along very well and that is such a blessing. We also walked to nearby park so the kids could kick the soccer ball around. They spent some time retrieving the soccer ball from an adjoining yard. Eric and Alex are planning on staying here tonight, so it will just be Patrick and me at the hotel.

For lunch we went to a nearby restaurant. Anthony had to take his lunch to go, because he needed to catch his train into Boston. Patrick drove him back and by the time he got back, the kids were all done eating and were outside enjoying the beautiful weather. Alex had Eric on his shoulders and was trying to convince him to stop clutching his head--he stopped for a minute while I took this picture. Apparently Eric was afraid of falling off--this from the child who jumps off everything. Griffin had Braeden on his shoulders, and Braeden grabbed Griffin's hat off his head and put it on his own head.

Right now we're gathered at Lisa's house for dinner. It's been a laid back day, but I'm hoping for some sightseeing tomorrow.

Day One--Tour of WPI

We got to see Anthony today! Yay! We flew into Boston yesterday, and we didn't get to our hotel until after midnight last night. We had breakfast at our hotel, the Fairfield Inn Boston Sudbury, and then we went to Anthony's frat house to see him.

This is a picture of him at his desk. The huge TV on his desk is a temporary addition, something he commandeered because no one else was using it for the summer, so he is using it as a computer monitor to watch the Netflix feed from his computer. Today we got to see him play a computer game on it. Alex got to play too.

Some of his frat brothers have still not moved their stuff out from the room he is now in at the frat house. One of those items is this huge dinosaur head. I'm not sure what the story behind this is, but Alex took it down from it's high location and noticed that it could be worn like a hat. Eric, was of course, fascinated.

That meant that Eric had to wear the dinosaur head also!

After seeing the frat house and the construction going on there this summer, Anthony took us on a tour of the WPI campus. Patrick saw it two years ago when we dropped Anthony off at WPI for the first time, of course. Natalie got to see it with me again last October when we visited Anthony. Alex and Eric had never seen it. It was a beautiful day, not humid with a high in the low 80s. Alex remarked on how the high temp here is the low temp back home.

We drove Anthony to the "Flying Rhino" for lunch, where we sat outside and enjoyed the weather. Anthony mentioned a new local frozen yogurt place, and Eric really wanted to go there, so we went there next for dessert. It's within walking distance from Anthony's frat house, and there really isn't any parking near it, so we went back to the frat house and parked there, then walked to Wooberry Frozen Yogurt.

There was a back area there with some comfy couches and a Connect Four game that the big boys started playing. After they finished, Eric played Alex and missed out on several opportunities to beat him (where he had a chance to beat him but didn't recognize it). I took this picture because I miss seeing my boys all sitting around enjoying each other's company.

This is a picture of the boys in the WPI quad. Anthony's dorm his freshman year was on this quad. We did a lot of walking today, and no one complained, if you can imagine that.

We then went to Patrick's sister Lisa's house to spend the rest of the afternoon and evening. The kids got to play with their step cousins and three-year-old cousin Braeden. We'll see them again tomorrow when Patrick's mom arrives.

Boots

Last month, when we were visiting Houston, we were shopping at the outlet stores near my sister's house, and Natalie fell in love with a pair of Cole Haan boots. She said she loved them because they were "so pretty" and that they made her "feel tall". I didn't buy them for her because even at 50% off, they were still expensive.

Yesterday, I took Natalie and Alex to the San Marcos Outlet Stores, which are closer to us. When she saw the Cole Haan store, she immediately wanted to go there and look for those boots. When we first went in, she didn't see the shoes and she was disappointed. When she found them in the back of the store, she was so excited that she squealed. She was actually getting loud and I had to quiet her down. She loved them so much that she let me take a picture of her wearing the boots.

Natalie's birthday is next week, and she doesn't want a party or anything at all, so we're not spending any money on her there. I decided that since I needed to get her a present anyway, that no other present I could buy would bring her as much enjoyment as these boots, so I bought them for her. (Cue squeals of delight from Natalie.) I also wanted to make sure her confidence was high when she tried out for a new swim club today.

I made her promise to wear the boots all the time so we would get our money's worth. She said she would not complain about going to church on the weekend because then she could wear the boots when she dressed up for church. She even wore the boots with jean shorts and a T-shirt when we went out to lunch today, and that outfit could not be considered "dressing up". When we were on Face Time with Anthony this evening, she excitedly told him about the boots. I think she is just a little excited about these boots. Oh, and she got accepted into the new swim club easily after her tryout. Life is good.

