Family Game Night

Last weekend we went to my parents for a fun-filled night of games. Accompanied by a delectible rib dinner followed by Chocolate pie...pudding really. We played Uno Attack! Let me tell ya, trying to explain the directions was a chore. The more I explained, the more the boys chimed in. After a about 15 minutes of mass confusion, we all had it down and the game began.

After playing with the big kids for a while and watching some TV, Taya found her a special spot UNDER the table.


She then decided to sing her ABC's and play at the fridge.


Then she felt the need for a workout on the tredmill...Taya style.


She even did her own card tricks.


It was a blast. So many laughs you hurt. Laughing so hard you cry and nearly pee your pants. I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story...












So after many, many, many.....many hours of game playing we all went to our respected houses/beds and went nighty night.

We're expecting

Well, our family is growing...again. Yes, we are expecting...A PUPPY! Little miss is only 3 weeks right now, so in about a month, she will be coming home with us. What a great Christmas present for the kids...and me. We can't wait.

Meet little miss(her name is still under discussion).


She had 4 brothers and 2 sisters. It was hard to pick. Just new a female was a requirement. The other 2 were whiners...no good. Little miss was just chill. Perfect.



Taya fell in love with them all, of course.


Very excited about our new addition:-)

Green Acres

Green Acres is the place to be, Farm livin' is the life for me...

Last night, while Matt was at school, the kids and I went to the neighbors for some good ole’ outdoor fun. We roasted hot dogs in the fire pit. With all the fixins'. Out of about 20 weenie’s, 6 either fell on the ground on the way to the pit or fell off the apparatus IN the pit. It was pretty funny. Of course, with all this drama it took a bit to get everyone fed. I think Ethan even ate his with a hint of ash on it. Nice. The fire was so hot, I got a nice facial and some scorched brows. No biggie. Apparently, at some point Corbin got tired of loosing his dinner so he then decided there was no need to heat his and ate it FROZEN. You may think these are terrible parenting practices, but in my defense, I didn't know until it was 3/4 the gone and he told me I could eat the rest. Naw, I think I'll pass. I'm good.

After we ate the "main course", we moved on to the "best course". Smores - fireside. Oh so very yummy. What's better than graham crackers, a hershey bar and marshmellows? That's right folks, nothing.

What makes this such an adventure is that while going along with our roasting festivities, a storm was begining to rear it's ugly head. No big deal. We have plenty of time. Enjoy yourself. There, as we carried on the wind was picking up and and it started to sprinkle a bit. We still have time. No need to rush. It began to sprinkle more and more and before we all knew it, we(3 adults), were trying to get 6 kids and 2 dogs under a porch. By this time it was literally raining SIDEWAYS and leaves were moving faster than cars. The wind was incredible. Finally, after about what seemed to be 20 minutes, we managed to get everyone in safe and sound. And just slightly wet.

The craziness of it all, is that even with all the face shaving by the rain, trying to keep the kids and all the food from flying away in the wind and eating unnessacary leaves...it was a relaxing, enjoyable night. One of those nights you wish to have everyday. Good food, good dogs, good friends and good kids...That's my kind of night.

Homecoming, The Tom Bean Way

Homecoming was a couple weeks ago(I realize I'm a bit late writing this). It was so neat. First, to start the festivities was the annual homecoming parade. Of course, living here for a mere 2 months, this was our first time to experience this. Let me tell ya, they do it different in small towns. REAL different. My brother and I never had no parade growing up in Mesquite(AKA, up and coming ghetto).

Anyway, to my story. The Wednesday before homecoming we had a city wide parade that went through downtown Tom Bean. It was something I have never felt nor will ever forget. I literally got chills and tears in my eyes. The fact that our kids can experience that and take part was amazing. They loved it as much as I did. Their teeth, well, that's another blog. The parade was led by the police cheif, followed by a fire truck(they have some nice fire trucks here. Surprising for such a small town). After the fire truck were 5 cars with the homecoming court, then there was a truck and a flatbed trailor for every grade, Pre-k to 12th. The pee-wee football and team and cheerleaders were there too. As the parade past they were throwing out candy. We were in a good spot, right next to my dad and a few other coaches, thus causing some of the student body to hurl candy our direction. The kids got enough candy then to not even need to worry about Halloween...but I'm sure they will. After the parade we all went to the football stadium and had a city wide church service. It was really neat. I think the students enjoyed it. They were throwing out mini footballs and glow braclets. Just when you think that teenagers are all rotten you come across the slight few that make ya think otherwise. There was a certain group of about 4 guys sitting behind us and they gave Taya a mini football and al 3 a pack a glow bands(seeings how my kids are short and were unablr to accomplish this). I was moved by their genorosity. Who knows, maybe it was that "Coach Upchurch" was sitting right next to us:-) Either way, I was moved. Moving on, after the service was the BONDFIRE. This, I saw for myself, is a BIG deal. It was behind the scoreboard at the field. This thing was massive. We played the Whitewright Tigers that week so they passed out, to a select groud, tiger tails. The point was to throw the tails in the fire and watch them burn. Nice family fun. Taya was given a tail and was given the opportunity to throw the tail in so the Head cheerleader, Tenae, took her to throw it in. We hung out a bit but after we got nice and toasty warm, we headed home.





