The BIG DAY....

Tomorrow is the BIG DAY for JaxMan. He is going to start his "new school". I can't tell if he is nervous, anxious, excited, or just Jax. WE have asked him to "Please be good" and "don't get sent to timeout on the first day". He said he is not going to cry, and there is a 50/50 chance he won't. The wife and Riley will take him. The "new school" started a couple of weeks ago, so all of these kids have been together and gotten a chance to get familiar with each other. He will be the new kid. He'll be fine. He'll be a little shy at first, and then "How you doin ladies???" That's his ice breaker, and then next thing you know, he is mister personality. He has been talking about the Booger Man (aka Boogie Man), and we do not know where he got that from. We have told him not to say that, and hopefully he won't scare all of the kids and teachers away. I won't lie, I am nervous for him and also nervous that we will have to pick him before lunch.....If so, it will make great material to discuss here tomorrow. Until then...

Birthday Gift

It's guest writer again tonight. Today, I took child one and child two to Wal-Mart and Kroger by myself. All I can say is God is good. I have learned that child one can't walk by himself for very long with out throwing alot of random boxes in the cart. So I put him in the big part of the shopping cart. I must say that works so much better. We might go on more adventures now that I have figured out the best way to restrain him in the store. I was in child ones room playing with him and his brother when number one decided he had to go to the bathroom. I asked him if he had to pee pee and he said yes. He has gotten really good at going by himself so I was waited about a minute and then I was midway up he runs into his room with his hands out in front. Mommy I - yes it is what you think. Okay, if you know me very well then you know I am like having a fit. But I keep calm and say it's okay just stand right there. I got him all cleaned up and then he did it again when the husband arrived. I have to say that I always get a good laugh when the husband has to clean up. You can hear him gagging and he has his shirt pulled up over is face. Do any of your husbands do the same thing? By the way if you read this blog then I think you should leave comments. Even if we don't know you. The husband had told child one that if he was good today we would get his birthday gift out - well he was really good so we got it out. Pictures attached. Have a great week.

Guest writer today.....

I have to go pick up my dad at the airport, so there will be a guest blogger tonight. Without further ado.... Kids and toy stores. I don't know why we thought we could take a almost 3 year old into a toy store without being restrained. It was going good until he realized that he could not take home every toy. Yes, I had the child that everyone tries not to look at but is waiting for the mother or dads reaction to their outburst (You all know what I am talking about). I am just trying to get out of the store while Dad is having just as much fun as child one with the toys. I guess it could be worst. We could have a child that just sits in one spot and has no personality. I leave you with pictures of our wonderful 3 year old that is busting at the seams with personality and his little cloned brother. I can't wait until they are really able to play together - what a blog that will be :)

On another note. The husband had told you all that I am no longer working for ACS. I have to say that it really does feel good. I can't wait for my first week home with the kids. Who knows I might get use to it. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Still building....

That is what the JaxMan is doing. He is still building houses. He's been working on them for a while now. Lately, everyday when I come home, he is working on another house He actually moved into commercial work this evening. He said that he was building daddy an office tonight. Then when the wife walked out in the backyard with Riley, he said he was building mommy a new office. He has his 2x4, hammer, rope, and much more, busy with all of it, building and building...That little mind just running wide open. He was standing in his tower on his play set, watching the men roof a house down behind us. Riley watches through the back doors. One day he might be building the real thing. Maybe he'll be a famous architect and build things that will amaze all.

The final countdown....

Tomorrow is the wife's last day at the "organization". It will be interesting. We have been getting her resume out and we know that something will work out for the better. There is a plan for everything. We are almost 100% positive that Riley is cutting a tooth on the bottom. Sleep has been very limited the last few weeks. There he is now....false alarm, she got him back down with no issues.

Not much planned for the weekend....

Hump day and already thinking of the weekend. We finally have a weekend with nothing really to do. It's been a while. Lately, we have had something to do the last several weekends from work to visiting family. We may get a chance to play catch up and get some things done around the house that we have been putting off.

Toes in the water.....

You know the rest....Life is good....We are moving back to Austin....Just kidding...Made you look, although it is still very much an option. For everyone that has been inquiring, the answer is yes, the wife was recently downsized and her position was eliminated with the "organization". Although she and her staff were able to secure the largest ever single donation ($1.5 MM) to the mid-south division of the organization and maintain a minimum 11% increase each year, it doesn't make sense, but live and learn. It seems that if you are successful and do your job for 10 years with the same organization, then even with that, there is still no guarantee that you will have a job in the morning. There may be more to come on this, but I will have to wait until after the dust has settled. Oh well, what's done is done...