Two Front Teeth

Eric's two front teeth have been loose for a couple of weeks, and "very loose" in the last few days. Patrick had planned on pulling them this weekend if they didn't come out on their own. I was on call last night, and when I came home this morning, I noticed that Eric was in the bathroom rinsing out his mouth.

Apparently, Eric was eating his usual Chocolate Iced Donut this morning for breakfast. One tooth came out. Patrick got some ice water and had him rinse out his mouth. Eric was then trying to eat again, but it hurt. When Patrick looked in Eric's mouth, the second tooth was bent to the side and "hanging from a string", so he went ahead and pulled it out. Eric was rinsing for a while, because he kept seeing blood.

When it came to eating again, Eric was upset that there was blood on the first donut that he was eating. Patrick told him that he could just eat the second donut, but Eric replied that that donut would get blood on it too. Patrick suggested that he wait a little bit before resuming eating. When he did eat again, he said he removed the part of the donut that had blood on it. He didn't finish his milk, though, because he said it tasted funny.

When I took this photo, I had to ask Eric to open his mouth to show me his missing front teeth. He tried to his usual big grin, but his teeth overlapped enough that the missing teeth were not obvious. He asked me why I wanted a picture. I replied that it's a "special" event when both front teeth are missing. I then told him that I would show him a picture tomorrow, of his siblings with their front teeth missing. Alex came into Eric's bedroom a few minutes later and talked about how he was still able to bob for apples when he lost his front teeth. They had a discussion about how the front teeth help you cut your food. Eric had a hard time eating today, but he ate pretty well for dinner. I think he'll be fine.

Alex Banana

Alex has been volunteering for PE Camp again this month, and tomorrow is his last day. They traditionally go to Landa Park on the last day (which is actually on Thursday), but it's not required and he doesn't want to go. This past weekend, I bought Pepperidge Farm cookies because they were on sale at Target, and I anticipated making banana pudding again soon. When Alex saw the Chessmen cookies, he immediately thought of the banana pudding I made last month for his birthday, so he asked me about it. He then requested that I make it for his last day, so he can invite friends over for some banana pudding.

He has been bragging to them that my banana pudding is the best. That makes me feel good, but all I do is follow Paula Deen's recipe for "Not Yo' Mama's Banana Pudding" (the lightened version), so it's not like it's my own personal recipe. Alex LOVES bananas and he eats upwards of five a day when we have them, so his love for banana pudding is not a surprise.

Alex was also interested in helping me make the banana pudding, even going to HEB and shopping for the ingredients with me. He wanted Patrick to give Eric his bath tonight so we could start making the pudding, although I went ahead and did that first.

I gave Alex the job of layering the cookies across the bottom of the dish, then cutting and layering the bananas on top of the cookies. He was cracking me up the whole time. First of all, he commented on how I had bought the Spring version of Chessmen cookies, so there were flowers on them instead of chess pieces. Then, he was eating the bananas even while he was cutting them for the pudding. He said, "What else am I going to do with the ends of the bananas?" I thought it was humorous that he felt like he couldn't put the end parts of the banana in the pudding. It's not like anyone can tell what shape the bananas are when it's all put together.

Alex was almost dancing during the process, also taking pictures with his phone after each step, so he could put it in his "Story" on Snapchat. At one point he was saying that he was cutting bananas "like a master" just before he hurt his finger with the butter knife because he wasn't paying attention. He laughed at himself for that one. I was also amused when I told him how to "fold" the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture and he likened it to "yin yang". I had to agree that the motion is similar to the "yin yang" symbol. He tried to do the "folding" himself and he didn't do a great job, but I was pleased that he tried. After I put the pudding mixture in the dish, he finished it off by layering the Chessmen cookies in a pattern.

When he heard that the pudding had to set in the refrigerator for a few hours, he yelled up to Natalie to tell her not to eat any banana pudding until he gets home from PE camp tomorrow afternoon. I also reminded him that he had to save some for me also, for when I get home from work. He told me not to worry, but you know what damage teenage boys can do!

