Daddy's Helper

While Sean was fighting evil at Didi's house this morning, Christopher was helping Daddy banish the dirt on mommy's car.

He's such a good helper!!!

The Beautiful Sean Super Hero

Here he comes to save the day!

Mom gave Sean and Christopher these outfits months ago.  They didn't have much interest in it them. However, Sean rediscovered it this morning while spending time at DiDi's house.  He wore it all morning.  When he came home he took all his clothes off, as he always does, and put on the super hero outfit again.

He declared himself The Beautiful Sean Super Hero who is going to "kill all the bad guys".  Chris got to be the bad guy.

Isn't he just the cutest nearly naked Super Hero ever???

My Treasure

Treasure was my Siamese cat for 16 years.  I still miss him horribly.  He and I had many conversations about life... whatnot.  He was my best friend.  As he got older he started to have gum problems and started to lose his teeth.  His breath could knock you out.  We slept together under the covers.  I called him my stinky man.  If I was sitting down, he was in my lap.  If I was standing, he complained.  Sometimes I'd wake up at night and find him just LOOKING at me.  Some might find that creepy.  I felt reassured.  Few things have been as painful as loosing him.  The hole in my heart has been mended by having my boys but I still miss him. 

I wanted to post this picture of him in memory

Also, I look awesome with red hair.

Say Cheese!

I'm pretty sure my kids get their humor from me.
What happens when we ask the kids to smile for the camera?  THIS:

How I Met Your Father

Hey kids,

Back in January 2006 your dad sent me an email.  He was browsing on some dating website that no one your age has probably ever heard of and he found an old profile of mine.  I hadn't been active on the website for a while and I think it took me a couple of weeks to even see your dad's first message.  We only had email back in the day.  Not sure what you're using now.  Probably telepathy.  Anyway, I was tired of dating.  Men in my time were having an identity crisis.  Did they open the door for me?  Did they leave me to my own devises?  Did they pay for dinner or would that insult me?  It got old.

I almost deleted his message without ever reading it, but on a whim decided to see what it said.  The very first sentence was a challenge.  "Our age difference might be too great for you, but.." and that's all I think I read.  I got insulted.  He didn't know me.  How dare he presume that he was too old for me!!  So I sent him a very nice response with my best pictures attached.  He was going to be VERY sorry! :-)  Never mind that my last date was 8 years younger than me.  Yeah.  Your mom was a cougar.

We agreed to meet at a Starbucks.  Back in the day it was still kind of embarrassing to say you met online, so we told everyone (at first) that's where we met for the first time.. and it was true.  I got there early so I could get a place to sit and read a book.  I wanted to look smart.  I don't know how smart I really looked sitting there reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.  He walked in the door and he looked just like Paul Newman (Google him).  He had the prettiest blue eyes I'd ever seen.  You both got his eyes.  Look out girls!

The rest, they say, is history.  We only dated for a couple of months before your father fell hopelessly in love with me and begged me to marry him.  I eventually said yes.  We were married December 9th, 2006.  

That's my story.  Your father might have a different one :-)

Sweet Berry Farms 2013

This past weekend was "Chris's turn" to go with me down to Austin to see Alice.  He had been asking me non-stop for weeks when were we going!  Aunt CiCi and Uncle Larry had planned a nice outing Saturday to go to Sweet Berry Farm for the day.  http://www.sweetberryfarm.com/.  They like to go right before Halloween because Alice can stuff a scarecrow and use it with her Halloween decorations.  This year she has a scary tombstone, lots of spider webs on the bushes and Frankenstein lashed to a tree so he can't get away.   Chris was VERY impressed.

The first thing Alice and Chris rode was the barrel ride.  Chris was so excited!  When it was their turn, he bolted through the gate and ran right to the orange barrel behind the tractor.  Alice, got the blue one directly behind it.  Basically the tractor goes pretty slow in a winding pattern around these pink barrel pigs, but the kids loved it.  When it was over, Chris said in his loudest outdoor voice, "CAPTAIN, WHAT IS THAT SMELL?"  I had to get the man driving the tractor's attention to let him know that my beautiful, smart son was talking to him :-)  He simply said, "Son, that's FARM smell!", and shook Chris's hand.  Chris was so proud!

 

 

We had a horse ride and fed the goats.