Then 2 days later was the big homecoming game. There was even a city wide pep rally. This means the boys were able to get on the bus and ride to the high school to participate. Lucky for us, my dad coaches Ethan's teacher's son so she was able to snap a quick pic.


The game was fun. The boys played and I ate:) Taya learned even more cheers from Big Taya. She likes to shake her "bahyie"(AKA,bottom). Sadly, we got smoked that game but it was a fun week in lue of that.




My mom and I even made shirts.





Now today, more greatness. Corbin came home with the monthly Tom Bean Elemenanewsletter. I am proud to say that each of the boys were mentioned 2 times. Ethan for "A" honor roll and Corbin for "B". They were both also named for perfect attendance. Another fun fact is that our little bity elementary school was chosen SCHOOL OF THE YEAR by our local Walmart and Sams club. Their were 10 specific teachers in the school that got $100.00 gift cards to be spent in the classroom. I am pleased to say that BOTH, Mrs. Ellis and Mrs. Lacy(the boys teachers)were 2 to receive the gift cards.

I'm(we)at peace with the fact that after however many years of school have past, moving from home to home....we are finally right here in Tom Bean(Van Alstyne)...where we belong

My Corby

Corbin Lost his FIRST tooth yesterday! And he has another one loose, almost ready to come out!

As I sit and think how fast he's growing up, I remember a few priceless moments. See, Corbin has always been a momma's boy, even though he's into "boy" things. Ever since he was old enough to give kisses, we've had a special kiss that he will only do with me. First, he kisses my forehead, then my right cheek, then the left, then my chin, then my nose and then finally my lips. Don't know why or how it started...but somehow it just did. Til' this very day, he still does it.

I also remember back when he was about 2-3 yrs old. He would get "in trouble" and we would ask him why he did whatever he did. We would say "Why did you do ???", he would say "Bacuzz", then we say "Why" and he would reply so innocently with "BECUZZ WHY". We would never get the reason...just BECUZZ WHY! We still laugh about that til' this day.

Then there was the time we were in mid potty training. He was about 2-3 again. Ethan was 4-5 and would be really upset if he knew I was telling this but it's the lead in to "My Corby" story. Anyway, Ethan would strain and push so hard when going poop. He would turn red in the face and just look plain angry. We told him time after time that he needed to be patient when he was pooping. It will come out when ready. Well, apparently Corbin was hip to this. One day he was on the potty, look at Matt and I and said "I'm patient with MYYY poo-poo"

Kidd's Kid's Day

The BEST morning show EVER is “Kidd Kraddick In the Morning”. I listen to them at work from 6-10 every morning, only taking a break every now and then to answer the phone. Well, yesterday was Kidd’s Kids day. For those of you that don’t know, one day every year Kidd and his whole staff dedicate their show to raising money for his organization called “Kidd’s Kids”. This organization is for terminally ill children. They raise money and with that money, that the public donates, they take 50 families(Kids, parents, siblings and all) to DISNEY WORLD for an entire week. This year they are taking 52 families. It amazes me the dedication Kidd’s listeners have to the show and to Kidd’s Kids itself. In just the 4 hour show yesterday, they raised OVER $400 THOUSAND. WOW!

I will be entirely honest. Normally every year on this day I either don’t listen at all or turn the channel when they start talking about it. I feel like if I listen then something bad will happen to my kids-Ridiculous, I know. It’s just very hard to listen to the stories of past years…some kids still here and others now with their maker. Listening to the siblings of the ill children is inspiring. The love, the devotion, the hope they have for their brother or sister. Amazing.

