In Season

I think my boring title explains it all....I'm in season and my life now inlcudes these 11 teenagers! They may drive me crazy but I still love' em! We competed in a big tournament this weekend and I am so proud of how they challenged each opponent. We are a small school yet we were playing with the big 4A&5A powerhouses. They did great!!

They had to take a little break from playing so hard. I think they played 3 weeks of volleyball in 2 days!!

They look comfortable don't they.... After we played on Friday, we were able to make it back to support our football team for the last quarter. They beat the Cyclones of Casady!!!

Logan and his buddy Devon had a blast at Fall Rally. They had jump houses, sno cones and of course the usual sliding down the hill on cardboard. Nothing like a little fun under the Friday night lights.

We played all day Saturday and didn't get done until 6pm. It was a lot of volleyball but such a great opportunity for my team. They are very talented and have what it takes to go very far this year.

KIA KAHA SAINTS

Buddy Watts

So we have a new member of our family. Meet Buddy Watts. We should have named him Crazy or Can't Get Right. He is in no way replacing Gracie. We had talked about getting another American Bulldog when our friend's dog had a litter. It just so happened that Buddy was old enough to leave his mom shortly after Gracie passed away. He is definitely keeping Jersey company and eventually they will have a litter of their own. It is so funny to watch Buddy who is quite smaller than Jersey tackle her. They have definitely already bonded. We still miss Gracie very much but are glad that Jersey has a friend.

1st Day 2010

This week we started the 2010-2011 school year. It is really hard to believe we have a 1st, 3rd and 5th grader. We are so fortunate that our kids love their school and we both are able to work there and be with them throughout the day. After we dropped the kids off in their classrooms which they basically ran to as soon as we parked the car, Gene went around to all the other classes to say hi to all of his students. It was so cute how excited they got to see their favorite coach!

Of course he had to get a pic with one of his most favorite students of them all...his minime...Logan.

The best thing about having our kids at this school is that it is a Christian school and our children are able to learn about the Lord and practice their Faith every day! It doesn't get any better than that!

We didn't even have to wake Trinity up....she was ready to go bright and early on the 1st day of school!! Week 1 was great and we are looking forward to a wonderful school year.

Highs and Lows

Life is full of highs and lows that is for sure. I know it sounds cliche but the past 3 days have been like a roller coaster....with a couple of highs and a HUGE low.
This weekend we celebrated 12 years of marriage and Gene and I dropped the kids off with a dear friend (they have to be special to deal with our 3 :)) and we headed to Winstar Casino to see Babyface and Charlie Wilson in concert. We even had a hotel room...can I get a woohoo! It was so nice just having some time with each other and no distractions...aka kids.

Babyface performed first and it was so neat to hear the old school jams. Not to mention our seats were only 30 feet from the stage! Sorry my pictures are so bad. They only allowed phone cameras and the iphone doesnt take that great of pictures.

Charlie Wilson came out next and he got everyone out of their seats. I have wanted to see him in concert for the longest time. It was AWESOME!! Gene and I love old R&B so we were jammin the entire time. Charlie even made the men serenade us women. Unfortunately after the concert finished, we got a phone call from our neighbor who was watching our dogs. Gracie, our English Bulldog had passed away. We immediately rushed home. Our night went from wonderful to so very sad.

We only had Gracie for 4 years but she was a part of our family.We picked our kids up the next morning and telling them the news was one of the hardest things. All 3 of them broke down and Logan had lots of questions.

Our house is definitely different with her not here. Our other dog, Jersey who is usually full of energy has just been laying around the past 2 days. It has affected everyone. We miss you Gracie and love you very much.

Today the kids got to meet their teacher and instead of cool summer stories to share with friends, they each told their story of how they lost their sweet dog, Gracie. It has been a long time since I've lost a pet. It just isn't easy no matter how old you are.

It was nice to see the kids smile when they found out who they were going to have as their teacher for the new school year.

Logan has Mrs. Carter and she had both the girls also. We just adore her!

Trinity has Mrs. Hollingsworth. She is new to the school as a teacher but her oldest son just graduated from All Saints' last year. He is playing college football and was one of our best athletes! She is really sweet.

Kansas has Mrs. Cook who is awesome as well. My big 5th grader is too old to take pictures with her teacher (so she says) but I was able to convince her to get one with her friends. :)

We are all looking forward to a great school year. I am ready to be back in a routine that is for sure. It will be interesting though to see how I juggle work, coaching, getting my masters along with being a mom and wife. I'm up for the challenge....I think. Speaking of a challenge, I have paper due by Wednesday so I guess I better stop blogging and start writing!

I do want to thank my husband for a wonderful weekend and for helping me through the Gracie deal. We love you Gracie girl....rest in peace.