Legos and King of the Mat

The magic is gone! Today, when I got home from work, Eric didn't rush up to me to give me a hug to welcome me home. He was upstairs reading to Natalie and didn't want to lose his place in the book. When I went upstairs, he wouldn't even get up off the floor to give me a hug because his finger was pointing to the exact spot in the book where he had left off. Sigh. My baby is growing up. A few months ago, he had a scrape or cut on his leg that he was very concerned about. When I asked him if he wanted a band-aid, he replied, "Why, it's not going to help." He is so practical now.

Some things that he still gets excited about, though, are dinosaurs and Lego sets. We've been looking for this one set for a couple of weeks or so--the Lego Jurassic World Raptor Escape set. It's sold out in the Lego online store. It doesn't even state a ship date like some of the other sets, like "will ship in 30 days". It only says, "Sold Out".  Patrick took the kiddos to the Lego Store at North Star Mall last Friday. He had been calling and found out that they would be getting a shipment in that day. No Lego Jurassic World in that shipment, but the manager did give Eric an extra raptor named "Blue". Eric was very excited when he got that.

The retail price is $39.99 and occasionally I would see it on Amazon for $60. Finally, I found it at the Walmart on Walzem, near Alex's school, so I was able to get it on Monday. Eric was SO excited. The manager at the Lego store had said that he thinks they'll have plenty of sets by mid-August (because of the lag time of making more sets). Luckily, this boy doesn't have to wait.

Something else that Eric has been very excited about lately is his jujitsu class. I was finally able to take him to class yesterday (Wednesday) because I got home early enough and because Patrick wanted to stay home and watch the USA vs. Jamaica CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal game. I snapped a quick photo of him in his uniform right outside the Brazilian Jujitsu place where he has class.

It was cool to be able to watch Eric grapple kids around his age. He was definitely one of the smaller ones, but he seemed to hold his own. On Monday, they had played a "game" where they would grapple each other and if they won, they got to stay on the mat. Apparently, Eric defeated maybe five or six of the kids and almost won "King of the Mat". That was class #4 for him! It's definitely a great physical activity for my iPad-loving Eric. It didn't take him long to start sweating.

That is what's up with Eric. I'll try to update about the other kids in the next few days.

Selfie Sunday Lunch

We went to church on Sunday morning instead of the evening because Patrick wanted to be back to watch CONCACAF Gold Cup soccer in the evening. Alex had a friend sleep over on Saturday night, and we didn't want to make his friend go with us, so Alex stayed home with him while the rest of us went to church. I decided that I wanted to go to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch after church, so that also meant that Alex couldn't go.

Natalie has gotten in some silly moods lately where she'll say something that sometimes is sweet but sometimes not so sweet, but she will follow it up with a "sweet smile". She'll even say that she has a "sweet smile" and that she could "probably get away with anything" with that smile! She just cracks me up.

She was also in a selfie mood (again) and wanted me to take a picture of the both of us. How could I refuse my daughter wanting a picture with me? Patrick and Eric were sitting facing us, so of course we had to take a picture of them too.

We took our leftovers home and Alex had Eric's leftover pasta alfredo for lunch, and Patrick's Chipotle Chicken Pasta for dinner. He was happy with that consolation. Later, in the afternoon, he wanted to go to the gym. After such a high calorie meal, I couldn't refuse. Natalie didn't want to go anywhere, so she stayed home with Eric while Patrick went with Alex and me.

The rest of the day was pretty low-key, and a nice ending to our weekend.

Summer Saturday Activities

We did a lot of stuff today, so I thought I would share that along with some pictures. Eric has gotten a little spoiled when it comes to breakfast. I'm afraid I started it when I made something for breakfast almost every weekday I'm off work, and on most Saturdays. This morning, when I asked him what he wanted for breakfast, he replied, "I'd like something special like Starbucks or maybe waffles." At the time, Patrick had taken over the kitchen for brisket preparations (see below), so waffles were out of the question--that meant Starbucks.

Patrick was busy and Natalie was "feeling lazy", although both of them gave me requests on what to bring back for them from Starbucks. On the way, I was telling Eric that I needed to get a picture of my new car before it rains. He said, "What if it rains today?" It wasn't going to rain today, but he had a point, so I went ahead and got a picture of the car with Eric in front of it when we got to Starbucks.