This year I decided to be a big girl, put my big girl panties on and listen. As I listened the more and more I realized how I take my kids for granted, knowing they will be here tomorrow. I put things off with them because I will have time another day to do it. The truth is that you NEVER know what tomorrow holds and you are never guaranteed that tomorrow will come for you and/or your children. I am SO grateful that we have 3 healthy, beautiful, perfect kids. We are blessed enough to be able to take our kids to the fair, to Fiesta Texas, to Six Flags, to water parks. We’re able to take them on vacation every spring break, every summer….they are able to enjoy life at it’s best. They can play sports, ride bikes, run like crazy and use all the energy God gave them. All the while there are so many kids out there that can only hope and pray for that energy. The energy that makes me crazy at times…when I want them to sit still and relax a bit. That is a craziness I will take over sick kids any day.

The love I have for my kids is unstoppable. I will never take the health of my kids for granted again. I am a paranoid freak, feeling them for fever literally once every half hour, always asking if they feel okay. In fact tomorrow we are taking them all 3to get their flu shot. To PREVENT the flu. How fortunate am I that I am able to give my kids a shot for an illness that is common. How many parents are there that only wish there was a shot to prevent whatever illness or disease their child has. Whether it be cancer, leukemia, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, etc. I always think of myself as a good mom . I tell you what, after listening to the parents that have put their lives on hold to help their kids, I have to rethink that. The sacrifices, the sleepless nights, the financial struggles, the tests of strength…it goes on and on. Those parents are better than I will ever be. I admit that. My heart goes out to those families.

Thank you to Kidd Kraddick, Kelly Rasberry, Big Al Mac, J-Si and Jenna for all you do…

I have said it a million and 5 times…I will say it again, hug and kiss your babies every chance you get and let them know how proud you are of them and how much you love and adore them. I know I will:-)

Here's My Life

I admit...after a long day at work, I come home and am exhausted and and am more on edge with the family than I should be. I hate this and am really trying to work on it within myself. Today was the same as usual. Got up at 5AM, went to work, came home and started with the normal household routine. BUT all day I have felt that something was different. Something within me was different. A positive difference. Matt left for school as usual and I awaited the boys arrival. They came home, hugged me and had smiling faces. This made me smile. The household was calm and at peace at a time when it's normally crazy. Homework and seeing who can get outside to play the fastest. Not today. It was so nice.

We talked over dinner(as usual), then Ethan wrote stories of how to make a root beer float as I taught Corbin how to play solitaire. All the while Taya running a muck.

Side note before we move on...I am so pleased to say that Ethan brought home his progress report and has STRAIGHT A's!!! This is the first time in his school career that he has made straight A's. It kinda reassures me that we made the right decision moving here.

Now, back to the story...

I believe the difference I started feeling started yesterday in church. It was a powerful message that stuck with me all day. Long story short, it was about how if you keep God the focus of your day, your night, your life...you will be okay. Marriages are tough but if you have God at the fore front, the rest will work out. The Anchor Holds, In Spite of The Storm. This leads me to tonight.


As Corbin and I played, I decided to listen to my itunes on the computer. Songs came on and we listen but then something magical happened. A song came on and Corbin stopped what he was doing-which at this time was turning circles in the kitchen-and said "Oh mom, I remember this song. I really like it"...then he started humming the tune. He has heard this song ONE time...for 4 minutes, at church, 2 months ago. Our old neighbors that have become missionaries in China were in town telling about their journey thus far and this song was on the video they were showing. When I heard the song then I got chills...BUT after hearing my son hum the tune with such pride and ease, I got even more chills. Not only the fact that a song could stick in the mind of a 7 yr old but knowing it was so heartfelt by him was an awesome feeling as a parent. As I secretly watched him hum, I noticed he eventually started singing the words. He saw my face and stopped...embarrassed. I then played it over and over...listening to every word. Corbin came and sat by me and as I held him tears filled my eyes. How could I ever be so frustrated, so exhausted, so at my wits end from all the stress in life that I would ever take it out on my kids? I know we all do it from time to time but how unfortunate. Hearing this song just made the feeling I have had all day that much more powerful. Is it ironic or was it exactly what I needed right when I needed it? I am not a big fan of irony...I fully believe this was God speaking directly to my heart. The song is called "No Sacrifice" by Jason Upton.

"To you I give my life, not just the parts I want to, To you I sacrifice the dreams that I hold on to. Your thoughts are higher than mine, your words are deeper than mine, your love is stronger than mine, This is no sacrifice, Here's my life."

To hear the full song, copy and paste the link below. I hope it does for you what it has done for me:-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxw3z-oD7ZE