Happy 12th Anniversary!!!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!! Can't believe it's already been 12 years. I remember our wedding day like it was yesterday. Now it's 2010 and we have 3 beautiful kids that keep us busy along with our careers. I know we have had our challenges but we have pulled through together. Looking forward to what tomorrow has in store for us. I love you.

Charlie Wilson & Babyface

I have been bugging my hubby to take me to see Charlie Wilson in concert. This weekend we will be celebrating our 12th anniversary AND guess who I get to see in concert....that's right, Charlie Wilson and Babyface! Hmm....I guess the picture gave it away. :) I am very excited!!! I have started volleyball season so things have been busy for me. The time away is much needed and will be so nice. The kids start school next week so we will back to a routine in no time. I hope everyone is enjoying what is left of their summer. I'll be sure to post pics of our weekend away...woohoo!!

I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together.....

So just to warn you, this post has a ton of pics...but most of mine do! :)
I was so excited that my Aunt Liz was able to come to Texas to visit us from sunny San Diego. We had a lot planned for her and kept her busy the entire time! I've already posted some Billy Bobs' pictures but I got some from her camera that I had to post.

Like this one for instance.....I'm not a wine drinker or beer drinker....or any real type of drinker for that matter but I wanted to buy some wine for my Auntie. So what do I do....buy wine based on if I liked the bottle or not. I found these "Middle Sister" bottles that I could relate to since I am the middle sister.

Ok...I know that I will never be sent to buy wine again but at least I picked out a cutie to serve it. Unfortunately since I never drink wine, he didn't know where the "real" wine glasses are. hehe...My sister Jess must be so dissapointed in me! Just kidding Sis!

After he served the wine he thought he could be our entertainment also. We sat outside and watched him play basketball....ummm against the dog??? Well at first until Gene came outside and took Jersey's spot. Not sure which one played better defense.

And more Billy Bob pics....it was fun to go Honkytonkin with my Auntie. Unfortunately since we went during the day she didn't get to experience the boot-scootin fun atmosphere but we are definitely going to do that next time!

I had to point out all the "Texas" signs that you would not likely see in California. Like I've mentioned in many of my posts, I am totally aware that I am a complete dork. At least I'm not in denial.

These two handsome fellas enjoyed Cowtown with us also.

The Fort Worth experience was fun to show my Auntie and next summer, My Uncle Chris is going to join her and we are going to buy him some boots and ammo...all at his request of course! :)

The next day my Auntie and I hopped in the car minus the kiddos and hubby and headed to H-Town to visit our family. Gene and the kids headed west to Seline and Issac's Quincieneta....and I'm almost positive I didn't spell that right.

I just adore this picture...my beautiful Mom and her sister. These two ladies are so very special to me!

We stayed with these guys...how adorable is my Goddaughter/niece, Kendall. Yes, my sister is cute too! In case you were wondering, her hair was done by none other than our guest of honor, Aunt Liz. Did you know you could get curls like that with your flat iron!! I tried to help but I was told my job could be "hair sprayer". Oh well....beauty school is not in the cards for me.

My cousin Derek and his daughter Jasmine were able to come down to visit and it was so good to see him. He is in the army and will deploy to Iraq again next month. I'm glad he was able to have some family time before he headed back to the desert. As usual, we had a great time together and shared many laughs. Nothing like memories with the ones you love.

Like showing your nephew that you can still play "airplane" with him even though he is 16 and a Junior in high school. It's all fun and games until he tries to show you the wrestling moves that have made him one of the top wrestlers in the district. Yea...that was not so much fun.

The next day my Aunt Liz and I took Stephen and Jasmine to the splash pad since I promised them both I would. This picture of Jasmine cracks me up. She is the cutest thing!!

I really enjoyed my Aunt Liz's visit. I always have fun with her. We had to head back to DFW on Sunday since she flew out Monday morning. Our road trip back was pretty interesting. We stopped at Kohls on the way out just to shop a bit since it is a tradition for us. We ate at Olive Garden near Huntsville and got on the road. The AC decided that it wasn't in the mood to blow cold air so we searched on our handy iphone for a place in the next town to get some freon. To make a long, crazy story short....we got to experience a small, Texas town. After we got the freon from Alvarado's Auto Shop, we stopped at Brookshire Brothers to grab some water and once again we were back on the road. I'm sure my Aunt enjoyed visiting "Smalltown, USA" but I'm sure she will enjoy reuniting with San Diego even more! haha

I am very proud of living in the great state of Texas and I loved showing my Aunt around. We had a lot of fun and I look forward to hosting her every year.

The summer is officially over for me and volleyball season is here. I am looking forward to a great school year.

Thanks Aunt Liz for coming to see us. We enjoyed having you and we love you very much!