Isn't it pretty? It's a 2012 Lexus RX350 that we bought from Carmax this past Wednesday. I've been driving my old 2004 Lexus RX330 since the car accident in February. Patrick finally said it was okay to get me another car after we paid that tuition bill for Anthony recently.

At about 10am, I went to Lifetime Fitness by myself. Originally, Natalie had planned on going with me. She is still on her exercise kick and has gone to the gum almost every day (except for the day she had physical therapy). She had a headache, and felt guilty for letting me go by myself, but she really wasn't up to it. I knew that I must be dedicated to my own current diet/exercise kick, because I actually went to the gym by myself. I hate going to the gym by myself, but I really wanted to go to the Cardio Kickboxing class this morning. No regrets.

Alex was up by the time I got home, and his friends had gone home. Patrick did some more brisket prep (again, see below), then we went to see the new Ant-Man movie at 1:30pm. We all really enjoyed it, and I have to admit that I got almost more enjoyment watching the kids' reactions to parts of the movie than watching the movie itself. We've seen a lot of movies in the theatre this summer and I enjoy it every time. This is probably the first time where we didn't get any snacks, though. Alex's friend Jeremy works at the theatre we saw the movie at, and we got to say hi to him.

The above photo is that brisket I was talking about. Patrick started prepping it last night, and continued this morning then afternoon. At about 5pm, it was done, and it was good.

Alex had another friend come over tonight, Andrew, so we had some help eating the brisket. Meanwhile, Patrick was watching the CONCACAF Gold Cup Quarterfinals game between the US and Cuba. He was happy that he didn't miss the first 15 minutes of the game this time. We had missed the first 15 minutes of the Women's World Cup Final between the US and Japan and missed the first 4 US goals. In this game, Patrick got to see two goals in the first 15 minutes.

Now for an explanation of these last two photos. Natalie came to me and said that she really loved her outfit that she was wearing today, and asked if I wanted to take a picture. My first thought was, "Who is this child?!!" My daughter would never come to me asking for me to take a picture of her. Heck, none of my children would ever ask me to take a photo of them, even Eric, who at least humors me by smiling when I take pictures of him.

Natalie insisted that she really loved her outfit and wanted a picture. All the items were recent purchases except for the sweater, which I bought for her last year from Hollister. My answer, "Of course!" I didn't want to scare her away by pulling out my big DSLR, so I used the far less intimidating and ever available iPhone. When Patrick saw us taking a picture (he had been in the background watching the soccer game), she gave him a hug and of course I took that opportunity to take a picture of both of them. Love these two!

Eric's First Jiujitsu Class

Patrick took these photos at Eric's first jiujitsu class last Monday. We're trying to find a sport that Eric is interested in. We have put him in team sports in the past, but none of them really clicked. He enjoyed baseball, for example, but he really only liked the practices--not the games. He enjoyed gymnastics, but he was fine with quitting gymnastics for the summer. He seemed interested in trying out martial arts, but we waited until after swim team was over, since swim practices were every day.

Apparently, there is no place to sit in the actual room that the kids practice, so Patrick had to take this from the doorway. Eric mostly watched during his first practice, but he was really listening and paying attention. Since then, he has only gone to two more practices, which are usually on Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays. He couldn't go last Friday because we went out of town to Houston. He didn't go on Wednesday of this week or today because the owner/instructor and his wife were having a baby. One way we could tell that he really enjoyed jiujitsu was that he was trying to convince us last Friday to find a way to let him go to practice even though we were leaving town. He was also disappointed that he couldn't go this Wednesday and today. He clearly seems to love jiujitsu right now.

This is a picture of Eric in his borrowed gi on his first day. We have since bought him his own. He had a choice of a black one or a white one, and he chose the white one, maybe because it has some cool patches on it. I'll have to get a better picture soon.

Patrick says that he seems to be picking it up fairly quickly, because he is really taking it all in and paying close attention. I just love that he seems very passionate about this sport so far. This month was a trial run for us, but Patrick will now be signing him up for a whole year. We'll see how it goes, but look at that smile. He loves it!

Happy 76th Birthday!

Today is my Mom's 76th Birthday. We went to Houston this past weekend to celebrate with her a little early. This is a picture of her with her birthday "cake" and the grandkids. Anthony is missing, of course, since he is still in Worcester this summer. Aly had to leave for a Bat Mitzvah, so she is not there either. The other kids did a great job smiling, and so did Mom. She usually tries to not smile so much for pictures, but I'm glad she did. She just looks happy. I worry about her getting tired emotionally and physically from taking care of my Dad, so I love seeing her happy.