 

 

 

Got some sweet face painting.

 

 

 

Chris is admiring his in the mirror.

 

 

We went through the 'maize'.  (Get it??)  Alice was our leader.  She found the bell at the center and then found our way out!

 

 

 

We had a hay ride through Scarecrow Island.

 

 

 

Alice made her yearly scarecrow.

 

 

And then we had ice cream amongst the pumpkins.

 

 

It was a very fun day!  Thanks Aunt CiCi and Uncle Larry!

House sold? Lease signed?

After about 3 weeks on the market and a lot of interest, we got a contract on our house!  You can see our beautiful house HERE.  Happy that it sold so quickly, I felt like this:

 

We were so happy that we would be in Rockwall in about a month.  However, there are always howevers...  The inspection came back with some unanticipated problems, ones that I wasn't sure we would be able to fix.  For several days I was so stressed out and disappointed.  We had already found a lease house in Rockwall, one that I LOVED, and now we were going to have to let it go.  We didn't need to sell the house so we had decided we'd probably just retract our offer and take it off the market.  We could live here a couple more years and then try again.  But we thought we'd give it one last go, so we made some calls, got some estimates, and rechecked our level of commitment.  It's going to cost us, but we found a way to make it work.  We are currently out of the Option period, under contract, and scheduled to close November 1st, 2013.  BUT we are still waiting on the appraisal, the last hurdle I think.  My happy dance now has a slightly psychotic feel to it:

 

 

 

The rent house was still available and we jumped on signing the lease.  However... again.  The leasing agent came back to us after we had agreed on everything and said that, before the owners of the house would sign the lease, they needed more pet deposit money.  Paul went through the roof.  We were going to, AGAIN, retract the offer and start over.  Our agent was furious and stressed to the leasing agent that we were not going to pay additional fees NOT agreed upon at the signing,  That if the owners wanted more money then it needed to come out of her, the leasing agent's, commission.  She initially balked, but then conceded.  This wasn't our fault and we weren't going to pay for it.  We are currently waiting for the owners to sign the new lease.  Once it's signed, the house is ours, but instead of feeling happy I feel like I've been run over by a truck and left under a thunder cloud: 

 

Amazing how the world can beat you down. 

Pumpkin Patch 2013

Didi and I took the boys to the pumpkin patch out in Rockwall on Sunday.  BOY, did they have fun picking out their "poekins".

Artwork

Sean made me a LOVELY drawing yesterday!!!!
I guess I really didn't need that document.

Drives to School - 9/27/13 - 10/7/13

Weekly updates on the way to school.

Fri 9/27/2013 8:47 AM
Chris got somewhat angry at Sean for ignoring him. I had to talk him down from the ledge. Sean just was being quiet and Chris didn't like it. He quieted down and quit complaining when we stopped to buy gas. They got jelly sandwiches for breakfast. Love you, :o)

Mon 9/30/2013 10:38 AM
I forgot to write to you about the boys. They had a great time at the gas station because I rolled down the windows and they were playing peek a boo with people around the station who had no idea what they were doing. Then Chris spilled his cereal and beans on the floorboard. He got over it though. I scraped enough off the floor for him to feed the birds at school. Sean didn't get out of sorts at all which was great considering how he started the day. That's about it. Love you, :o)

Wed 10/2/2013 8:43 AM
They were sweet little kids today, no arguing, no whining about if the Sun was coming up, or anything else. They got pancakes for breakfast. Love you, :o)

Mon 10/7/2013 8:37 AM
Nice quiet ride to school until we drove near a skunk and the boys said that Blackie tooted. But Blackie's not in the car. They asked me who did it and I said a skunk and they laughed louder than I've heard them in a long time. So they asked me again who tooted and I said a skunk and they broke out in another fit of laughter. It lasted from Mockinbird to the school where they finally settled down from laughing. Then Chris said the skunk smelled like poop and it started all over again. They had bagels and cream cheese for breakfast. Love you, :0)

Drives to School

Most days Paul takes the boys to school in the morning and he sends me a little "how the boys did on the way to school" email.  I love these and look forward to them every morning as I sit at my little cubicle at work.  I decided that the boys may one day find these funny so I'll start to post them.  I've collected all the ones to date (how can you delete these emails??).

