There here......

So the family is all back together again....my family that is. My brother, sister and their boys all got into town. We spent Saturday night catching up and hanging out. I made my 'famous' pretzel chicken. Rylee, Mikey, and Jake decided that they were going to camp out in the living room on the air mattress. It was not a very successful camp out - as they all ended up in other bedrooms before morning. What do you do? At least they looked super cute laying there watching a movie for a little while.

On Sunday we went to the Ft. Worth Stockyards. We ended up with a cowboy (Mikey), a cowgirl (Rylee), a trick roper (Tristan), and one good shooter (Jake)!

We went to the Pawnee Bill Wild West Show - which the boys really seemed to enjoy. I was expecting a little more of a show - I guess that's what Disney World will do to you - no ordinary show will do after that place. LOL! Here is a pick of Rylee, Jake, and myself. You can see Tristan sitting next to us. Of course we had to get a pick of some of us in front of a statue. My lovely brother was the first to cross over the fence surrounding it - but Mikey is a follow the rules kind of guy and he refused. Good for you dude! Oh and that twig disguised as a person in the pink shirt - that's my sister. Send all your extra food to her - she needs the calories! LOL! That's about as much adventure as we could take in one day! Stay tuned for Monday's adventures from the arcade/fun place!

We survived cheer camp/retreat weekend...

So much to our surprise Rylee lasted the whole weekend at cheer camp. I know - it's shocking! She had a great time. It was meant to be a team building retreat, and since she is new to this team this year - it was a great opportunity for her to get to know the other girls better. Thought I would share some pictures.

I did it.....Tara will be proud....

So I have to thank my mom for having the paint shop pro software and letting me use it. It took me a few minutes - but I think I learned a few basics. I created this wonderful pick of my Jake Jake that highlights one of his best assets - that adorable red hair. No people - that is not a dye job, it's natural. Let's be honest - I really did it to freak his mean mommy out. She thought Tara's masterpiece of Rylee was scary - thought I would scare her a little more. How do you think it turned out? I LOVE IT! And here is one more that I did because I can't stop......It is one of the character pictures from Disney World. It is from the tea party that we went to with Sleeping Beauty. Also, two from Halloween....I can't stop. This is addictive.

Jake's 4th Birthday party...

Jake Jake turned 4 on the 9th. I cannot believe that he is that old already. I asked him what he wanted for his birthday and he told me a Jump House - from the pictures I saw looks like he got 2. Here are some pictures....

Tara's masterpiece.......

I have to share the pictures that Tara worked her magic touch on. I love them - they are so cool. I can't wait to scrap them. I am off - very busy night. Tomorrow Rylee is going to a weekend long cheerleading camp with her cheer gym. She is going to have a wonderful time - and I can't wait to hear all about it on Sunday.

NKOTB envy......

So Thursday was a great mail day! Those are few and far between with email and blogs. I am ecstatic to say that our NKOTB tickets are in the house. I had to share some pics with everyone.....

I am off to straighten up and clean the house.

My tribute to the Pioneer Woman....

I am not quite sure if this is what the pioneer woman had in mind, but this is for you Rachel. Buttery Nipple Shots.....

The cast of characters

Pour a shot of vodka into a cute pink shot glass

Carefully pour in the irish cream....

Buttery Nipple

and just to make all of you potatoe lovers drool...here are my 'Crashed, Smashed Potatoes'

They were YUMMY! Gotta run!

What happen(s) at scrapbook retreat stays at scrapbook retreat.....

unless you brought your camera and have a blog! LOL! I had a great time being the replacement! Just so you know Amy - even though you weren't there physically, you were there in spirit & scrapbook! We all worked on an Amy layout or two! I think that that my favorite part of going on a retreat is the 20 minutes after we lay down in bed and just talk & laugh like 12 year olds - man that is fun! Of course, we are probably all high on Vick's Vapor Rub! LOL! My other favorite part was the 2:00 in the morning giddy discussion where we gave each other scrapbook retreat names. Here are some photos....I won't share the one that Meredith took of me - cause the bad posture makes for an UGLY picture.

Another memorable moment was Sonic - all I will say is don't come between Donna and her lemons! LOL! And a warning to those who buy shirts at conventions - proofread them before you drop $30.00 bucks on them!!! Can't wait until we do it again!

OMG...I will be Hangin' Tough on 10/19/08

As I earlier professed - I LOVE ME SOME NKOTB! So - you can bet your booty that I got my hot little hands on a pair of tickets.........YEAH! Mere and I will be in section 117 on October 19th. I will look for all of my NKOTB friends..........'cause we all have the right stuff!

When lipstick goes wrong.....

Rylee has always been a fan of the 'liplocks' as she used to call it. I wanted to share this lovely photo of what she looks like after application. I have to give her some props cause she has gotten a little better - but man she really loves the bold look!

Annual WAC Picnic

So this last Saturday was the annual WAC (Wild About Cheer) picnic. Not all of the girls were there, but here is a photo of some of them. I was not looking forward to it, but I have to say that I ended up having a pretty good time. Rylee is on a new team this year, and I am still getting to know all of the moms and girls. Here is a picture of part of the Mini team. I do have to take a minute, and think it is important to note: I DID NOT DRESS RYLEE! She dressed herself - not sure what those socks are about, but whatever! So we had hot dogs, chips, cupcakes, and sodas to eat! Then there were lots of games to play. Rylee and Elysia attempted the three legged race - the became untied at the end. She also attempted the sack race - but wore herself out and got too hot hopping around in it before the race started that she quit. Finally she did the egg relay - and I am happy to say that she did not drop the egg! Here are some photos.

This next picture is my favorite of the evening. I thought I was being a good mom taking pictures of my daughter and her friends to have memories of the good times and this is what I got:

This is so completely my daughter - that his her personality all the way. She sure wasn't sticking that tongue out at me when she needed me to push her! Then she got other people to do it to me....so unfair!

Well I am off to pack my bags to go 'you know where with you know who' this weekend. (Don't want to rub it in to certain folks! LOL)