Per her request, we ordered takeout and brought to her house. She originally wanted something a little different, food from Pappadeaux, but in the end, we ordered from our usual dishes from Kim Son--Vietnamese Fajitas and Fried Pork Dumplings. For dessert we had this delicious fruit tart from La Madeleine.

Dad was napping when we first arrived at their house, but he awakened and was able to interact a little with us. He is so thin, but at least he has gained a little weight back with some concentrated effort from my Mom.

Even though she wasn't supposed to cook, Mom still had to cook some "fish maho" when Eric asked for it. She had ordered some "arroz caldo" from her friend so she didn't have to make that. Dad's caregiver Letty was there, and she made some fried bananas (bananas dipped in sugar and wrapped in lumpia wrappers then fried) that of course Alex loved.

I can't even remember why she is laughing in this picture, but I love it. I don't often catch her laughing so heartily in a photo, but for me it's a nice reminder to how beautiful my mom is. Happy Birthday, Mom!

Going to the Gym

Something is going on with Natalie right now. For the last three days, she has gone to our gym daily, by her request. On Friday or Saturday, she mentioned wanting to go to the gym, and Patrick thought she meant going this week, but she meant on Saturday. He was busy with plans to use his new smoker and getting that ready, but she wanted him to show her how to use the machines. We thought he would do a better job with explaining that to her instead of me, so it had to be him. That, and I had already told Eric that I was taking him to the pool. So, he exercised with her, and I took Eric to the pool. After they finished, she went to the pool to meet us, and Patrick went home to get the food ready for dinner and to take Alex to his friends' house. Natalie swam a few laps of each stroke in the lap pool. They were easy laps, but it was great to see her swimming laps again.

On Sunday, she asked me to take her to the gym at 7:30am. We had talked about it on Saturday, so I was prepared, and I was up at that time on Sunday anyway, so we went. I have never been to the gym when there were so few cars in the parking lot. There were rows of treadmills that were empty! She did lower body weights with Patrick the day before, so we did upper body weights plus cardio on Sunday. What did she want to do after exercising? She wanted to have breakfast at Krispy Kreme. They almost always give you a free glazed donut when you walk in. Natalie didn't do what Eric usually does (since I allow him to). He likes to eat the free glazed donut plus his "usual" two chocolate iced donuts. Natalie usually eats the glazed, so she had her free glazed donut and she only wanted me to buy one more glazed donut for her.

This morning, she wanted to go the "Yoga Basics" class at 9am. We got there earlier so we could do some cardio first, then we met one of her old swim buddies Kate, and Kate's mom Cheryl, and took the class together. After class, we went to Starbucks and chatted for a while. Kate also used to swim at Lifetime Fitness when Natalie was there, and moved to Northside AAAA when their coach, Coach Kris, moved there. Like Natalie, Kate also quit Northside AAAA recently, although unlike Natalie, Kate quit because she was moved up to the high school team (she is a year older than Natalie and will be going to high school in the fall), and there was no way she would be able to make it to the earlier swim practice on time and still have time to eat and do homework. We plan on getting them together this summer to swim laps together.

Natalie is planning to skip the gym tomorrow morning because she has physical therapy at 9am, but she is already asking me if I can take her to the gym again on Wednesday. She says that her plan is to go to the gym regularly for strength training to help her with her endurance, so that when she starts swimming again, she will at least have that.

Something else is happening to Natalie. She now smiles when I take photos of her. After our workout yesterday, we were stretching, and she was silly and put the towel on her head, I did what I usually do and I quickly snapped a photo before she had a chance to hide. I didn't even look--I just took the photo. She asked if I saw her smile. I was shocked. I took another, better photo (the first photo above) with her cooperation. She does have a pretty smile! She even told me that I had to put that photo on my lock screen on my phone, so I did!

Natalie took the second photo herself when we were in the car driving to North Star Mall for lunch and shopping last Friday. She actually took a series of selfies with her little brother in the background to send to her big brother in Boston. She made a variety of faces, but I loved this one because of her smile and Eric's hilarious pose.

Patrick and I have been trying to eat better and exercise regularly, and this newest kick of Natalie's is helping a lot!