6/7/13

Chris moaned and groaned until we got to NW highway and then he hugged me all the way into school. Sean was fine until we were almost to Lovers Lane when he realized he had Chris' bottle and not his. I did a yoga move while driving and he was good. That is all. Lub you foreber.  

6/10/13

Sean ran to the front door of the school this morning. Chris required a lift from Dad. They were great on the way to school. Love you, :o)  

6/11/13

The boys pretended to be different animals on the way to school. They made the animal's sound and I had to guess what they were. Every morning should be like this one on the way to the New school. Love you, :o)  

6/12/13

Chris sang a few songs on the way to school. Sean looked at him and that caused a slight uproar of spitting and yelling. Then they proceeded to serenade me with animal sounds and spotting of baby police cars and baby ambulances. Love you, :o) 

6/17/13

Good boys this morning. The rain apparently crackles when it hits the 4Runner. I had them both stand up in the 4Runner and wait for me to open the door while I got out with the umbrella so they could both get out on one side under the umbrella. They did exactly what I asked them to do and of course I had to carry the two of them into the school with their blankets and holding an umbrella too. Anyway, they're fine. Love you, :o)  

6/18/13

Neither one of them ate any of their food this morning on the drive to school so I threw it out in the parking lot for the birds to eat. Sean was fine and ran into school and Chris of course had me carry him all the way in. Other than that they were great. Love you, :0)  

6/19/13

Sean talked about the cars in his book he read on the way to school. Chris was asleep before I pulled out of the garage. He was snoring on the way to school. Sean walked into school as usual. Chris woke up when I unbuckled him and then he slept on me until I set him down in a chair and a table. He looked at me, then put his head on the table, and went back to sleep. I told the girls he'd been up since 4:00a.m. Sean didn't have a care in the world. I felt sorry for Chris and have considered going and getting him after my exam and just bringing him home. He might be better off with the routine of school but I don't know. I guess I'll just wait and see if the school calls and tells us to come get him if he's not feeling well. That's about it. I'm tired and I know you're exhausted too. Love you, :o) 

6/20/13

They got to see a few ambulances and fire trucks plus lots and lots of cranes on 635. Traffic sucked but Sean gave me a hug and a kiss before I left school. Chris just buried his head in my neck until I set him down and then just sat on the floor to watch video. Love you, :o) 

6/25/13

Both of the boys were great going into and out of Target. Sean talked about his toys on the way to work and Chris added his own commentary.  

6/26/13

Nice ride to school this morning with the boys. Sean didn't like his Cheerios but liked Chris' cheerios.   He asked me to hold his bowl driving down the road. Chris had plenty in his bowl when we got to school and I let them both get a handful before carrying them into the school. Sean said his tasted bad. But somehow the cereal Chris had tasted good.  Love you, :o) 

6/27/13

Quiet ride to school this morning. Kids just talked to each other and mimicked Woody sounds as Sean pulled the string on the toy. Love you, :o) 

7/1/13

Sean played with his toys all the way to school. Chris spilled his cereal all over himself but recovered without crying. Chris was very subdued when I dropped him off but after I paid and signed them in the two of them were digging through the books in the big room while the rest of the kids were watching TV. Also, the school is not closed on Friday so we can drop them off and I can go play golf or something. Love you, :o)

7/2/13

Chris was cranky half way to school. He didn't want anything to eat but he ate his cereal. He didn't want anything to drink but he drank his milk. He finally turned into the kid we love while Sean just talked about all the things he saw in his book.  

7/3/13

Sean was a sweetheart all the way to school this morning. Chris, well, was Mr. Cranky until we got to Mockingbird. He wouldn't eat his cereal or drink his milk. When we got to school he shoved all the Cheerios he could possible get into his mouth and then grabbed another handful. He got that shoved into his mouth while I carried him into the school. Sean of course was just Sean and held my hand as we walked into the school from the parking lot. Hope you're feeling better, :o) Love you 

7/8/13

Stopped by the UPS store to drop off the golf clubs and they were closed when they were supposed to be open at 8:00. The boys were not impressed. They had a little arguing with Sean being the aggressor on the first round of the long match that ends sometime tonight. Chris shoved as many BooBerries as he could into his mouth and hands before he got out of the car while I had to hold his milk so he could drink it and chew them all at once. Sean just looked at him with amazement. They were fine going into school. I found a UPS store near the school after I dropped the kids off so that's one less thing I have to do today. Love you, :o) 