Playing catch up....

Been a few days since the last post...This weekend was the wife's last shindig for work. It went well. They had a large turnout and did a little better than last year. JaxMan has been "taking care of business" on a regular basis, pretty much by himself. Riley fell the other day and got a little scratch, but he will be fine. He is still pulling up on everything. He is starting to mock you...for instance if you make a poot noise with your mouth, he attempts to do the same...smart kid. JaxMan built a house today, at least he tried. He was mimicking the workers across the street that are framing ANOTHER house. Like I mentioned earlier, there are 9 or 10 new houses going up on our street. I hope they get every penny for them. JaxMan starts his "new school" next week, and I think he has mixed emotions about it. He will adjust fine. Got the new portfolio management solutions in the hands of some of the BETA users, and hopefully we will begin getting feedback in a couple of weeks. It should be a success, but we will not know until we get the feedback in and get the production model complete. Could be back to The Big City and/or the West Coast a few more times before the year is up....busy is good....

Sometimes....

We wonder why things happen the way they do, but you really can't waste time wondering about that. Got the big event this weekend and the wife's father had surgery today to remove some blockage to the ticker. The suergery went well and he might even get to go home tomorrow evening. JaxMan got to watch the cement trucks in action today. They poured another slab today for another new house. There are 10 new houses being built on our street right now. Just a few ramblings that are going on.....

What about....

Baron's Ball is this Saturday. This is only its second year, and it is sold out. It should be a great event. Everyone has been working hard to make this successful. The wife got some good video today of JaxMan in his rooster costume from halloween. Apparently today was performing art day at the house. He talks about his new school everytime we get in the car now. Hopefully it will be a smoothe transition.

How bout....

Work has been busy and busy is good. We have some new software solutions we are begining to beta test, and things are coming together. I believe these are going to be a big success...just takes patience and hard work to limit the number of hicups. On another note, JaxMan got to visit his "new school" today. He went with his mommy, brother and Honey. I think he will like it, but it is going to be tough to convince him that he does not have to play with the kitchen set, sanbox, big tent, or playground all day. We will see. He will start in a couple of weeks. Riley took a couple of steps today with very limited support from mommy. He will start walking very soon.

Patience....

That is what it takes. We found out today the JaxMan got into the pre-school/learning center that we really wanted him in. It was a nice surprise since he has been on list for over 2 years now. I think he will like it, but it will be a change from mother's day out or "church school" as he calls it. It will be a new group of kids, but it will be very structured and a great learning experience. We will only start him out on a half day schedule till just after lunch for five days a week. This will work out nicely with the wife's soon to be temporary schedule. She was informed last week that she will no longer be needed by the ACS after August to maintain her responsibilities to receive compensation. In other words, she was relieved of her postion as a result of "downsizing". Sort of a shocker, and the way it was handled was not great, but that is another post for another day. Anyway, patience is what we have to have. Everything happens for a reason, and I know that she will end up with something bigger and better than what she had. The Big Man has a plan for us all, we just have to let him direct it.

Back to the grind...

Antoher weekend gone, and still trying to find time to catch up on sleep and daily duties around the house. Got to get back to the grind tomorroow....JaxMan is getting really good at "taking care of business" by himself. Maybe he will be ready by the time pre-school gets here in a couple of weeks. JaxMan got into Riley's walker this evening and pretended he was mowing the grass. Riley thought it was funny and started chasing him as fast as he could crawl. He finally caught the walker, pulled up on the back, and started pushing Jax. JaxMan got a kick out of that.

Another weekend.....

Went to Ma-maw and Pa-Paw's after work on Friday. Got there just before dark and JaxMan got to ride the famous red tractor. He was delighted. We spent the night and JaxMan and the wife got their haircuts taken care of. We got back to the house this afternoon, and JaxMan helped get the yard done. Riley tried his shoes on today, and hopefully he will get some use out of them. The wife has her last event with the organization next weekend, so we are going to be getting ready for that in the coming week, along with the normal day-to-day routines.

Weekend is almost here.....

