Loving the Windy City

Gene and I left Vicksburg last Sunday morning at 4:30am and were in Chicago by 8:00am! I had a reading conference and Gene got to tag along! A huge thanks goes to Nana and Papa for keeping the kids while we were gone! We had the best time. We were very impressed with the city and can't wait to go back! The food was amazing! We did not eat a single meal that we didn't love! One meal was at the Melting Pot (a fondue restaurant) which was a first for us. We left super stuffed and loved it so much that we went back the night before we left just for chocolate!

We walked most everywhere and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. We visited the Field Musuem, the Lincoln Park Zoo (which was free and awesome!), the John Hancock building, Navy Pier, and tons of shops. We also went to a Chicago Bulls game which was our first NBA game. It was tons of fun!

We are glad to be home but can't wait to go back!

lighthouse at Navy Pier

the famous silver bean

Harry Caray restaurant

the "Holy Cow" at Harry Caray's

the zoo

night view from our hotel room

window washing at the John Hancock building

Another Blog?

Yes, It's Official! I have lost my mind! I now have two blogs! I know, I know, I barely have time to update this one. However, it is for a good cause. I have started a blog for Trevor's tournament baseball team, The Vicksburg Billies. We needed a way to keep friends, family, and sponsors informed of what is going on. They are planning to play in seven tournaments between now and the end of June. In July they will be competing in the USSSA Little League World Series in Sulphur, LA. They are very excited! You can check them out at www.vicksburgbillies.blogspot.com

I am so excited that we are out next week for intersession! I so need a break to get this disaster of a house in order. I am suffering (as FlyLady would say) from CHAOS - Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome! If I don't do something soon, I might loose Morgan in the piles of clothes! However, as Gene keeps reminding me, twenty years form now it won't matter to the kids how clean the house was. All that will matter is how much time we spent together as a family. I have to agree with him. With that thought in mind, maybe it can wait a little longer......

Mardi Gras '09

We spent Saturday in Bogalusa, LA at our annual Mardi Gras family reunion. We had a great time! It was wonderful to visit with family and attend the large parade there. We ate tons of crawfish and King Cake! Yummy!

Waiting for the next round of floats to come through. Gene says we will be painting over the "Go Tigers" on the cowbell Morgan caught with maroon and white!

"The Cousins" (Rachel, Me, Megan, and Melanie) It's funny that all four of us have almost the same hair cut!

A silly string war is always a part of waiting for the parade to begin!

Still waiting!

Learning to play croquet (sp?)! Also a tradition!

Cuddling with Baby CJ - What a handsome pair!

I had to include this pictue of Morgan from last week. We found her sitting on the floor in the bathroom carefully "putting on her eyes"!

Is it just me or are Saturday and Sunday the shortest days of the week?!?!? I can't believe tomorrow is once again Monday! We had a great weekend, it was just way too short! The weather has been so nice that the kids and I couldn't resist a trip to the Riverfront park with our friends Jenny, Tyler, and Kayleigh Karel. They had a blast!

My parents took the boys to the deer camp for Saturday and Sunday so Morgan enjoyed having Mommy all to herself! We took advantage of it yesterday and had a girls shopping day. The day started with painting nails, doing hair, and putting on make-up. Then we hit the outlet mall where Morgan racked up on play dresses, flip flops, and a swim suit (I know it's early but I couldn't resist). Then it was lunch at Mr. Billy's! We both had a great time! Later we went to a birthday party at McDonalds (a post in itself!), praise team practice, and dinner with friends. I had forgotten how much easier it was to get around with one child in tow! She made it easy too by being an angel all day! I wouldn't trade a second with the three of them for anything though!

Gene has been on call all weekend. It seems like everybody in Vicksburg has needed surgery this weekend. Poor Gene! He has been there off and on all weekend. Hopefully he will be home soon. We've missed him!

No Pics?!?!?!?

So I'm sitting at home today, in a quiet house, feeling like I've been hit by a truck. I think it's just sleep deprivation (?) but I feel a little fluish so I stayed home just to be safe. Hopefully I will feel better tomorrow. I sat down at my computer a second ago to post an update, on a blog I have barely had time to even think about, when I realized that in a whole week of buisness and a weekend of fun I have no pictures! What was I thinking? Thursday night the kids and I went to the schools Health Fair and Read Around the Campfire. It's not a real campfire but kids get to sit around a fake one on blankets, read books, and take AR tests in the computer lab. There was also a chili dinner. It was lots of fun!

Saturday was cleaning day. The kids were sad until I handed them spray bottles filled with water and wash clothes and told them to clean walls, cabinets, counters, etc. They had the best time spraying and wiping! I wish I had thought of it sooner! Of course Morgan sprayed more than she wiped so I had to go behind her. Saturday night we went to Gene sister, Karie's house to watch a UFC pay-per-view. I just don't get it. Why do guys find such pleasure in watching two idiots beat the snot out of each other? Needless to say, I swiped Trevor's DS after about ten minutes. It was fun to visit though. The kids enjoyed playing with their cousins!

After a great church service Sunday we went to my parents for the Super Bowl. The guys watched the game while the girls scrapbooked. I am about three years behind on scrapbooking but I'm hoping to catch up before the kids graduate high school!