7/9/13

Chris got to sit on mommy's side and he was a happy kid all the way to school. Sean drank all his milk and ate all his food and was proud of doing so. No problems with them at all this morning. Love you, :o)

7/10/13

Chris spilled grape juice all over himself with a sippy cup that I'm throwing away, the ones with the handles, and had grape juice all over his butt, his shirt, and me. I changed him at the school and he was happy and was running around telling everyone he had new clothes. Sean was a good boy and drank all his milk again today and the worst of the drive was the two of them arguing over whether a bus is a regular bus or a bus bus. Love you, :o)

7/16/13

Chris got upset because Sean got into Mommy's side before he did. He settled down though. Other than that they were both fine. Lub you, :o) 

7/17/13

Sean started saying "boingy" repeatedly and after a few minutes of this constant repetition Chris started screaming at him. I wanted Chris to stop screaming and Sean just kept it up so I had a golf hat in the front seat and I used it as an extension of my arm to pop him to get him to stop. He stopped and didn't say another word until we got to school. He just sat in the car like he was in a daze when I was getting him out. He finally started acting normally when I got them into the school. Chris on the other hand never shut up after Sean stopped saying "boingy." Nothing like the previous screaming but it was a weird ride to school. Love you, :l) 

7/18/13

Sean gave Chris half of his cinnamon toast and then Chris gave Sean his juice. Sean said they were sharing. Love you, :o)

7/22/13

We watched all of Jake and the Pirates then went to school. No problems at all other than some guys sitting in the parking lot at the school listening to rap and smoking while his wife/girlfriend/sister applied for a job at the school. The boys do not like the smell of smoke. Love you, :o) 

7/23/13

Chris got to sit on Mommy's side. Then threw a minor fit because he couldn't see his pink yogurt milk. I had to open it and show it to him at a stop light then he was happy. Sean proceeded to see lots of cop cars, cement trucks, etc. Now if my sinus headache would go away I'd be happy. Love you, :o) 

7/29/13

Sean wanted to listen to music this morning on the radio. After I turned it on they were both quiet all the way to school other than Chris wanting candy because Sean got a sucker for peeing in the toilet before we left. I got him one and neither of them ate any of their cereal. I also got your lunch bag too. Love you, :o) 

7/30/13

Chris didn't like it that Sean's sippy cup had a straw. Sean didn't like Chris wearing Sean's sunglasses. Chris drank all his yogurt milk Sean didn't. Other than that not much else going on with them. Love you, :o) 

7/31/13

We stopped and got gas on the way to school. Chris was in a frantic point at everything and ask daddy what is that mode. Sean was more relaxed and kept talking about Up. Sean also decided that Chris had a nose wreck last weekend at Cabelas. Chris corrected him and said that he had a crazy nose. Love you, ;O) 

8/1/13

The 4Runner stunk like hell from the lawnmower in the back. The kids were okay with it because it made noises as we drove. No outbursts or anything that was a real problem, except Chris held onto me for dear life when we entered the school. He didn't want me to let go of him. Rina picked him up and babied him so he was okay when I left. Love you, :o)

8/5/13

Chris was wired all morning and I had to put a diaper on him because he wouldn't go pee. He didn't want to go to school at all. Sean was quiet and wasn't a problem. My throat is sore so I'm sure my sinuses have been busy screwing around with it. Love you, :o) 

8/6/13

Sean was very quiet driving to school. He was fine though. Chris asked me every question he could think of and repeated them until I answered every time he said, "Daddy, ....?" Love you, :o) 

8/8/13

Everyone was fine going to school. They both ate almost all of their pop tarts down to one bite when they decided they didn't like them. Chris spit up some yogurt milk just as we got the door of the school so I had to change his shirt and clean mine as well. The two of them decided to run from the car to the door. Of course they stopped halfway there and they both did their crab arms above their heads to “hold you” routine. So I picked them up and carried them both the rest of the way. Just as I was setting them down Chris just spit up the yogurt milk. I think his belly was full of pop tarts and he just spit up what wouldn't go down. Other than that they were okay boys today. Love you, :o) 

8/26/13

Sean wanted to feed the birds with his cereal when we got to school. Chris threw some of his to the birds but left the rest in the car. Chris did not want to go to school after I set him down in the big room. He cried a little bit and had that I'm really upset look on his face. One of the women hugged him and I came over and talked to him for a little after I paid for the week. He was still sad looking when I walked out and I felt bad for him. But what can you do? Love you, :o) 

8/27/13

The boys were little angels and decided to feed the birds their cereal at school. Then they kept calling out for Birdie and Gertrude to come eat all the way into the school. They didn't get upset this morning as they had toasted raisin bread ready for them.