The wife has one of her last events tonight, so she and just about all of her office are there. I'm not afraid to admit it, I had to call my mom over to help me get the boys bathed. Finally got them down for the night. The weekend is almost here, and hopefully we can catch up on some sleep and get some things done around here that have been getting put off. JaxMan wants to go to Mamaw and Papaw's to ride the tractor(s). He might get to this weekend, but we will see.

Hump Day.....

Almost through with another week. Another day down and JaxMan is getting better at the potty training thing. He went and "took care of business" today, by himself, on the big pot, pretty much all by himself. Riley is standing more and more without holding onto anything. We got JaxMan's birthday invitations in today, and he is excited about his upcoming birthday.

Put a log in the Frog....

That is the saying here when it is time to "take care of business". Crude?? Maybe to some, but hey, it works. The kid fights it some, and then "Daddy I did it, I put a log in the Frog!!" Yea buddy, way to go JaxMan. Now if he cannot just be so dramatic with it, it still takes approximately 20 minutes to "take care of business", but at least it is the Frog Pot and not the pants, well not all of the time...there are still a few skid marks, but isn't life full of "skid marks"???

Not much today....

Got some family stuff going on, so not a lot to discuss today. JaxMan has gotten up twice so far tonight with various reasons, including the fake hicups...He is not even three yet and already learning how to make up excuses for not doing something. Next thing we know, he will be faking sick so he does not have to go to pre-school. Riley stood up for about 10 secs by himself tonight, without holding onto anything. He is getting the balance thing down and should be walking soon.

The New Flashlight....

Went to Home Depot, Lowes, and Wally-World today. We (JaxMan and I) were picking up a few things. On the way to Lowes, he informed me that he needed a new crane to work on the roof with. Couldn't fit the crane in Mommy's vehicle, so we did not get one. We had to pick up some paint supplies, and everyone was out of the stir sticks. We picked up a couple a 1"X 1/4" x 4' pieces to make stir sticks out of. He carried one of them through the store, the whole time telling anyone that would listen that he was buying it to fix his lawn mower. After Lowes, we had to stop at Wally-World. Upon entering the store, he told me he needed a new chainsaw, flashlight, and drill...all of which he already has. He settled for a "Cars" flashlight with his buddy Tow Mater on it. We had to read a book tonight in the dark so he could use his new flashlight to see with. He will add this to his toolbox.

Gone to see the gators...

We did not make it to the park with the gators, but we did make a trip to Bass Pro today and saw the gators and fish there. Maybe we'll make it tomorrow to see the gators. JaxMan did get his Slip N Slide out this evening and went for a spin. Pretty slow for a Saturday...which is a good change.

It's Friday...

I believe the youngest is starting to cut some teeth. The poor kid just can't get comfortable. If this is true, then he will get his first tooth a lot sooner than his brother did. He is standing by himself for a few seconds, without holding onto to anything. Maybe he will start walking soon. Going to see alligators and other animals tomorrow. I know JaxMan will have a lot of questions, and it will probably the topic of discussion for the next week or so. He is excited!

I think he's going to be an engineer....

JaxMan is always looking for something to build. He has a piece of 2x4 that he keeps outside with his toys in the backyard. It is usually one of the first things that keeps him occupied. He has a rubber mallet that he beats the mess out of the 2x4 with. He is always emulating something that he has seen, and there again his attention to detail is amazing. He was working this evening in the back with the 2x4, his rubber mallet, and his toy chainsaw. He was pretending to cut the board and move it around. You could hear him giving directions to his imaginary hands, telling them to "move it there" and then "this is going to be over there". Tonight he was making a driveway with it. He had seen a man in a Bobcat down the road clearing out an area for a driveway at a new home in progress. The kid would rather play with a tape measure and tools than anything else....maybe not anything, he loves his 4-wheeler and his lawn mower.

What I've learned in my Car Buying Experiences....

Once you have decided on which vehicle you would like to purchase, you can take the following suggestions into consideration. One thing to keep in mind, is patience is your friend.
Number 1....Research, the internet is your friend, also anyone that you know in the "business" that is willing to assist you, let them..to a point.
Number 2....Research, the internet is your friend, also anyone that you know in the "business" that is willing to assist you, let them..to a point.
Number 3.... Follow steps 1 & 2 again and do not limit your search to just your local area. Search for vehicles within a 300 mile radius, are farther if you are willing. Pretty soon, you will realize you know more about the vehicle you are looking for than the dealership does. Most of the sites have the same listings, but some of the info can vary. Look at Edmunds, Vehix, AutoTrader, Cars.com, and eBay. Many dealerships will put some of their inventory on eBay as well as their own sites and others. CarFax or AutoCheck subscriptions help a lot also.
Number 4....Get quotes from different dealerships. Once you have a plethara of quotes, send the best quote around again, to all of the dealerships originally contacted and any additional.
Number 5....At this point you start weeding out the dealerships
Number 6....No mater how much negotiation takes place over the phone or via email, get something in writing before driving too far to a dealership (This is where I did not listen to my own advice and wasted a day driving to Houston)