8/28/13

Another day of little angels on the way to school. Love you, :o)

8/29/13

The kids were fine going to school and they had pancakes and syrup waiting for them in the big room. Love you, :o)

8/30/13

Both boys were happy to tell me that they were going to lunch with you. Apparently they think I’m now their personal chauffeur because I'll be picking them up to take them to your office where I'm supposed to drop them off. Anyway, I'll call you when I pick them up and head over to see you. Love you, ;o)

9/3/13

Both kids were full of questions driving to work. Chris didn't want to go to school and Sean insisted that I carry him all the way into the big room too. They both threw their leftover cereal to the birds and then called out for Birdie and Gladys to come eat it before going up the sidewalk. That's about that. I didn't sleep well last night for some reason, probably from mowing the yard. Love you, :o) 

9/5/13

Nice quiet drive to school with little infighting or screaming. A few fire trucks with their lights on tends to settle down any sibling rivalries. Love you, ;0) 

9/6/13

Boys laughed all the way to school because I made duck sounds whenever they asked me questions. Of course Chris got tired of it and said his ears hurt so I stopped. Ms. Connie said they were moved to the other class because they're the oldest and now they're in a class with kids their age. Love you, :0)

9/9/13

Ms. Martha would not let Sean have his diaper on when we got to school. So I had to change him before I left. She seemed kind of pissy to me but I changed him and didn't say anything. The kids were fine and they were eating cereal with milk when I left. Love you, :o)

9/16/13

Kids were fine going to school and were excited to see the sparrows eating their cereal they threw out when we got to school. Hope your sugar levels are way down this morning. That's about it. Love you, :o)

9/17/13

The kids got grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast at school this morning. Chris was really excited and Sean was his typical subdued early morning self. Remind me they need baths tonight. Love you,

 

9/18/13

Kids were worried that the Sun wasn't coming up today with all the clouds. We stopped to buy gas and the kids and I had a nice talk while we waited. They feed the birds and got sausage biscuits for breakfast at the school. Love you, :o)

9/19/13

Sean played the "I'm ignoring Chris" game and Chris started yelling at him. I had to tell both of them to stop it. They both relented and the drive to school was fine. They got banana nut muffins for breakfast today. Love you, :o) 

9/20/13

The kids were very smart and good this morning. They both wanted to feed the birds but I asked them if we could do it this afternoon when it stopped raining and they said okay. Then I unbuckled both of them when we got to school with all the doors closed to the car. I got the umbrella ready and they both climbed into the driver’s seat and got under the umbrella without getting a drop on them. Of course they both had to hold the umbrella but we made it into school without anyone getting soaked. Love you, :o)

9/23/13

Nice ride to school with Chris on the edge of getting upset because he couldn't see the Sun coming up. He finally saw it and was happy. Sean dropped his bitamin and wanted desperately for me to stop the car in traffic, get out, and find it. He settled for me finding it at school. Other than that they were fine. Love you, :o) 

9/24/13

Chris was still ranting about going to see Alice halfway to school. Sean was just being a good kid and asking me lots of questions even after he explained to Chris that it was Chris' turn to go to Austin. Chris then decided he was worried that the Sun would not come up and that distracted him until after we bought gas and the Sun came up. Of course he said that he knew the Sun would come up. Sean fed the birds with his fruit loops but Chris dumped his on the floorboard and then got upset that he didn't get to feed the birds after I cleaned out the cereal before he started stomping on it in the 4Runner. He got over it pretty quickly and they got grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast. That's about it. Love you, :o) 

9/25/13

Chris got upset that his toilet paper roll broke. He tore a tiny piece of cardboard off it and you'd have thought it was the end of the world. He finally settled down when the Sun came up, again. Sean just talked about the blue dog and the Cone of Shame. They got pancakes at school for breakfast. Love you, :o)

My Happy Place

We've been having a hard time keeping the boys from fighting.  Sean is the aggressor and he has a tendency to push and punch Christopher for no reason.  One of these days Christopher is going to turn around and punch Sean's lights out!  He's bigger and a little more coordinated at this point.  It's driving me nuts!!  So, in an effort to remember the good times they have with each other, I made this little collage.  It makes me smile and puts me in a happy place :-)

We Had A Party!