For the moment, I am putting our new vehicle search on hold, as mentioned patience is your friend. Pretty soon, after these vehicles sit on the lots long enough, the offers that you gave the dealerships 2 months prior, start looking good to them.
If anyone else has any suggestions, then please let me know.

JaxMan and the Chick-fil-a Cow

Chick-fil-a is a favorite eating spot of our family, especially the JaxMan. He really enjoys his favorite food, chicken nuggets. We go there about....(wait...JaxMan is calling...)...gotta go see what he needs....
So I went into his room. "What do you want?"
"What is that?" he asks as he jumps out of bed.
"What is what???"
"This?!?! (he holds up a Kleenex that was on the table across the room)
"It's a Kleenex, now go back to sleep"
"I need my medicine...my cough medicine" he says
So I gave him his cough medicine and back to bed he goes.
Back to the story...As I said, we are Chick-fil-a fans and he knows about the "COW". We were in a mall a couple of weekends ago, and there was a carousel there. I told Jax that he could ride the carousel once he finished his lunch. Once finished, he started to get squirrelly and did not want to listen or obey. There was someone in a Chick-fil-cow costume walking around and taking pictures and carrying a sign. I told Jax (I know it was wrong but...)that if he did not act right then the Chick-fil-a cow would get him. That kinda freaked him out, and he kept a sharp eye on that cow for as long as we were in the mall. Even later, after we had left, he kept asking, "That Chick-fil-a cow gonna get me?!?" I told him no, and that the cow was nice and that I was just joking with him. We later told my mom about the cow story, and with all that being said, my mom shared a story with us about a JaxMan experience she had the other day. So here it is....

My mom sent me an email with this story:
I forgot to share with you another incident with your eldest son. We were outside. I was holding Riley and he was using his weed eater ( making up for lost time with it). I was just fooling around with Riley making funny noises and mimicked the sound of the weed eater. Jax stopped immediately not realizing I was making the humming noise and asked, “What’s that noise, Honey?”. I decided to have some fun with it and said I didn’t know…I proceeded to make it each time his weed eater was going and he would listen and look and wonder and stated it sounded like a “moo”. I mused that it might be a cow. This continued off and on till we went inside. He was in his room and I made the noise again just to see if he could tell it was me. He turned and looked around and asked, “Maybe that’s the Chick-fil-a Cow?”. I just lost it and confessed it was really me. We had a good laugh and he kept repeating, “It not the Chick-fil-a Cow?” As you said, he is all into details…I never would have thought he would equate a moo sound to that cow. Gotta love it!

Another Monday

Just a cold is what the Dr said Riley had. That's good, not that he is sick, but that it is not the swine flu. JaxMan helped me mow the yard this evening. The kid can run a weedeater, no not the real thing, his that runs off of batteries and lights up. He is very efficient with it. Riley was watching closely from the back door. He'll be out there with his weedeater before we know it. I hung Riley's plate in his room that he got when he was born. You know, the one that has his name, birthdate, weight, and length on it. It is very very colorful, and he likes it. If you walk by it with him, he laughs and stares at it.

Yep

So both boys have the crud. I am taking Riley to the Dr in the morning. Hopefully everything will be ok, and just need to run its course. Rain was minimal today, if at all, depending on where you were. The JaxMan and I did some running around earlier today. He has had a phobia about using public restrooms, but I think it is passing. He used one yesterday and two different ones today....getting better...He also "took care of business" today the proper way and got his weedeater and other toys back. Hopefully he will continue to "take care of business" properly. Signing out, got to finish watching "Man vs Food", a 7 lb breakfast burrito...

Rain Rain Go Away

OK, we have had enough rain for a while...It rained again today. I am thankful that it is raining, but we have had our fair share over the last week or so. Jax is getting anxious to go outside...He did get to go out the other day and get his 4- wheeler stuck. I had to pull him out and wash it off before he could park it in the garage. He loves his 4-wheeler.