Keeping the house clean for House Hunters is hard.  Especially with 3 year old boys.  I swear, if Paul and I turn our backs for 2 seconds, THIS HAPPENS:

House For Sale

Paul and I have been working hard to get our house listed for sale.  We worked day and night and spent a bit of money to stage it properly.  I think it looks fantastic!  Now that we have it up for sale, it looks like we've always wanted it to be.  Ironic.  I know.

Here is our listing, for as long as it's active.  BUT I wanted to massage the pictures just a bit and have them forever as a record of where we lived when the twins were born.  Maybe one day they'll care!

Coldwell Banker listing:
http://11906woodbridgedr.cbapex.com/

Ebby Halliday listing:
http://www.ebby.com/property/22434395/11906-Woodbridge-Drive-Dallas-TX-75243-5026

The Philips Residence 

2007 - 2014?

We live in the Woodbridge Estates in Dallas, Texas.

 

The front of the house has a circle drive.  I love this neighborhood because most houses have this type of circular drive and it keeps the cars off the streets.

 

We have a side garage entry which I love so much.  I prefer not to look at the garage door from the front of the house, but it's a personal preference.  The fence was one of the things that sold us on the house.  It's extra tall and solid!

 

One of the other things that sold us on this house was the incredibly huge backyard.  Paul practices golf back there.  Not kidding.  He does. 

The other side of the yard has a HUGE tree that give tons of shade and helps keep the utility bills down.  There is also a storage shed and a play yard for the kids.

 

The first thing you see when you enter through the front door is the Living Room.  It's huge.  There is a stone fireplace, wood laminate floors (we have dogs and toddlers), high ceilings and built-ins on the far ends of the room.  I love it.  There is an atrium that brings in tons of light.

 

The kitchen is large too.  Paul and I did a lot of work in here from the original kitchen.  We painted the cabinets, retiled the floors (slate), counter tops, and backsplash, painted the walls, and replaced the old appliances with new, stainless steel ones.  This might be my favorite room in the house.  I love the arched windows that look out to the front lawn.

 

The formal Dining Room rarely gets used since we tend to eat in the Eat-In-Kitchen or in front of the television or on the run. :-)  I found that beautiful Chandelier at the outlet store in Allen for $40.00!!  The table and chairs were my Maw-Maws.  I think she would approve of it here.

 

The Eat-In-Kitchen.  It opens up to both the Kitchen and the Living Room.  We retiled (slate) the floors in here and painted the walls the same color as the kitchen.

 

I call this room the Den.  This truly is where we spend most of our time.  It's large and it opens up to the backyard.  This room is connected to the Living Room by the Bar.  When the twins were babies it housed diapers and formula instead of wine and beer.  We called it the Baby Bar. :-)

 

  The house has 4 bedrooms

We separated the twins and gave them separate rooms this year so they would go to sleep instead of wrestling all night.  The "guest" room has a lot of light and the boys call it 'Maureen's Room" since their Aunt Maureen stays here when she comes to visit.

 

The Master Bedroom is large.  Just about every room in this house is large!  There is room for a sitting area and a door that leads out to the backyard.

 

Do I need to say it?  The Master Bathroom is LARGE.  We have back-to-back vanities, a soaking tub, a separate shower and 2 walk-in closets.  It's so big that Paul and I never see each other in here!

We painted the cabinets with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  I swear I will never paint with anything ever again.  This stuff is AWESOME and I love the look.  Easy on and easy to clean off.

 

 

Well, there is the tour.  I love this house and I'm sorry we need to move.  My parents live in Rockwall and we are needing to be closer to them. 

 

"Don't cry because it's over.  Smile because it happened."  ~ Dr. Seuss